Allah: God in the Qur’an

Reynolds (The Qur’an and the Bible), professor of Islamic studies at Notre Dame, tackles the character of God as detailed in the Qur’an, revealing a forceful but highly merciful entity in this astute analysis. Starting with comparisons between the biblical God and the Qur’anic God—going so far as to call the Qur’an a “homily”—Reynolds expounds deeply upon the nature of Allah. Reynolds is chiefly concerned with examining the tensions between justice and mercy; Allah’s interventions with mankind, whether blessing the righteous or leading unbelievers astray; and the purpose of heaven and hell within Islam. To illustrate his points, Reynolds quotes extensively from the Qur’an, but also bolsters his arguments with extra-scriptural commentary from the Muslim tradition, and acknowledges notable debates where original texts are ambiguous. With lucid prose and impressive erudition, Reynolds provides a distinctive approach for reading scripture, organized around a literary investigation of a central question, such as is the character of the God in the Bible the same as the God of the Qur’an? This capable, fresh work of history and theology will be of interest to scholars of the Qur’an or scriptural interpretation more generally. [em](Mar.) [/em]