Author: Jay R. Crook

Publisher: ABC International Group

ISBN : 9781567447460

Language : English

-Binding: Paperback

- Pages: 192

- Description:

- This work compares the Biblical patriarch of Judeo-Christian writings with the more idealized image of him found in the Quran and the Quranic commentary of Surabadi. This volume brings this difference into focus. The Islamic Abraham is a noble, unrelenting, monotheist, a Muslim in the universal sense. Unlike the Biblical Abraham, he does not temporize or compromise his honor. Abraham's relations with Sarah and Hagar are reviewed as is the identity of the sacrifice: Isaac or Ishmael? We also look at infanticide in Canaan. Other topics include: Terah or Azar, the location of Ur, Abraham and the Idols, Abraham and the Fire and the Station of Abraham. As it is part of the Abrahamic cycle, the story of Lot and the destruction of the Cities of the Plain is examined. Abraham's story is preceded by two patriarchal stores drawn from the Quran and Islamic tradition with possible Biblical connections: The Destruction of the People of Hud and Saleh and the Thamud.

- About the Author

- Jay R. Crook (Md. Nur) was born in upstate New York, the second son of a clergman, but spent his formative years in the New York metropolitan area. A chance acquaitance awakened his interest in Islamic culture and civilization, and he soon embraced Islam. After completing his military service and saving some money, he traveled to East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) to study for a few years. He wound up spending most of his working life in the Middle East, especially in Iran and Saudi Arabia. Hired by the Peace Corps as a field representative, he finished in 1971 as Deputy Director in the Iran program. He then enrolled in the Doctoral Program of Persian Literature for Foreigners at Tehran University and received his Ph.D. in 1978. His doctoral thesis was A Comparison of the Quranic Stories of Surabadi With the Bible. Much revised and expanded, it has become the core of The New Testament: an Islamic Perspective and its companion volume The Old Testament: an Islamic Perspective. Subsequent to leaving Iran in 1980, he worked as an English teacher in the U.S. and Saudi Arabia before retiring in 1997. He now resides in the American Southwest and has translated several books from Persian into English, including Kashifi’s The Royal Book of Spiritual Chivalry and Ghazzali’s The Alchemy of Happiness.