The Three Revolutions in the Epicenter: A Book Review of Joel Rosenberg’s Inside the Revolution

Joel Rosenberg’s book, Inside the Revolution: How the Followers of Jihad, Jefferson & Jesus are Battling to Dominate the Middle East and Transform the World (published in 2009 by OMF Literature, an English for Philippines edition), takes us to the three revolutions that have been taking place in the Middle East, the epicenter of Biblical history and events, in the previous decades until recent times. The three revolutions are pursued by three groups whom Rosenberg defined as the “Radicals”, the “Reformers”, and the “Revivalists”. Rosenberg describes with interesting details each of these three groups with interviews of key leaders of each movement making their own cases and speaking in their own words.

The 551-page book is divided into three parts – the Radicals, the Reformists, and the Revivalists – and each part comprises chapters that narrate stories of representatives from each group and explain the aims and agendas of each with direct quotes taken from the speeches, textbooks, memoirs, manifestos, websites, and videos written and produced by the Radicals, Reformers, and Revivalists themselves. The book enables the readers to understand the nature of each of these three groups, the theology they follow and teach, and what each of them aims or desires to do and achieve. It makes the readers understand the existence of ISIS and other radical Muslim groups but also shows them that the vast majority of Muslims desire peace and that God is at work in the hearts and souls of the people in the Middle East, the vast majority of whom are Muslims.

At the outset, Rosenberg makes it clear that the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Muslims on the planet are by and large, quiet, peaceful people. In peace, they want to raise their children in decent schools to get decent jobs and live respectable, productive, God-honoring lives. He also made it clear that Western leaders should be commended – not condemned – for affirming the peaceful nature of most Muslims. In Rosenberg’s words: “Why insult Muslims who are unengaged in jihad?” He also explained that critics should keep in mind that Western leaders are making these points partly to build and strengthen political and military alliances with government leaders throughout the Muslim world who are willing to side with Western governments against the Radicals.

Rosenberg however poses these questions: “While it is certainly accurate to say that the vast majority of Muslims are peaceful people, is it also true that Islam itself is an intrinsically peaceful religion?……Are the Radicals, in fact, ‘hijacking’ Islam and in the process ‘smearing’ its good name? If so, how can the Radicals claim that ‘Islam is the answer, and jihad is the way’ if there is no basis for their beliefs in the Qur’an, the guidebook for all Muslims?”

According to the Radicals, the Qur’an is adamant about the following (pp. 44-45):

1) Violence is good.

2) Jews and Christians are cursed and are not supposed to be helped or saved or befriended.

3) Actually, Jews and Christians are to be killed – whenever and wherever Muslims find them – because they are loathsome, filled with evil, and destined for hell.

4) Infidels can (and sometimes should) be crucified, beheaded, have their hands and feet cut off, or tortured in all manner of ways.

The radicals ultimately want violent jihad against the West, specifically America, whom they call the ‘great Satan’, because of its imperialistic and capitalistic ends in  its alliance with the wealthy elites in Muslim counties while the rest of the Muslim population are impoverished. The radicals also want to destroy the state of Israel, whom they call the “little Satan’, for their occupation and repressive treatment of the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

The next group, the Reformers, believe that Islam is the answer but jihad is not the way. The unfortunate thing is that the Radicals get more attention from the media while the Reformers do not get enough attention. They teach that true Islam is a religion of peace, that the Qur’an is a book of peace, and that the Radicals are “perverting Islam to their own fascist, power-hungry ends” (p. 227). They see the world through the lens of the Qur’an but they agree with Thomas Jefferson who wrote that all people have been “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” They argue that the key to unleashing the true promise and potential of Islam is “to provide Muslim men, women, and children with more freedom, more openness, more protection of human and civil rights, and more opportunities to participate in representative government….” (p. 217).

The Reformers argue that the Radicals quote the Qur’anic verses out of context. They say that there is a provision in Qur’an on peacemaking and reconciliation, not violent jihad. They argue with great moral force that suicide bombings are absolutely forbidden by the Qur’an and various hadiths (sayings of the Prophet Muhammad) and that committing such an evil act will send a Muslim to hell, not to paradise. The Reformers’ vision and goals are best shown in the Moroccan Model under the leadership of King Mohammed VI. The Moroccans have developed a twelve-step program to battle the Radicals and spread Morocco’s message of reform throughout the Middle East region and around the world. The 12 steps show their progressive, pro-human rights, pro-democracy, pro-tolerance, and pro-peace aims:

1. Know the enemy (terrorists).
2. Stop the enemy.
3. Embrace the East.
4. Embrace the West.
5. Teach the theology of the Reformers.
6. Expand democracy.
7. Empower women.
8. Combat poverty.
9. Let the voiceless speak.
10. Build and maintain strong relations with the Jewish community.
11. Reach out to evangelical Christians in the West.
12. Counter the “Hollywood stigma”.

The third group of people waging the third kind of Revolution is known as the Revivalists. Their motto is: “Islam is not the answer, and jihad is not the way; Jesus is the Way”. Their five core convictions are the following:

• God loves all of mankind.
• All mankind is sinful and thus separated from God.
• Jesus Christ is mankind’s only hope of salvation.
• A person must individually choose to follow Jesus Christ as personal Savior and Lord.
• Christ-followers are commanded to love their neighbors and their enemies and to make disciples of all nations.

Rosenberg writes in part three of his book about the Christian revival in different parts of the Middle East, the epicenter of events before the second coming of Jesus Christ. He narrates the stories of former Muslims, even those who were formerly radicals, who have been granted visions of Jesus Christ and have converted from Islam to Christianity. They have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and have been working to spread the good news of salvation to their fellow Muslims despite the risks. Muslims by the thousands or millions are accepting Jesus as their Savior after receiving visions of Christ or after listening to evangelists and preachers on satellite TV and on radio. Christian revival is going on in Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Central Asia, Pakistan, North Africa, Sudan, Iraq, Morocco, and the Holy Land. He also devotes a chapter describing the signs of the last days before the second coming of Jesus Christ, which the Revivalists conclude to being fulfilled in these times.

Rosenberg ends his book with a chapter encouraging his readers, with a sense of urgency, to join the Revolution “to defeat the Radicals, encourage the Reformers, and strengthen the Revivalists – now, while there is time” (p. 490), being a committed follower of Jesus Christ himself. The Reformers need people from the both the West and the East to help them succeed against the Radicals in every possible way such as investing in the economies of Reformer countries (like Jordan, Morocco, India, Malaysia, etc.); advising and counseling Reformer leaders in the areas of democratic change, religious freedom, science, and technology, economic development, and the like; and directing humanitarian relief organizations that serve people in Reformer countries. But Rosenberg’s deepest heartfelt prayer is that the readers will be inspired to follow the example set by the Revivalists who have ultimately chosen to follow Jesus Christ and fulfill His mandate to preach the good news of salvation to the whole world.

The author describes four simple strategies to help mobilize the Christian Church in joining the Revolution: 1) Learn by studying the Bible to discover God’s plan and purpose for all the people of the Middle East; 2) Pray faithfully and consistently for the Muslims, that each one of them can hear and respond to Christ’s offer of salvation to anyone who believes; 3) Invest or give time, talents, and treasure in the work God is doing in the Middle East; and 4) Go love the Muslims in the name of Jesus in real and practical ways and consider serving God full-time in the Muslim world. The book ends with the assurance of Jesus’ constant presence and makes the invitation to everyone to join the Revolution that Jesus is leading in the epicenter that is geographically located in the Middle East.