The Open Minded Muslim Apologist
They are more interested in using their mouth than their ears...
This is the story of a question I posted on Quora. I asked, in clear and simple terms, "According to Islam, what is the purpose of life on earth?" I directed this question towards a number of Muslim apologists, individuals who often spend their time defending Islam in ways that I believe are dishonest or misleading.
One of them, a man named Tahir Javed from Pakistan (surprise surprise…), answered:
Allah has sent us in this world for testing us. The world is like an examination hall. The students while sitting in the examination hall write the answers. Those who write correct answers are declared passed. Similarly Allah has made paradise for the believers. Those who would obey the commandments of Allah as conveyed by Muhammad sallal lahu alaihe wasallam would get success in this life and hereafter. Please note that there is a life after death for all humans beings which would never end. The believers would be awarded paradise and the non believers would be sent to the hell.
It was the usual straight-to-the-bin answer, but this time I called him out on the many assumptions he made:
This answer is built entirely on unproven claims and emotional pressure. It assumes Allah exists, that He is testing us, that Muhammad conveyed His commands, and that paradise and hell are real. None of that is demonstrated or questioned. It is just asserted as if belief alone makes it true.
Calling life a test only makes sense if you can prove there is someone testing you and that the test matters. But you cannot show any evidence for that. You are comparing life to an exam hall, but in any real exam, students know who the examiner is, what the rules are, and how the test will be judged. In your case, you are telling people to follow one man’s claims from 1,400 years ago without any way to verify if those claims came from a god at all.
You talk about paradise for believers and hell for non-believers as if this is simply how things are. But again, you cannot prove any of it. You are threatening eternal torture for disbelief and calling it justice. That is not moral. That is fear-based obedience.
If Islam’s purpose of life is to pass a divine test, then the burden is on you to prove that the test exists, that the examiner is real, and that the rules are valid. Until then, you are just repeating dogma, not explaining purpose.
He answered:
What I have written is truth. The religion of all the prophets was Islam. It was necessary for the people to obey the commandments of Allah as conveyed by the prophet of the time to get success in this life and hereafter. Muhammad sallal lahu alaihe wasallam was the last prophet of Allah and is the prophet of the time.
It's your right to differ with myself but I request you to study the teachings of Islam. Also ask the creator of this universe Allah to show the right path. Allah Himself listens when someone wants guidance.
Moreover face to face discussion solves the matter. Discuss your views with an Islamic scholar nearby you. We both have written our views. No more correspondence through replies would be useful.
Wishing best for you.
When I saw his answer, I thought to myself, great, we have a discussion on our hands. It looked like an opportunity to go beyond the usual surface-level replies. So I took the time to prepare the following response, carefully aiming to address the points he raised and to question the foundations of his argument:
What you have written is a claim, not a fact. You are asserting that all prophets preached Islam, but there is no historical or textual evidence from Jewish or Christian scriptures or any independent historical records that supports this. Islam redefines past prophets to fit its own narrative. That is not truth. It is retroactive reinterpretation.
Saying success comes from obeying Allah as conveyed by the prophet of the time is circular. You are assuming the very thing you need to prove, that these figures actually received commands from a divine source. You cannot demand obedience to a system simply because the system says so.
Claiming Muhammad was the last prophet and the current one to be followed is again just repeating Islamic doctrine. You have provided no reason for someone outside the religion to accept this claim. It is not persuasion. It is assertion.
As for asking Allah for guidance, this presumes Allah exists and that he answers sincere seekers. People from all religions pray and claim guidance, yet they arrive at completely different conclusions. So either everyone is getting divine truth or no one is. You need more than subjective experience to argue your god is the right one.
Telling someone to speak to a local Islamic scholar does not solve anything. Apologists simply restate the same doctrines and reinterpret evidence through the lens of belief. If Islam is true, it should stand up to public scrutiny and rational testing. Not just closed-door conversations with believers.
Ending the conversation by saying further replies are not useful shows a lack of confidence in your argument. If your belief is based on truth, it should welcome questions, not shut them down.
I was about to post my response when I noticed he had already disabled any further comments. That seems to be the hallmark of his belief system. Speak your truth, then silence everyone else. It is all about demanding obedience, expecting others to listen without question, and never allowing space for any kind of reply or challenge.
I decided to reach out to him with a private message, but that attempt was unsuccessful. I then tried to pose a question to him, the kind of thing one normally does on Quora, hoping for some engagement or at least a response. That also failed. After sharing his self-justifying nonsense, he blocked me outright, cutting off any possibility of further discussion or explanation.
With people like this, no wonder Pakistan is a shithole. It is a shithole with nuclear weapons. That’s the concern.
