Muslims, Baptists and Sabeans in Sunday School

Today marked the second (and final, although I’m not sure anything in my class is really “final”) of my Sunday school classes on Islam. We also touched on a number of key points about Baptist identity, which will make for a nice segue into what happens next: I’m going to take a break from teaching my class for the summer, while our pastor offers a summer Sunday school class on “Being Baptist”. I’ll be attending his class for its duration, along with as many of the other regular attendees in my own class as wish to.

In today’s class, I went over the five pillars of Islam, but also emphasized that doing so no more gives a real sense of what Islam means to its followers, than learning some creeds or even reading the Bible would give an impression of what Christianity is.

One of the class participants had read a book by John Ankerberg which claimed that the Qur’an never uses the word “love“. I had my Pocket PC with an English translation of the Qur’an that can be searched, as well as my printed copy of the Yusuf Ali rendering, and so I was able both to point out that this was incorrect. The main point I made in relation to this was that one shouldn’t turn to a Christian apologist for one’s information about Islam (how many Christians would be happy with the impression of their religion given by an apologist for Islam?).

There was also a question about whether Muslims view Christians (and others) as saved. in response to which I read Surah 2:62’s statement (repeated twice more in the Qur’an) on the matter:

Verily, those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], as well as those who follow the Jewish faith, and the Christians, and the Sabeans – all who believe in God and the Last Day and do righteous deeds – shall have their reward with their Sustainer; and no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve.

I resisted the temptation to get sidetracked onto the Sabeans (i.e. the Mandaeans), in spite of my current interest in them. But I was struck this weekend to find in a footnote in the book by Asma Gull Hasan, Red, White, and Muslim: My Story of Belief, which mentioned the Sabeans, said that they might have been followers of St. John, and then went on to claim that they no longer exist!