What some Famous Non-Muslims said about the Holy Qur'an

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“The Quran as we have it now is a record of what Muhammad said while in the state or states (of ecstasy) just mentioned. It is beyond doubt that his hearers recognized the symptoms of revelation, otherwise his obiter dicta which the literature of tradition purports to record would be included in the Quran…It must always be remembered that to Muslims the Quran is a faithful and unalterable reproduction of the original scriptures which are preserved in heaven.” (Alferd Gullaume, Islam, Pelican. pg. 58-59).

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“Whatever the Psychological explanation may be, it is difficult to resist the conclusion that the term ‘revelation’ was confined to those utterances which were not consciously produced and controlled by the Prophet and seemed to him to have been put into his mouth from without.” (H. A. R. Gibb, Mohammadanism, Oxford, Home University Library, 2nd edition, pg. 44).

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“But it is known that, at times, Muhammad would call for a particular Sura in order to add to it, and that it could be found…When the Arab Tribes, in the year of Deputations, asked to be instructed in the new doctrine, there were plenty of men fully competent to go forth, with or without notes, and give them not merely the substance, but the precise words of the revelation.” (E. E. Kellett, A Short History of Religions, Pelican/Penguin, pg. 344).

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“In order to discover what social regulations are best suited to nations, there is needed a superior intelligence which can survey all the passions of mankind, though itself exposed to none: an intelligence having no contact with our nature, yet knowing it to the full: an intelligence, the well being of which is independent of our own, yet willing to be considered with it: which finally, viewing the long perspective of time, and preparing for itself a day of glory as yet far distant, will labour in one century to reap its reward in another. “The Jewish Law still lives, and the law of the child of Ishmael which, for ten (now fourteen) centuries has regulated the conduct of half of the world. They bear witness, even today, to the great men who gave them form. To the eyes of pride bred of philosophy or the blind spirit of party, they may seem no more than fortunate imposters, but true political wisdom will ever admire in their institutions the great and powerful genius which watches over the birth of civilizations destined to endure.” (J. J. Rousseau, The Social Contract, Book II, Chapter 7, The beginning and the end).

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“The Old Testament represents a vast number of literary works written over a period of roughly nine hundred years. It forms a highly disparate Mosaic whose pieces have, in the course of centuries, been changed by man...
“…the authors of the Gospels were not eyewitnesses of the data they recorded ..The inevitable result of the multiplicity of resources is the existence of contradictions and oppositions: many examples have been given of these…
“The Quranic Revelations has a history which is fundamentally different from the other two. It spanned a period of some twenty years and as soon as it was transmitted to Muhammad by Archangel Gabriel. Believers learned it by heart. It was also written down during Muhammad’s life. The recensions of the Quran were effected under Calip Uthman starting some twelve years after the Prophet’s death and finishing twenty four years after it. They had the advantage of being checked by people who already know the text by heart, for they had subsequently recited it constantly. Since then, we know that the text has been serupulously preserved. It does not give rise to any problems of authenticity.
The Quran follow on from the two Revelations that preceded it and is not only free from contradictions in its narrations, the sign of the various human manipulations to be found in the Gospels, but provides a quality all of its own for those who examine it objectively and in the light of science i.e. its complete agreement with modern scientific date. What is more, statements are to be found in it (as has been shown) that are connected with science: and yet it is unthinkable that a man of Muhammad’s time could have been the author of them. Modern scientific knowledge therefore allows us to understand certain verses of the Quran which, until now, it has been impossible to interpret.
The comparison of several Biblical and Quranic narrations of the same subject shows the existence of fundamental difference between statements in the former, which are scientifically unacceptable, and declarations in the latter which are in perfect agreement with modern data…
Besides, there are major differences between the Quran and the Bible on the other subjects: they serve to disprove all that has been maintained – without a scrap of evidence – concerning the allegation that Muhammad is supposed to have copied the Bible to produce the text of the Quran.
In view of the level of knowledge in Muhammad’s day, it is inconceivable that many of the statements in the Quran which are connected with the science could have been the work of a man. It is, moreover, perfectly legitimate, not only to regard the Quran as the expression of a Revelation, but also to award it a very special place, on account of the guarantee of authenticity it provides and the presence I it of scientific statements which, when studied today, appear as a challenge, to explanation in human terms.” (Maurice Bucailie, La Bible, le Coran et la Science, English translation, The Bible, The Quran and Science, by Alastair U. Pannell and the Author, General Conclusions).

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