Serious question! Jews, Christians and Muslims, are your holy books out of date?

Question

In one of my earlier questions someone said that "God inspired various writers to write certain things at many points throughout salvation history, in order to meet the specific needs of the people of that specific time."

Now I noticed the Buddha likened his teachings to a raft. Useful to cross a 'river', but just a burden if carried around forever after.

And I wondered whether perhaps your God did not want you to be following the same teachings for thousands of years? Perhaps he is continually sending messengers, updating his message?

Or perhaps as some Christians appear to believe, he has given up on 'messengers' and now speaks directly to the hearts of men?

I just wondered what everyone thought? Thank you in advance for your answers.

http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AnExdcmaGAucfk7NpG2HikMhBgx.?qid=20070310134651AAJeOfl

Answer 1

Good question. It sounds like you have not only asked many religious people some tough questions ... you listened too.

God can send prophets whenever He chooses. How can we decide whether a prophet is true or false? we need a bench mark ... the Holy Books, is one such measuring stick.

In Mathew 7:15-20, Jesus warns of false prophets ... but he does not say all will be false. Instead he gives a manner to test true prophets "You will know them by their fruits"

Answer 2

no way and how dare u even think that, maybe u have abit of reading to do i mean how illiterate can anyone get?
i am a proud muslim and i can definately say with full confidence and guarentee as i am a strong believer in that the Quran is the final word from Allah (God) and even though it was written 1400 yrs ago (if u ever read it) u will understand that to this date it can as is applied by many muslims.
for example it teaches u social ettiqette that is astounding and brings the best in anyone to this day.
it forbids u to drink alcohol i mean look at the lives of people who use it as an excuse to drink everyday what a wonderful life they lead.....NOT! EXACTLY WHY.
it teaches u things like not to lie, backbite, be honest, trustworthy and u will be sucessful i mean how easy is that so how can it be out of date. it doesnt tell u to wear certain colour dress in the morning and a diff in the pm but just dress modestly. so u dont end up as a victim of a horrific case on the bbc news. U KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I MEAN.

SO FINALLY I CANT VOUCH FOR OTHER HOLY BOOKS AS THEY MAY HAVE CHANGED ACCORDING TO VARIOUS OTHODOX VIEWS BUT THE QURAN IS THE ONLY HOLY BOOK BLONGING TO MUSLIMS WHICH NO ONE DARE HAS YET TO THID DAY HAS BEEN ABLE TO CHANGE A SINGLE WORD ABT IT SINCE 1400 YRS AGO. AND IT IS THE BEST AND WILL REMAIN THE BEST!
READ 4 URSELF

Answer 3

NO the Quran is never updated , it hasnot changed since it was reveled since over 1400 years ago , not even a syllable, in addition to its scientific miracles and its validity to all times.

the Quran is protected by God till the day of judgement and that is how it was presesrved plz have patience to read it:

In fact, there are different ways to prove that the Qur'an is the word of God, which has always been true and has never been subjected to change or distortion. These proofs can be classified into three types: the way the Qur'an was transmitted throughout the centuries, some challenging verses within the Qur'an itself, and the periodic, modern-day discoveries in the universe that were first mentioned in the Qur'an more than fourteen centuries ago.

Unlike the Bible and Old Testament that have been subject to innumerable translations, doubtful and spurious transmissions, and corruptions at the hands of clerics up till now (with the “gender sensitive” versions coming out these days), the Qur'an was transmitted to us in an unprecedented and unique manner according to rigorous rules of transmission. The Qur'an was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) via the angel Gabriel, and the Prophet subsequently memorized the whole scripture.

Thousands of the Companions of the Prophet learned the Qur'an directly from the Prophet (pbuh). They memorized it and were known in Islamic history as huffaadh (the memorizers and preservers of the Qur'an). Moreover, a number of Companions wrote it down during the lifetime of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and it was compiled in its entirety immediately after his death.

The following generation of Muslims learned the Qur’an directly from the Companions. Thus the chain of teaching and learning through direct contact continued systematically, methodically, and meticulously until the present age.

Additionally, several of the Companions of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) were appointed as scribes to record the words of the revelation directly from the Prophet himself on parchment, leather, or whatever else was available. The most famous of these scribes was Zayd ibn Thabit, who also memorized the entire Qur’an, and he formed with the others a community of huffaadh that can be compared to academic societies of our present time.

We know the Qur’an was recorded in totality during the lifetime of the Prophet (pbuh) and the different surahs (chapters) personally arranged by him. Many copies of the text were used for study and teaching, even in Mecca before the Hijrah, the migration to Medina.

The entire Qur’an was written down during the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad, and trusting the fact that many scholars knew it by heart, it was not collected in one volume. It was personally arranged by him, and the Muslims memorized it in the same order. The companion Uthman reported that whenever a new verse was revealed, the Prophet would immediately call a scribe to record it. He would instruct the person to put the specific verse or verses in a particular chapter.

Furthermore, every year during the month of Ramadan, the Prophet would recite the whole Qur’an from beginning to end in its present-day arrangement, and everyday people could hear it from his own lips in the mosque. Its sequence is no mystery. Many of the Companions not only memorized it completely, they also wrote it down and even added commentary (tafseer) on their own personal copies. When the Prophet passed away, the whole Qur’an was already written down, but it was not yet compiled in book form.

During the rule of the first Caliph Abu Bakr, there was a rebel

Answer 4

Since the only group who have stuck in the past with the Old Testament are the Jews who do not believe that Jesus was either the Son of God or a Prophet (as the Muslims believe) the rest should be following later doctrine. That doctrin is as Jesus said to love your enemy, in fact every one. The fact that does not happen is down to men (and women) and not the books.

Answer 5

As a Muslim, the Quran was sent for all of mankind. Never changed .Never out of date. So what are we to do? Update it by rewriting somethings? Change it to fit the times? No way! The Quran is as was when it originally came? Will stay that way. As for messengers, we believe that Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) was the last and final one. After him there will be no more except with the return of Jesus(PBUH).

Answer 6

Holy books are considered holy on basis of the belief that the words within them were handed down from God, and as such, contain timeless truths.
Not that I disagree with you.
Also, at least some people of the book have made efforts to update their dogma (Vatican II, anyone?), and most don't believe every word in the Bible, Torah, Kuran - only fundamentalists do this. Don't forget that religious believers are as complicated and varied, and so are their beliefs, as anyone else.

Answer 7

I can only answer for my religion, and we are able to find out how new things come from old, and to make sure we keep up to date, without throwing out the past. Millions of pages of thoughts on how to relate the old to the new, to keep everything current have been written.

Answer 8

i'm a Muslim.. n my answer is NO.. atleast QURAN isnt!!!

Quran has described embryology exactly the way it is (i'm a med student)...
Quran has described the Big Bang theory...
n the list goes on
i truly believe that Quran is the WORD OF GOD .. n the miracle of Islam.... (which book is preserved word by word since the day of its revelation??)

n above all Quran is the manual for success for not only in this world but also in the hereafter!

Answer 9

God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, therefore His word stays the same, it does not change to suit man. The the beginning was the word. So no the bible is not outdated, just the way man keeps trying to change its meaning.

Answer 10

See homosexuality.

Yes, these books are morally out of date, and will continue to slide further and further into a position at odds with prevalent morals in society at large.