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The writing style of Michael Licona the author of Paul Meets Muhammad: A Christian-Muslim Debate On The Resurrection suffers from multiple personality disorder. Licona who is listed on the back cover as a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Pretoria and Director of Apologetics Evangelism at the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Wow is that ever a handle! Licona's academic presentation is solid but his big mistake was trying to encase it within the context of a fictionalized debate between Paul and Muhammad with a science fiction twist.  

"Good morning, everyone. Thanks for coming. I'm Robert Gordon, president of MIT. Prior to my arrival at MIT, two esteemed scientists were commissioned to come up with a scientific process for making educated guesses as to how those in the past who were known for their wisdom would have responded to contemporary crises," and so Licona on the first page of his book sets forth the premise for his writing. The fictionalized Project Resurrection attempts to revive the Apostle Paul and Muhammad through holographs and databases. In a large stadium before a raucous crowd the two debate the merits of Christianity versus Islam. 

As a work of academia I would highly recommend the book to first year theology students. As a general read however the writer becomes entangled in a web of preposterous dimensions. His Paul and Muhammad continually draw upon the work, experience and personalities of others who did not appear on the scene until centuries after they were dead. Paul and Muhammad are presented as possessing intimate first hand knowledge of a plethora of scholars and religious leaders who did not exist until in some cases the past couple of hundred years. At its worst it becomes distracting and at its best it becomes an annoyance. 

I will say this however that the author does a credible job of presenting strong arguments for both Christianity and Islam without deliberately sabotaging Islam. This becomes exceedingly important as he builds his case for embracing Christianity. It also is important if you want to use this book as an effective instrument in the conversion of non believers. It will also assist those who have limited knowledge of the Qur'an's contents. I was one such person and I now feel better prepared in witnessing to Muslims.  
 
My advice if you pick up this book is to try and concentrate on the arguments presented and divorce yourself from the fictionalized maze that Michael Licona has created. 

 By Joe Montague, exclusive rights reserved

Joe Montague is an internationally published journalist / photographer. His ministry is dedicated to the memory of his late son Kent David Montague who went to heaven at the age of 18. All copyright and distribution rights remain the property of Joe Montague.