How can these books be God's revelation if they resemble hadith?

[ This is an English translation of the Turkish page ] 

The life and teaching of the prophets common to Judaism, Christianity and Islam are found in the books presented on this website. Of course, adherents of any faith who look beyond their own faith to other faiths will tend to view them through the lens of their own faith. Believers are free, not confined by their own beliefs, but when they explore the revelation received by others they must remember that different relevations have their own theological principles. Among the beautiful revelations to consider are the faith of people who accept the Holy Bible. The Bible includes the Torah of Moses, the Psalms of David,  and the Glorious Gospel of Jesus.

Some scholars of religion say that the Bible is not revelation but only a kind of hadith (traditional accounts of a prophet's life). This view cannot be accepted. If they thus belittle the Bible, why do they call our three faiths the "heavenly religions"? Forcing a clash between the revelation experienced by our own prophet and another prophet limits and prejudices our encounter with God's gift. The way of Moses, David and Jesus together are a revelation of the divine voice, a heavenly gift of salvation. They came forth at different times in different ways. They were received and transmitted to us by prophets with their different experiences of life and the influence of the cultural values of their time and place. They were recorded by different people in different styles at different times and places.

Revelation occurred not only in the writing down of God's Word; it received its highest expression in the resurrection from the dead of our Master Jesus. This expression of God's revelation had been awaited from the beginning and reached its summit in the resurrection. The scribes of this revelation recorded it for our benefit as though in photos taken from different angles. By such means God Most High has drawn a picture for us of the divine truth. This truth is experienced by humankind as a river flowing down through the ages and into our hearts.

Theological expositions, moral commandments, poetic material and historical records of the Word of the Creator as spoken to the prophets are included in the Bible. In the case of the Noble Koran it would not be right to belittle it simply because its literary form consists not only of divine commandments, but also of prophetic counsel, historical explanations, and poetic flourishes. Though originally expounded by one person only, the Koran features virtually all the literary forms we see in the Bible. Examples of this congruence include the poetic form of some of the passages in the Lokman Sura, as well as historical chronicles explaining the ministry of the Joseph and Moses, or various passages about Job.

So although our readers may feel that the word of revelation in the Bible is a little different from the Koran, we hope that the books published on this web site will help them understand the Word of God not only from their own perspective but also with open hearts inspired with living truth.