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From Jihad to Jesus: An Ex-Militant’s Journey of Faith

Book Review
  • Approximate Time Commitment: 10 minutes

FROM JIHAD TO JESUS: An Ex-Militant’s Journey of Faith by Jerry Rassamni is the account of the conversion of Jerry Rassamni, a former Druze Muslim from Lebanon. This book review was written by Hank Griffith of South Suburban Evangelical Free Church in Apple Valley, Minnesota. This book is good for those seeking how to reach the Islamic community. It will give readers an understanding of the Islamic faith and will help Christians converse with Muslims.

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Resource Description

Full Review:

From Jihad to Jesus is the account of the conversion of Jerry Rassamni, a former Druze Muslim from Lebanon. (FYI – many Muslims do not consider the Druze to be true Muslims, but you can research that discussion on your own.) Rassamni’s conversion to Christianity occurred as a result of his coming to America for alleged medical reasons, then falling in love with a young Christian woman in Houston. To marry her, he had to promise that he would attend church with her. He agreed, secretly thinking this would give him a chance to learn more about the Bible so he could prove it to be full of errors. However, through the power of the Word of God and the sincere love he saw in Christians, Rassamni came to perceive the truth of Christianity and put his faith in Jesus Christ. He now serves as an evangelist and apologist.

Besides being the fascinating story of Rassamni’s conversion, From Jihad to Jesus is an examination of the veracity of the claims of Islam regarding the Qur’an, the prophet Muhammad, Allah, and Muslim customs. As an apologist, Rassamni seeks to prove the falseness of Islam through research, reason, and the comparison with the infallible Word of God.  After much research, here are a few of his conclusions:

The Qur’an:

“Although the Qur’an claims to be divinely inspired, it is unsystematic and is full of scientific, grammatical, historical, and textual errors. It has contradictions, incoherencies, imperfections, plagiarisms, pagan influences, discrepancies, fallacies, and abrogation. The notion that the Qur’an is heavenly in origin is intellectually embarrassing.”

The Prophet Muhammad:

“The prophet Muhammad was a prophet-king seduced by luxury, women, riches, and affluence instead of an ascetic biblical prophet who set his sight on the Creator and the afterlife. He died as the largest landowner in the Arabian Peninsula. Muhammad led many wars, assassinated his enemies, and performed no substantiated miracles. He lost wars, was injured in a war, and was poisoned by one of his victims, which hastened his death. Furthermore, Islam’s prophet had no witnesses to attest to his purported ascension to heaven.”

Allah:

“Having examined firsthand historical and archaeological evidence, one concludes that Allah is not the God of the Bible. Instead, he is the pagan moon god whom Abraham and his family worshiped as one of 360 deities in the pagan pantheon in Mecca along with his daughters, Al-Lat, Al-Uzza, and Manat during the days of the prophet Muhammad. Allah was the chief deity in the pantheon with his iconic moon that later became the symbol of Islam.”

Muslim customs:

“What good are Islam’s pillars if they are powerless to guarantee salvation? It’s futile to follow a set of rules when a person knows they will not provide the assurance of salvation. The Ahadith, the traditions relating to the sayings and doing of Islam’s prophet, carry the greatest authority after the Qur’an. They are entertaining, but they are also troubling. It is puzzling how stories of monkeys stoning monkeys, as well as people ingesting camels’ urine, or performing amazing sexual feats as featured in the Ahadith could pertain to one’s spiritual enlightenment. Furthermore, it defies reason that diabolical, murdering jihadists are duped into believing that by killing the innocent, they are rewarded with seventy-two virgins for a sexual orgy in paradise.  Although Islam markets itself as a natural religion of reason, the Ahadith throw all natural reason to the wind. “

I’m by no means a specialist in Islam. Thus, I’m not in a position to truly evaluate this book, but I found it both inspiring and educational and believe it can be used to educate Christians to some talking points with Muslims. Possibly (?) it could be given to a Muslim who is a genuine seeker, but you should read it and make that decision for yourself in light of the person to whom you would like to give it.

In my opinion, some of the most helpful information in this 200-page book is found in the appendix comparing Islam and Christianity and in the glossary of terms used in Islam.

Youtube of Jerry Rassamni: Jerry Rassamni’s story

Jerry Rassamni’s home page:  http://www.fromjihadtojesus.com/index.html

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