Hey Western Washington!

Dear Friends of the Seattle G. K. Chesterton Society,

We invite you to join us next Thursday evening for our final gathering of this season at the Catholic Newman Center of the University of Washington, located at 4502 20th Avenue NE, Seattle, WA 98105.

Thursday, May 12, 2011, at 7:30 PM, UW Newman Center

The New Testament and the Qur’an:
Witness to Christ, or the “Word made Book”?

Dr. Peter Beaulieu
Director and Founding Member
Seattle G. K. Chesterton Society

In Islam, it is not so much the Bible that is supplanted by the Qur’an as it is the incarnate Christ. The Bible provides “inspired” witness to the fact of Christ in history, while for the followers of Islam the Qur’an, literally “dictated” (in Arabic), is itself a book that participates in the divinity. To Christ as the “Word made flesh” (John 1:14), Islam opposes the “word made book.”

With this clarification, it nevertheless remains useful and fascinating to compare the testimony of the Bible — especially the New Testament — with the Qur’an. How did each begin, and what are their similar and contrasting teachings? The Christian will find that his understanding of the Triune oneness of God, and of a God who is both transcendent and yet infinitely close to us (the Incarnation), can be deepened by an encounter with a world religion influenced in part by early Christian heresies (Nestorianism and Arianism) that denied the unified personhood of Christ as both fully human and fully divine.

Peter Beaulieu is a founding member of the Seattle Chesterton Society and serves on its board of directors. A retired urban planner, Dr. Beaulieu has published articles in the area of religion and culture. This evening’s talk is based on his recently completed manuscript, Beyond Secular-ism and Jihad: A Triangular Inquiry into the Mosque, the Manger and Modernity.

Please see our full Events Calendar for more details pertaining to meetings. Parking at the Newman Center is extremely limited. It is recommended that commuters park in the nearby “N5” lot on the University campus, accessible via the north gate at NE 45th St and Memorial Way. The fee for evening parking in the University lots is $5.00. Campus maps showing the exact location of the N5 lot are available here.

We look forward to seeing you next Thursday!

Yours faithfully,

The Seattle G. K. Chesterton Society