Breakthrough: The Return of Hope in the Middle East
Tom Doyle
Tom Doyle’s “Breakthrough: The Return of Hope to the Middle East” is an
awe-inspiring books. It delves deep into the sensitive issues of
terrorism, religious extremism, and hate to uncover a not so foreign
minority of Christians.
The book starts out by introducing Doyle
as a missionary to the Middle East. He recounts his amazing story
of
how he one day felt divinely inspired to share the message of Jesus
Christ with people thousands of miles away from him in the Middle
East. There are even inserted paragraphs that describe others’
reactions to this decision of his, some encouraging and others
disapproving.
When Doyle actually ventures out to the Middle
East, he recounts about the places he visits. It is intriguing to
read
about how the native peoples responded to Doyle. Even if Doyle
did
take up the indigenous dress, many citizens would still know he was a
Westerner, merely by the color of his eyes. For some, this simple
hue
was a beacon of hope, whilst, for others, it was a signal of disdain.
Throughout
the book, there are chapters that deal solely with the Muslim
faith.
These pedagogical chapters explain what Islam is, how it came about,
and how it is different from Christianity. These parts of the
book
also include comparative verses from the Bible and other Middle Eastern
texts. Doyle puts much emphasis on the fact that Islam does not
have a
strong foundation on atonement or a relationship with God.
Much
of the book can be divided into two categories. The first has
persuasive stories of converts and the testimonies of Jesus
Christ.
These serve as a means for Muslims reading the book to want to convert
(or at least want to start learning more about Christ). The
second
revolves around Christians who can go about spreading the Scripture to
Muslims. Either way, Doyle’s main hope is for Muslims to come to
Jesus
Christ. While other denominations are mentioned as of needing
conversion to Christianity, Islam is the main one focused
on.