Article from an 'Insider'

Mazhar Mallouhi is an amazing man.  He has followed Christ from a Muslim background for many years, translated the Bible and commentaries for a Muslim audience, and has been persecuted for his faith. A book has been written about his faith journey called Pilgrims of Chrsit on the Muslim Road: Exploring a new path between two faiths.

He wrote an article recently for St. Francis magazine... a periodical about the topic of mission to Muslims.  I'd encourage you to read his writing on the issue if 'Insider movements' a recent phenomenon of missionaries seeking to reach Muslims by encouraging them to remain in their Islamic cultural context.  This is the latest and most heated debate among missioners in the Muslim world.  Those opposed say it crosses into syncretism, proponents argue for a more holistic view of life and faith.   

Read this month's and last month's issues of the magazine to understand more about both perspectives. Here are some poigniant quotes from Mr. Mallouhi's article:

"I am perplexed by the unfair treatment that Muslim people are given by the Protestant missions movement... If I were a Jewish believer continuing to call myself a Jew and remaining inside my Jewish community, I would be lauded by most of the Christian West. My experience is that most Jewish ideology rejects the entirety of the New Testament and often reviles our Lord; yet even with those obstacles, believers that remain inside Judaism do not undergo the same scrutiny by Christians."

"I realize that as Christians engaging with Muslims, some may want to act in a way that makes them feel triumphant - like St. Boniface triumphantly cutting down a tree in defiance of paganism - but we do not need to crush the other person in order to share our light and truth."

"I am convinced that Christians aren’t required to dislike Islam in order to engage it. Finally, I would like to encourage my friends, acquaintances and fellow laborers from the West to earnestly and honestly ask themselves how much of their attitude towards Muslims is a result of political opinions, xenophobia, a
post cold-war clash of civilizations, or being caught in the trap of dueling religions. Even as my brothers and sisters commit to this sort of self-introspection, I also pledge to search out the planks in my own eye. May the Peace of our Lord be upon us all."

May we all exhibit such humility.