Customer Reviews

The Last Trumpet

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Dr. Shahid has succeeded in making the subject of Islamic eschatology accessible to curious Christians and Muslims alike. A fair and very balanced treatment. This is the book to read for anyone who wishes to understand this subject without endeavoring a thorough or exhaustive study of their own. Dr. Shahid also highlights many parallels to Christian eschatology and shows how many of the Islamic traditions were most likely borrowed or distorted versions of Christian, Jewish, Gnostic and Zorastrian traditions. This subject is going to become very important over the next few years as the public becomes aware of the importance of Islamic apocalyptic belief to the various fundamentalist groups out there planning our demise. Buy this book and put it with your other references. Five stars.

Dr. Shahid's book is not just for the scholarly, but for everyone interested in understanding Islam and how it contrasts with Christianity. While many might utilize this well researched and well written volumn for their own research, many will find it quite enlightening at a critical time in the history of the confluence of both religions. Dr. Shahid's background is deeply seated in both faiths providing the reader with an unusual opportunity to contemplate both. His writing style makes the subject come alive further serving to recommend this book to a wide audience.

The author has rounded up a lot of references in various areas of Islamic eschatology, and for this we owe him a debt of gratitude. However, it's not balanced, scholarly or objective, and sets out, not to compare the eschatologies of Christianity and Islam, but to prove an inherent deficiency in Islam vis-a-vis Christianity. Additionally, this book really could have used another round of editing, as grammatical and other mistakes are far more common than what I would expect from a scholarly text.