evidence for religion

Thank you. I shall begin by praising God and thanking Him for giving others and particularly myself the opportunity to have a civil discussion over such fascinating and important topics. It is indeed in accordance to the religion I follow and represent in this debate - namely Islam - that we have such exchanges where we learn from one another and share mutual respect. [Qur'an 49:13] O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). 1. Introduction The religion of Islam is based on the Holy Book known as the Qur'an, and the narrations of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), which are recorded in the authentic hadith. The name Islam is not dated back to a person or a tribe. Its root lies in the letters 'slm,' or simply the root word salam, which means peace. Islam itself means "Submitting [your Will] to God." By these definitions, Islam is a religion of peace through submission to God. The Qur'an itself dates back to 14 centuries ago, although we Muslims do not believe that its revelation marked the beginning of Islam. Since "Islam" means submitting your will to God, any person who did that prior to the revelation of the Qur'an was a Muslim. When the Old Testament was revealed, the Jews who followed the Torah and followed God's commands were, in fact, Muslims. When we refer to them as "Jews" we simply mean that they were followers of the tribe of Judah. We Muslims also believe that the Qur'an was revealed to the last Messenger, Prophet Muhammad, through the angel Gabriel, and that the beloved Prophet neither authored it nor contributed to its authorization. He memorized what was revealed to him and he passed on the message of the Qur'an. With that being said, I hope we all understand what kind of a religion we are discussing, and I will move on to explaining why Islam is a true religion of Almighty God. 2. Similarities between Judaism and Islam My opponent is a Jew and seems to believe that Judaism is the true religion of God. I will draw some similarities between Jewish teachings and Islam. If we look at the term "Allah" we realize that it is the same as found in the Bible, hereby the Torah. The very first passage in the Old Testament mentions God in no other way than the Qur'an itself does. That is if we read the Arabic texts. [Genesis 1:1] Fee al-badi' khalaqa Allahu as-Samaawaat wa al-ard. In other words: In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth. In Judaism, we understand that God is One, has no partner, and has no competitor in either might, wisdom, mercy, or any other positive attribute. Judaism believes in Prophets like Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, just to mention a few (and may peace be upon them all). The religions also share many similar moral laws. Anything like adultery, gambling, intoxicants, or other evils are considered morally wrong. But we do have different beliefs, too. Whereas the Jews believe in the Torah as the ultimate source of God, they reject the Qur'an. They also reject Prophets Jesus and Mohammad (peace be upon them), while Muslims accept both. In fact, the Qur'an is not here to tell us to throw out the Bible. It actually makes respectful references to it, but makes it clear that it contains corruptions made by man over time. So, what my opponent should do is to accept the similarities between the religions, see where they differ, and then judge which religion is true. 3. Evidence for Islam The Qur'an is the only preserved religious book The Qur'an contains no contradictions nor errors 1. If we look at the various religious texts in the world, we find that all of them have been corrupted to an extent. Only one of them is an exception, and that is the Qur'an. A noticeable condemner of Islam, Sir William Nuir, acknowledged this very fact by concluding, "... we may upon the strongest presumption affirm that every verse in the Coran is the genuine and unaltered composition (or recitation)." . If God exists, His ultimate Message is to be preserved. .: The Qur'an is the only book claiming to be from God that is preserved. .:: Therefore, the Qur'an is probably the true Message of God. Pay attention to the fact that I do not rely entirely on this model, but I do believe that if God wants to single out His own message apart from false messages claiming to be from God, then His message must be preserved so that it does not turn into falsehood. 2. A doctrinal error can be used as evidence against a doctrine itself. If something is supposedly inspired by God, but it contains elements that are clearly made by men who made common errors in ancient times, then what verification is there that this 'something' is from God? Why would God inspire falsehood and tales of the ancients? It seems to me like the various religious scriptures contain elements of truth, but indeed also elements of falsehood that were common in cultures and times of their origin. I would like to hear from my opponent whether or not he believes in a literal description of creation in Genesis, or the global flood. If not, I will pick other points. In my next rounds, I will go in-depth with evidence of Islam and link the Prophethood of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) with the texts of the Old Testament. In the next round I expect my opponent to come with either critique questions to my points.