Islam — Text and Context

A Preface of Frank Self-Criticism

Small’s preface is remarkable for its willingness to assign blame to her own tradition. She writes that Christians tend to turn from points of contact with Islam, repelled by the prophet, the religion, the moral code, and the history. Yet she immediately pivots: Islam cannot be ignored, and Christian nations have stood helpless while fellow-Christians were “cruelly and wickedly entreated.” The language is direct and unsparing. Small does not excuse Muslim rule, but she insists that the only Christianity Islam officially knows is “the least true, the least pure.” This is not a generic call for tolerance; it is a specific indictment of the church’s failure to present a worthy witness. The preface thus sets up a tension that runs through the book: a clear-eyed acknowledgment of Islam’s power and darkness, paired with a conviction that Christians must first examine their own inadequacies before engaging in battle.

The Quran’s Jesus and the Problem of Knowledge

In her discussion of the Quran’s references to Jesus, Small makes a pointed historical argument. She notes that in Muhammad’s time there was no Arabic version of the Bible; the Prophet depended on Jews and Christians for information. The “terrible blunder of his life” was forming conclusions on “very insufficient knowledge.” But Small immediately turns the lens back on the church: “Enough has not been made of the responsibility of the church which had no better tales to tell.” She observes that the Quran denies Jesus’ divinity yet grants him titles “little short of Divine”—Messiah, Word of Truth, a man unstained by sin. The Jesus of the Quran, Small argues, is one Muhammad never claimed for himself. Yet Muhammad supersedes Jesus. This paradox, she implies, stems from the inadequate Christianity presented to the seeker. The analysis is tightly focused on textual evidence and historical circumstance, avoiding broad claims about the Quran as a whole.

The Denial of the Cross and Its Implications

Small devotes particular attention to the Quran’s denial of Jesus’ crucifixion. She quotes the passage: “They slew Him not, neither crucified Him, but He was represented by one in His likeness.” She reports that Muhammad so hated the sign of the cross that any object bearing its mark was destroyed. For Small, the horror of the thought that Jesus should die “the abhorred death” seems to be the Quran’s own argument against its occurrence. She then draws a theological conclusion: what the cross symbolizes—God’s approach to sinful man in mercy and love—is “entirely lacking” in the Quran. There is no assurance of salvation, only the Prophet’s word. Small calls this “a tragic story,” and again places responsibility on Christian writers who have cast blame largely upon Muhammad. The section is careful not to overreach: she does not claim to know the full Quranic view, but limits her inference to what the quoted passages and historical context allow.

Small’s Islam is best read as a document of its time—a missionary’s attempt to understand a rival faith while holding fast to her own convictions. The book’s value lies not in its doctrinal conclusions but in its willingness to turn criticism inward. Readers should note the preface’s framing: this is a study of Christian attitudes as much as of Islam. The excerpts show a writer who names Christian failures with unusual candor, even as she maintains the superiority of her own tradition. For those interested in the history of interfaith encounter, Small’s voice offers a specific, early-twentieth-century example of how a sympathetic yet committed Christian scholar approached the challenge of Islam.

I found myself thinking, after setting down Small's patient, self-questioning preface, how rarely we let old books correct us so gently. Her careful parsing of another faith’s words reminded me of an older voice, one that also reached across a divide to re-imagine familiar songs. Therefore, I turned to The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament and Applied to the Christian State and Worship — Key Ideas to Explore, hearing that same quiet humility seeking a way to speak truthfully, yet new.