Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity

I absolutely loved this book! It is both a biographical account of Qureshi’s personal journey to accepting Jesus Christ as Savior, and a presentation of historical evidence and intellectual arguments for the truth of Christianity. It is certainly a fascinating and compelling journey well worth reading!

It also gave me more insight into Islam and Muslims than any other reading I have done. I have learned about the basic beliefs and practices of the religion in a classroom, but this is the first real glimpse I have had of how actual Muslim people and families live their lives in the Western world. I must admit, there are several things I admire about their religious culture: for one, the way their entire daily routine is centered around show more worshipping God; and for another, how they train their children, practically from birth, to understand and defend their faith in-depth. I think Christians would do well to follow their example in those respects, so that we wouldn’t take for granted that God is the center of our lives and deserves praise in all things, and so the next generation would be better equipped to discuss and defend their beliefs with anyone who asks.

Qureshi paints a vivid picture of his life, faith, and family, his path to accepting Jesus as Lord and the consequences of that decision, the historical and logical arguments for changing his beliefs and the personal encounters he had with the personal God. I would recommend this book to anyone! show less

Qureshi, the son of Pakistani immigrants to America and a Muslim from birth, narrates the story of and reason for his conversion to Christianity in this work of apologetics. Even though I don’t agree with all of his points, this is a very well-written book, and I appreciate Qureshi’s tone of charity and love toward Muslims even as he comes to disagree with central tenets of Islamic doctrine.

Qureshi’s book presents many of the major apologist arguments against Islamic belief: the text criticism of the Qur’an, the historicity of the crucifixion and resurrection, the violence of Muhammad as the leader of early Islam. But what makes Qureshi’s book different from a typical book or theology or philosophy is that he interweaves these show more arguments throughout a memoir of his deconversion from Islam and conversion to Christianity. The main instigator of his conversion was his college friendship with Christian apologist David Wood. Wood and Qureshi were not only best friends, but also fellow members of their college debate team. As they grew closer practicing for debate tournaments together, they engaged in their own years-long debates over the rationality of belief in Islam versus Christianity.

These debates culminate in the end of the book in Qureshi’s accepting Christ. But for most of the book, Qureshi is a Muslim – and his best friend is a Christian. For Qureshi, their friendship was precisely what allowed them to debate their deeply-held personal beliefs. Their conversations arose from being in the same classes, going to the same debate tournaments, and being best friends. Throughout it is clear to me that Wood cares about Qureshi as a person, not just as a person to be converted. I really liked how their friendship enabled difficult conversations to take place.

And Qureshi delivers on his promise. Unlike some deconversion narratives, his does not depict his previous religion and its adherents as depraved, violent, or monolithic. Instead he stresses the diversity of Muslims (57), emphasizes that Islam is not as rigid as some think (69), mentions that Islam has a “highly developed notion of morality” (110), and honestly assesses that “if by Islam we mean the beliefs of Muslims, then Islam can be a religion of peace or a religion of terror, depending on how it is taught” (115). Qureshi doesn’t paint all Muslims with the same brush or attack their religion in unfair ways. He is charitable.

Qureshi was not a convicted life-long Christian who read a few books on Islam and decided that it was incorrect, but a Muslim from birth who loved his faith. Throughout the book he makes it clear that it very painful for him to come to the conclusion that the central Islamic tenets he was taught growing up were not rationally defensible. Muslims for him were not some far-away group of people, but his parents, whom he loves so much that he dedicated this book to them. Even though many Muslims would disagree with his conclusions, and I don’t agree with all of them either, to me he speaks more authentically because of his personal journey. show less

I found this man's story quite powerful. He relates how he grew up in a Muslim household, the son of immigrant parents--and he shares some very insightful thoughts on the tensions that arise between parents who are rooted in the customs and culture of where they grew up, and their children who grow up in America. Part of what made his experiences different from those of his parents was his exposure to Christians. He and his family found their arguments and attempts to evangelize them laughable, until Nabeel met David Wood. David is a serious Christian and he challenges Nabeel to prove that his beliefs are wrong. Nabeel and David engage in many back and forth arguments about Christianity--all while maintaining a lively friendship. Things show more become frightening for Nabeel when he begins to find his assumptions about Christian beliefs are wrong - and that some of the things he has been taught about his own religion can't stand up to the facts of history. Nabeel knows that to denounce Islam and become a Christian will deeply hurt his family and separate him from them, but he can't deny that he has been deeply affected by what he has learned. Eventually he does decide to become a Christian.
As Nabeel shares his story the reader learns a lot about how his family practiced their faith, what they believed about Christians and the Bible, and about the different arguments David and Nabeel both used to defend their positions. I found this very enlightening and it was intriguing to get a look into a Muslim household and learn about their way of life. Nabeel shares from his heart the emotions and ups and downs of his journey as well, engaging the reader in a moving story.
I highly recommend this book. show less

I really enjoyed this book. Easily readable (chapters are only a few pages long and terminology is highlighted in sidebars).

The title clearly describes the subject, but I wasn’t sure exactly how the author would relate his personal journey of coming to Christ. That curiosity was quickly overcome by how the author discussed his early life and his family, how he was taught his Islam belief, and perhaps best of all, core tenets of his belief. The discussion of the tenets of his faith helped me understand a lot about how differences in Western/Christian and Islamic cultures can lead to conflict.

The book could serve as a primer on how to talk about the Christian faith not only with a Muslim but also with just non-Christians/atheists.
I show more highly recommend! show less

Nabeel Qureshi penned Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus to chronicle his life as a Muslim and his conversion to Christianity. In so doing he gave us a great key to better understanding Islam as well as a call to evaluate our own religious beliefs.

Mr. Qureshi spends the first several chapters chronicling his childhood and his parents’ efforts to raise an upstanding, committed Muslim son. This material isn’t all that exciting but important, and he keeps these chapters short and lively. He provides perspectives into Islam I had not expected, ways in in which his religious upbringing mirrors my own.

For me personally that’s one of the greatest contributions of this book: putting a human face to Islam. Not from someone half a world away show more fighting on behalf of some sect I only know about from the news but from a guy who had trouble fitting in as he grew up here in America with similar challenges to successfully living his faith. And Mr. Qureshi also describes accounts of challenging Christians, nominal and committed alike, in attempts to show the superiority of Islam over Christianity, and I hope this challenges every reader to know why he or she believes as they do.

I recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand Islam and/or Christianity better, how they are similar, and how they differ. I pray you don’t come away the same. show less

I’ve been looking forward to Nabeel Qureshi’s book Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus ever since I heard Ravi Zacharias mention it. I have been curious about what Islam truly teaches and how it compares to Christianity for some time. Don’t worry. Qureshi’s book is not a scholarly tome. It is an inspiring autobiography and testimony that illustrates that God loves us enough to pursue us- even when everything we’ve been taught resists Him.

Qureshi writes that the purpose of his book is threefold:

1. To tear down walls by giving non-Muslim readers an insider’s perspective into a Muslim’s heart and mind.
2. To equip you with facts and knowledge, showing the strength of the case for the gospel in contrast with the case for Islam.
3. To show more portray the immense inner struggle of Muslims grappling with the gospel, including sacrifices and doubts.

I believe he succeeds in his purpose.

Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus reads very quickly, yet there are profound insights into the Islamic culture and view of Christianity. Qureshi was raised a devout Muslim. As he leads us through his autobiography, he is careful to explain key Islamic concepts and beliefs. The structure of the book is based around Qureshi saying the sajda, a portion of ritual islamic prayers; however, this time he is struggling with what he has learned about Christianity and his mind is racing with questions as he prays. As Qureshi’s story and life unfolds, he repeatedly returns to this moment.

We learn of Qureshi’s early life and the many Islamic traditions and beliefs. I have to admit that I felt that Muslims put most Christians to shame in their devotion to their faith. He is very confident in his faith and what he has been taught.

He becomes friends with a Christian in college, and over time they begin to discuss some of the key doctrinal issues that Muslims denounce. Each chapter becomes a mini-lesson on apologetics and key doctrines. One thing that stands out during this process through the years, is that the Christians witnessing to Qureshi are very patient with him and respectful of his Islamic beliefs. That’s not to say they don’t question his beliefs or push back on some of what he says, but they do it in a loving way. Of course, this is the Holy Spirit at work. I don’t want to give away any spoilers, but as the title suggests Qureshi eventually comes to know Christ as savior.

Qureshi’s candor and honesty shine in this book and make this a very personal read. I felt like I know him by the time I finished the book. Most importantly, God’s relentless love for us and the power of His truth are proclaimed through Qureshi’s testimony. I highly recommend this book. show less

A very academic exploration of the differences between Islam and Christianity and the cases for the truth of each. But what makes it extremely readable is that the questions are investigated through Nabeel's life story. A good understanding (for non-Muslims) of his former Islamic beliefs comes through his childhood experiences, retold with obvious affection. Caveat: I do actually know a bit about Muslim beliefs and quite a bit about the Bible and Christian Theology, so things that seem simply presented to me, might be a bit harder for some others. But still I would highly recommend Nabeel's very approachable style. Unusually for me, I listened to the audiobook and Nabeel is clearly an extremely gifted speaker and I hung on every word. show more Two possible criticisms: In ch.7, Nabeel reveals that his family are Ahmadis, which not all believe are true Muslims. Nabeel defends this both in that chapter and in appendix 2 (written for a later edition of the book). Secondly, a number of scholars have contributed to the book (they have their say in appendix 1), which raises the question of how much of this is really Nabeel's life story and how much might have been added later to bulk up the apologetic content. Still, their contribution makes for a richer text.

The Foreword, Afterword, Reflection (by Nabeel's widow), and Conversation (with David Wood) from the third edition are all included in the audiobook, which expands the whole thing by about 90 minutes (about half of which is the Conversation). The appendices, which would appear in the print version, are a further 28 pages of pdf download found here:
https://www.zondervan.com/p/seekingallahfindingjesuspdf/

Highly recommended to anybody who is interested in Islam and / or Christianity, regardless of whether you believe in either. show less