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28 ON MUHAMMADAN DIFFICULTIES IN GENERAL

the most part unmeaning and hence extremely feeble to a Muslim. This often arises from his ignorance.

The line of argument which a missionary has to use, therefore, must be accommodated to the limits of his opponent's knowledge or comprehension. Being himself inclined to suppress or even deny facts known to be true when necessary for his argument, the Muslim does not credit the Christian with any higher regard for truth than he entertains himself. It is necessary therefore to argue from facts which the Muslim deems incontrovertible. Hence we frequently have to appeal to the testimony of the Qur'an in support of our arguments, occasionally introducing the evidence of Muhammadan tradition and Muslim commentaries. Only when we have proved the genuineness and authority of the Holy Scriptures is it permissible for us to appeal, with any hope of effect, to the Bible.

One must not be surprised at finding among Muhammadan controversialists a great want of logic, though much pretence to a knowledge of it. They often mistake illustration for argument, and are especially skilled in the dialectic feat known as "petitio principii." Against this the missionary must be continually on his guard.

These all constitute difficulties in the way of the acceptance of the Gospel by Muhammadans. They are not "Muhammadan Objections," but they are very real Muhammadan difficulties, and have to be reckoned with as such.

CHAPTER II.

OBJECTIONS AGAINST THE GENUINENESS
OF THE BIBLE AS IT NOW EXISTS.

1. "How I do pity you Christians!" said a Mulla to a missionary recently; "you have no Holy Book now."

The meaning of this is that the Mulla believed that the Old and New Testaments as we now have them are corrupted, and are therefore unworthy of consideration. At one time this opinion was firmly held by all Muslims, and it is still the general conviction of Muhammadans in all lands except perhaps in India. There many learned Muslims confess that our Bible exists just in the same state as it did in Muhammad's day. This is one result of Pfander's, Sir W. Muir's, 'Imadu'ddin's Safdar 'Alis, and other controversial works. But even in India the unlearned frequently bring forward this objection, asserting that the Jews and Christians have corrupted the Bible. In proof of this they assert that the Qur'an states that the Bible has been rendered tahrif1 (muharraf). Others declare that, on His Ascension, our Lord


1 The word strictly means "corrupted through the transposition of letters in certain words." But Muslims often employ the term to denote mere serious corruption of the text.

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