Understanding and Connecting with your Muslim Neighbors

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By Andy Bannister on April 25, 2025 ,

CSLI in partnership with OASIS Life Network present

A Workshop to Help Christians

 with
Dr. Andy Bannister

Are you interested in connecting with Muslims you encounter at the grocery store, in your neighborhood, or at public schools? Would you like to learn how to engage them in meaningful conversations about Christianity? Do you want to know which questions to ask and how to pray for them effectively?

Join us for a workshop led by Andy Bannister, who has spent decades interacting with Muslims and holds a doctorate in Islamic studies. This session will equip you with practical strategies, cultural insights, and ways to leverage your God-given gifts to build meaningful relationships and share the love of Christ with these men, women, and children created in God’s image.

Come and discover how you can love your Muslim neighbors in the name of Jesus!

Date: Friday, April 25, 2025
Time: 7:00 - 9:15 pm ET
Cost: $10/person (includes dessert and coffee/tea)
Location: The Falls Church Anglican, Ministry Center on Lower Level/Concourse Level of 6565 Arlington Blvd, Falls Church,  VA 22046

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Have You Ever Wondered? Finding the Everyday Clues to Meaning, Purpose & Spirituality

A gently reflective and creative book that lays the foundation for gospel hope.

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Additional Resources

Over the past 48 years we have developed many publications, discipleship resources, videos, and tools to help you grow in your faith. Because you were interested in this event we have pulled together the following resources that we believe will be of interest to you.

Questions That Matter – Episode 61: Andy Bannister and Reaching out to Muslims

Welcome to Questions That Matter, a podcast of the C.S. Lewis Institute, where we explore discipleship of the heart and mind. And today, our podcast is drawn from an older podcast conversation I did with Andy Bannister several years ago. I've had several conversations with Andy that we've been using for our podcasts this year because they were so good and so rich. And Andy, he's the director of Solas apologetics ministry, but he has a PhD in Islamic study, which is a rather unusual thing for a Christian. But Andy has studied Islam and Muslim thinking perhaps more than just about any Christian, and he knows how to interact with them. And our conversation explored Islam and how to talk to a Muslim about Jesus. So join us now as we jump into the middle of this conversation about reaching Muslims with the Gospel.

Listen Here

Andy Bannister's Challenging Question: Has the Bible Been Corrupted as Some Muslims Claim?

"I have Muslims to thank for my being an evangelist! In the 1990s, I was a youth worker and hadn’t thought much about Islam nor had I ever tried to share my faith with a Muslim. Then one day a friend invited me to try street evangelism at Speakers’ Corner in London’s Hyde Park, and I quickly got drawn into lively conversations (and debates!) with the many Muslims there. They asked dozens of questions and forced me to think about my faith intellectually for the first time." - Andy Bannister

Read Here

How to Have Panic-Free Conversations With Others About Jesus

Why is it so difficult talk about our faith in Jesus with our friends, colleagues and even family? If it is so important, what is stopping us from sharing the good news? Dr. Andy Bannister lived for years as an “undercover Christian,” before deciding to try and tackle the fear, apprehension, and anxiety of telling others about Jesus. Since then, he has been able to help thousands discover the joy of sharing one’s faith in thoughtful, gracious ways.

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The Importance of Asking Questions in Talking about Jesus

A few years ago, I was at a workplace Christmas dinner, during my student years. I was doing some holiday work for a company in London, and they had a Christmas dinner, at which I made some comments sort of foolishly, outing myself as a Christian. The guy next to me at the table in the restaurant looked at me and said, “Oh, I hate Christians!” Now I can be a bit slow on the uptake, but I figured he was probably an atheist. And I thought, Well I’m next to this gentleman for the whole evening, so I’ve got nothing to lose. So I looked at him and said, “Thank you for that. Tell me, why do you hate Christians?” And he said, “Well, the reason I hate Christians is that you lot are: anti-progress, anti-environment, antireason, antiscience, antigay, antitrans, antiwomen…” He had about ten other anti-s, things I never heard of. I almost thought I needed to take notes.

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A Thumbnail Sketch of Islam for Christians

Islam is the second biggest religion in the world. In 2014 there are 1.6 billion Muslims worldwide. Most do not live in the Middle East. It is one of the world’s fastest-growing world religions (Christianity is growing almost as quickly). The Arabic word Islam (lit., “submission”) points to the central idea of the religion--submission to the total will of Allah. The word Allah is Arabic for “the god.” Muslims proclaim to the world that God alone is great and rules with absolute control over every atom of the universe. Therefore it only makes sense for each of us to submit every detail of life to God’s will as it has been revealed to his final prophet, Muhammad. Click the article to get a great overview of the core tenants of Islam!

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The Challenge of Islam

Islam is the second largest religion in the world and is currently in a period of strong growth around the globe. Professor Paul Marshall's audio and video lectures help provide a better understanding of the nature of Islam and the Muslim perspective on life and religion by outlining the dynamics behind the current conflicts around the world, to equip believers with a biblical perspective on how to respond to Islam and Muslims.

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Andy Bannister

Author

Andy Bannister is an author, speaker, and broadcaster. He is currently the Director of the Solas Center for Public Christianity, an evangelism and training ministry, as well as the Adjunct Research Fellow at Arthur Jeffery Centre for the Study of Islam at Melbourne School of Theology. He holds a PhD in Islamic Studies and has taught extensively at universities across the world on both Islam and Philosophy. Andy speaks regularly on Christianity to audiences of all faiths across Europe, Canada, the US, and further afield. He is an author of several books including: The Atheist Who Didn't Exist, Do Muslims and Christians Worship the Same God? and most recently, How to Talk About Jesus Without Looking Like an Idiot.

 
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