Islamic Propagation Society International (ipsi)

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Origin Of 4 Gospels : Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

-Present Bible is not divinely ordained but it is imperial in design. It has been adopted according to the wishes and command of a Roman Emperor.

-Constantine, some 325 years after the departure of Jesus as at that time there were 700 Gospels in circulation, each projecting its own point of view. Some were Unitarians whereas others were Trinitarians. There were serious religious cross–currents causing law and order problems in the Roman Empire.

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-So, the then Roman Emperor called a meeting of all religious schools of thought. Some 2048 Bishops assembled to sort out the matters of Christianity. They were there to decide what should be authorized as word of God for Bible. -They

discussed, argued and had heated debates for about 3 months. Then Emperor Constantine himself came in and prevailed over the meeting. He disqualified and dismissed outright 1730 Bishops from the meeting. That left only 318 Bishops who’re pro-Roman Empire and pro- Emperor Constantine. They considered selecting 50 Gospels out of 700. Finally, only 4 Gospels were chosen, i.e. of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were man-made and artificial. Unfortunately, Jesus did not leave any written record of his sayings and preaching. Hence, the contradictions and confusions. There are so many 3 Gospels but there is no original, authentic Gospel of ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY Jesus. INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

-Jesus spoke in Aramaic, which was a sister language to Arabic. The Gospels first appeared in Greek, then in Latin, then in English and so forth

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King James Version (1611) 1 John 5 : 7 -“For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and Holy Ghost : and these three are one.”

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Revised Standard Version (1952) 1 John 5 : 7 -“Taken out, replaced with And the Spirit is the witness, because the Spirit is the truth.”

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HISTORICAL VIEWS ON PAUL

THE REAL FOUNDER OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION’ ‘

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Carl Sagan (Scientist; Author) -“My long-time view about Christianity is that it represents an amalgam of two seemingly immiscible parts – the religion of Jesus and the religion of Paul. Thomas Jefferson attempted to excise the Pauline parts of the New Testament. There wasn’t much left when he was done, but it was an inspiring document.” (Letter to Ken Schei – author of Christianity Betrayed)

Albert Schweitzer -“Where possible Paul avoids quoting the teaching of Jesus, in fact even mentioning it. If we had to rely on Paul, we should not know that Jesus taught in parables, had delivered the Sermon on the Mount, and had taught His disciples the ‘Our Father’. Even where they are specially relevant, Paul passes over 7 the words of the Lord.”(All references not listed here, can be found in Christianity Betrayed) ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Thomas Jefferson (USA President) -“Paul was the first corrupter of doctrines of Jesus.” Will Durant (Philosopher) -“Paul created a theology of which none but the vaguest warrants can be found in the words of Christ. Fundamentalism is the triumph of Paul over Christ.”

Walter Kaufmann (Professor of Philosophy, Princeton) -“Paul substituted faith in Christ for the Christ like life.” 8 ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

George Bernard Shaw -“No sooner had Jesus knocked over the dragon of superstition than Paul boldly set it on its legs again in the name of Jesus.” Thomas Hardy -“The New Testament was less a Christiad than a Pauliad.” Jeremy Bentham (English Philosopher) -“If Christianity needed an Anti-Christ, they needed look no farther than Paul.” (Paraphrased. Looking for a copy of “Not Paul, but Jesus” in order to retrieve the exact quote.)

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Carl Jung (Psychologist) -“Paul hardly ever allows the real Jesus of Nazareth to get a word in.”(U.S News and World Report, April 22, 1991, p. 55)

Bishop John S. Spong (Episcopal Bishop of Newark) -“Paul’s words are not the Words of God. They are the words of Paul – a vast difference.”(Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism, p. 104, Harper San Francisco, 1991) 10 ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Abou Allie (A Muslim Missionary Scholar of the Christian Bible)

-“I believe that in all fairness Paul should be permitted to speak for himself” : Paul’s letter to the Romans, 3:7 “But if through my lie, God’s truthfulness abounds to His glory, why am I still being condemned as a sinner.” Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, 12:16 “But be it so, I did not burden you: nevertheless being crafty, I caught you with guile.” This fellow Paul – the real founder of Christianity – had a lot of nerve. He instructed his Gentile converts in his letter to the Galatians: “Even if an angel sent by God from heaven with a new gospel revelation other than that which we preached, 11 let him be accursed.” (curse him out) Gal. 1:8. ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Thomas Paine (A close friend of Ben Franklin and Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson comments about Paul) -“Sometimes Paul affects to be a naturalist and to prove his system of resurrection from the principles of vegetation. “Thou fool (he says), that which sowest is not quickened, except it die.” To which one might reply in his own language and say, “Thou fool Paul, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die not; for the grain that dies in the ground never does, and cannot vegetate. It is only the living grain that produces the next crop.” But the metaphor, in any point of view, is no simile. It is a succession and not resurrection. The progress of an animal from one state 12 to being another, as from a worm to a butterfly, applies to his case; but this of grain does not, and ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Hyam Macoby (Talmudic Jewish Scholar) -“As we have seen, the purposes of the book of Acts is to minimize the conflict between Paul and the leaders of the Jerusalem Church, James and Peter. Peter and Paul, in later Christian tradition, became twin saints, brothers in faith, and the idea that they were historically bitter opponents standing for irreconcilable religious standpoints would have been repudiated with horror. The work of the author of Acts was well done; he rescued Christianity from the imputation of being the individual creation of Paul and instead gave it a respectable pedigree, as a doctrine with the authority of the so-called Jerusalem Church, conceived as a continuous in spirit with the Pauline Gentile Church of Rome. Yet, for all his efforts, the truth of the matter is not hard to recover, if we examine the New Testament evidence with an eye to tell-tale inconsistencies and confusions, rather than with the determination to gloss over and harmonize all difficulties in 13 the interest of an orthodox interpretation.” (The Mythmaker, p.139, Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London, 1986) ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

CHURCH BUILDINGS Furnishing s

Cathedrals

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Introduction Some of the furnishings found in churches are common to a number of denominations. They are illustrated and described here.

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Altar or communion table The Altar or table is the place at which the Eucharist (by whatever name it is known in that particular denomination) is celebrated. At one time, in Catholic and Anglican churches, it was usual for the altar to be against the end wall of the church. The priest would stand by the altar with his back to the people, as if praying to God ‘out there’. Now it is much more usual for the priest to face the people, as though they were a family gathered round a table with God among them. 16 ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

The word altar reminds Christians of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. (In the Old Testament an altar was a place where sacrifice was offered). The word table reminds them of the Eucharist as a meal shared with Jesus and with the Church, his followers. There are usually candles on the altar, symbolizing Jesus as the light of the world. There is usually a crucifix or a cross on, above or behind the altar. Often the altar is decorated with flowers. Note that in a Quaker meeting house the table serves a different purpose. The Bible and other Quaker books are placed on it, to be used if someone feels moved to read to the meeting. 18 ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Pulpit The pulpit is the place for preaching. It is usually raised so that the preacher can be seen and heard. In some churches, the Bible readings are read and even the whole service led from the pulpit 19 ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Lectern The lectern is the place for reading the scriptures. In some churches, the preacher may preach from the lectern.

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Font

 The font is the place for baptism in most churches where people (usually infants) are baptized by sprinkling or pouring water on the forehead. Often, especially in older buildings, it is near the door of the church, as by baptism Christians enter the Church. In other churches, especially modern buildings or ones that have been redesigned, the font is in full view of the congregation. The whole church can see the new member being admitted and can join in the welcome together.

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Baptistery The baptistery is a sunken pool in which people (adults or young people old enough to understand and choose to be baptized) are baptized by total immersion.

inside the baptistery 22 ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

Lincoln Cathedral (Anglican) towers majestically over the city.

Anglicans, Orthodox and Roman Catholics have cathedrals as well as the smaller local places of worship.

The Anglican and Catholic Churches are organized in dioceses. Some dioceses are huge, especially in countries where there are few Christians. The leader in each dioceses is the bishop. Each diocese is divided into parishes. A cathedral is the central place of worship, the mother church of a diocese. So, the headquarters of each diocese is not an office or a hall but a place of worship, a cathedral.

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The word ‘cathedral’ comes from Latin word cathedra – seat or throne. The bishop does not have the responsibility of the daily worship at the cathedral; his ministry is to the whole diocese. The regular worship is the responsibility of a group of clergy based at the cathedral, the chief of whom may be known as the dean or provost. The altar, pulpit and lectern can be seen in the vast nave of the cathedral. Behind the 24 altar is the organ ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY screen. INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

A cathedral has all the basic features of a church of the same denomination. For instance, an Anglican cathedral has a main altar, a lectern, a pulpit and a font. It is much larger than an ordinary church, as it is sometimes used for services attended by thousands of people. Everything is on a larger, grander scale. Each cathedral is different from others in a distinctive way.

The Liverpool’s modern Metropolitan Cathedral (Catholic). The lantern on top of the cathedral is in the shape of a crown, representing Christ the King to whom the cathedral is dedicated. The design therefore has a message to those who see it from outside.

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Thousands of people visit cathedrals every year,  some come as regular worshippers; every cathedral has it own regular congregation of local people who use the cathedral for worship as others use a parish church.  others come to visit the cathedral because it is a great and beautiful house of God.  some come as pilgrims to worship at the cathedral, perhaps as part of a large number of worshippers coming together for some special celebration.  many people come, of course, as tourists. They may come as Christians or simply as people who enjoy fine buildings. The staff of the cathedral have a ministry to all these people. They will try to help them see the cathedral in such a way as to show the Christians beliefs and values that the building represents. There will almost always be someone in the cathedral, usually a priest, to whom people can speak privately if they wish about any spiritual matter that 26 interests or concerns them. ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

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Holy Day ASH WEDNESDAY -marks the beginning of the season of Lent

LENT -usually begins towards the end of February, spanning a period of 40 days.

Meaning

What To Do

Interesting Information

Observed mostly amongst This is a normal working Roman Catholics and day. However, some Anglicans. It is a solemn people may wish to attend festival and during the church services, usually service, the priest inscribe after hours. a cross of ash on the foreheads of the worshippers to remind them of their mortality. On this day, worshippers pray for forgiveness and pledge to atone for their sins.

This day marks the 40-day period leading up to Easter. Like Yom Kippur and Ramadhan, Christians also observe a period of spiritual preparation. This preparation may take the form of fasting, special times for prayer, and or abstinence from particular pleasures.

This is a period of spiritual Churches may have upliftment. Worshippers are special weekday services expected to be involved during this period. Many with projects that help the Catholics and Protestants poor. abstain from eating meat and/or refrain from other pleasure over Lent.

This period commemorates Jesus fasting in the wilderness. This period lasts from Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday, the Saturday before Easter Day.

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Holy Day

Meaning

What To Do

Interesting Information

PALM SUNDAY

A special service is dedicated to honour the entry of Jesus – on the back of a donkey into Jerusalem.

EASTER SUNDAY

Resurrection of Jesus from Many Roman Catholic Easter Day is the first the dead. Cathedrals hold on Easter Sunday after the Paschal vigil on the Saturday full moon. Easter cannot evening. On Sunday fall earlier than 22 March morning, church services and or after 25 April. are held to commemorate Baptism is encouraged the resurrection. It is a during Holy Week, joyous occasion for particularly over Easter. Christian believers. Sunday Thousands of members of trading hours may apply the Zion Christian Church, and some staff may choose gather at Moria outside not to work so as to attend Pietersburg to mark this church. day. It is the largest annual church gathering in the country. It was formerly a common belief that the sun ‘danced’ on Easter. 29

-the Sunday preceding good Friday

Churches may proceed through the streets, singing, praying and carrying palms.

This is one of the major Christian festivals, recognized by all mainstream denominations. It marks the beginning of Holy Week

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Holy Day

Meaning

What To Do

ASCENSION DAY

The Ascension of Christ into heaven is celebrated.

MAUNDY THURSDAY / HOLY THURSDAY

The word ‘Maundy’ is An evening service derived from the Latin word commemorates the meal ‘mandatum’ eaten by Jesus with the (commandment). The new disciples before his commandment issued by crucifixion. Maundy money Christ to ‘love one another is given to the poor. as I have loved you.’ At the end of this day in biblical history, the Last Supper was held. The washing of feet during the service commemorates Jesus act of washing the feet of the disciples at the Last Supper.

-the 40th day after Easter

Interesting Information

Some followers may This day used to be a request a small portion of national public holiday. the working day to attend a church service, although services are generally held in the evening. Jesus is believed to have instituted the Eucharist (Holy Communion) at this Last Supper. The Eucharist is a Christian sacrament which also forms part of the communion service, held either as one of the rites of initiation or as a regular part of church services. The word Eucharist is derived from the Greek word eukharistos, ‘Thankful’.

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Holy Day

Meaning

Crucifixion of Jesus GOOD FRIDAYThe Christ.

CHRISTMAS DAY

What To Do

Interesting Information

This is a sombre, The word Good derived significant day for from the Old English practicing Christians. meaning of word ‘pious, Practicing Christians attend holy.’ According to New church on this day. Almost Testament, Christ was all retail stores are closed , crucified on the Friday that even in tourist areas. marked the beginning of Passover, after the Last Supper.

The festival of the nativity of All office and most retail Jesus the Christ (the stores are closed. Church anointed one) services are held. Most gifts and greetings are exchanged just prior the Christmas.

The Christmas tree: a conifer or fir tree – a tradition borrowed from Germany. The Christmas card: the first commercial was produced in 1846. Santa Claus and his reindeer were introduced to Britain in 1840, with the marriage of Queen Victoria to Prince Albert. The festival have possible links with the Jewish celebration of Chanukah – the Festival of Lights31(25th day of the Hebrew month of Kislev).

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 No. This is not true. All evidence show that the Qur’an could not have been copied from the Bible. Take for example the story of the Flood that occurred in the days of the prophet Noah (pbuh). This event is narrated in both the Bible and the Qur’an. A careful examination of the two versions will show that the Qur’anic version could have come from no other source but God alone.

 One important difference between the two accounts is that whereas the Bible describes the Flood as worldwide flood (see Genesis ch. 7) the Qur’an mentions it as a local flood affecting the people of Noah (see Qu’ran 57:59-64). Today it is acknowledge that no record exists of a worldwide flood occurring at the time specified in the Bible. How did the 33 author of the Qur’an avoid this mistake unless the author was God Himself? ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

 The closest thing in history to a flood like the one described in the Bible and the Qur’an is a discovery made by Archaeologist Sir Charles Leonard Wooley. In 1929 he discovered remains from a flood which occurred around 4000 B.C. His findings are described in the book entitled The Bible as History by Werner Keller. Keller tells us “the incredible discovery at Ur made headline news in the United States and in Britain” (The Bible as History, 2nd Revised Edition, Bantam Books, 1980, p.27) But was this a worldwide flood? After describing the extent of the flood, Keller explains: “Looking at the map we would call it today ‘a local occurrence’” (p.28) “In other words,” writes Keller, that flood was “obviously not of sufficient magnitude for the Biblical flood” (p.29). Furthermore, he says: “A flood of unimaginable extent described in the Bible still remains ‘archaeologically not 34 demonstrated’” (p. 29-30) ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)

 Another comparison will again demonstrate that the Qur’an was not copied from the Bible. In the Bible, we are told that God drowned the Pharaoh and his army when they pursued Moses (pbuh) and his people (see Exodus 14:28). The clear indication is that description that the body of Pharaoh perished in the sea. However, the Qur’an dared to differ and proved true. In the Qur’an we find that God promised to preserve the body of Pharaoh as a sign for later generations (see Qur’an, 10:90-92)

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 True to the Qur’anic promise, the mummified body of the Pharaoh was discovered by Loret in 1898 at Thebes in the King’s Valley (see The Bible, the Qur’an and Science by Dr Maurice Bucaille, p.238). From there it was transported to Cairo. Elliot Smith removed its wrapping on July 8, 1907 and gave a detailed description in his book entitled The Royal Mummies (1912).

 From which source did the author of the Qur’an derive this information? How did the author of the Qur’an know that the Pharaoh’s body was preserved whereas the knowledge that the ancient Egyptians mummified their dead was not discovered until recently? And how could the author of the Qur’an predict that the body of the Pharaoh will be 36 discovered later, unless the author was God Himself? ISLAMIC PROPAGATION SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL (IPSI)