Surveys reveals that a majority of Muslims not of Middle Eastern descent don't read their religion's own most revered book. By offering an iteration of it in the global lingua franca of English, more Muslims have the opportunity to understand the foundation of their beliefs.

The Generous Qur'an:An Accurate, Modern English Translation of the Qur'an, Islam's Holiest Book 
Translated by Usama Dakdok
Usama Dakdok Publishing

When the adherents of a particular religion and its doctrines pose a national threat, it's probably wise for citizens of that threatened nation to read that religion's most sacred text. But when that religion condones lying and telling partial truth in order to further its cause, whose translation of its scripture do you trust?

When it comes to circumventing Islam's concepts of "taqiya" and "kitman" (both being ways of getting around telling the truth) insofar as translations of its Qu'ran for non-Muslim readers, it had been impossible. Or so has said Egyptian Christian and Revealing The Truth About Islam radio host Usamsa Dakdok, who applied his knowledge of Arabic, love for the Lord and desire to expose truth about Mohammad's religious/political/military/ economic system to translating the primary book that directs those who declare jihad  on the U.S. Dakdok's interpretation of the Qur'an is great reading for anyone wanting to reach Muslims for Christ and understand the faith that drives over a billion people throughout the globe.

Dakdok usefully precedes his translation with a treatise on the doctrine of Quranic abrogation, or the idea that later verses Gabriel the angel purportedly gave Muhammad can negate the meaning of earlier verses. No matter what is said or from whom, though, the book is a jumble, rife with the misogyny, hatred for Christians and Jews, mangled permutations of biblical historical accounts and uncertainty of salvation for those who believe (though an agriculturally verdant and and virginally libidinous paradise await for those who make it) that have rightly come out about it all the more since East Coast terror attacks of 2001. Politically correct, iman-approved English versions of the text, such as the beautifully-appointed hardcover The Meaning Of The Holy Qur'an by Abdullah Yusef Ali that I received a few years ago as a freebie over the internet from the Council on American Islamic Relations, may read more poetically, but that may be as much for being able to get through its otherwise frustrating prose as it likely is to encourage conversions.

Dakdok's book, so far, is only available in paperback, and, technically, any Quranic text in English is considered by Muslims to merely be a  commentary; Islam itself dictates that the Qur'an isn't really the Qur'an lest it's printed and read in Arabic. Yes, Dakdok gets the title right, too, as even in its birth language, it's not given the honor of being deemed holy.

That lingual stricture on the text is one significant place where Dakdok's book has an in. Surveys reveals that a majority of Muslims not of Middle Eastern descent don't read their religion's own most revered book. By offering an iteration of it in the global lingua franca of English, more Muslims have the opportunity to understand the foundation of their beliefs without having to take Arabic lessons to understand it. They and the rest of us reading can benefit first, though, from the bold text explanations of paragraphs below them from most of the Qur'an's 114 suras, or chapters.

Supplements also include a glossary of distinct words and idioms and where they appear in the Qur'an, a rundown of reference sources Dakdok consulted, a list of biblical prophecies and where in Scripture they're fulfilled as well and an evangelistic appeal.

Dakdok has sent copies of his work to every sitting U.S. Senator and Congressional Representative; if he hasn't yet shipped any to President Obama nor the judges on the Supreme Court, those would be fine subsequent recipients for them. Whether any of those politiicans and justices have read them is worth pondering. For a better understanding of a mindset that seeks to undermine much of what the West holds dear, and the Dearest one whose deity Islam denies, The Generous Qur'an will be most helpful.

Jamie Lee Rake

The Generous Qur'an is available from the website for Dakdok's ministry, The Straight Way Of Grace, www.straightway.org, Amazon, and other probably other vendors.