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A Call for Comparison:
Comparing Christianity and Islam
(Deep Differences & Seeming Similarities).
In my preparation for my thesis, “A Study of Church Transformation Through the Ages), for my Doctorate, a Ph.D. in Bible, Religion and Christian Education, I had to do an in-depth study in numerous religions, including Islam.
I believe my work background, my close association with the Muslim friends, and my deep interest in religious study, qualifies me to expound on this profound topic. It is a well-needed piece of information, as we see the wide-spreading of Islam within most European nations, including the United States. Presently, there are over five million of Americans who are following Islam in America!
This study basically focuses on the history and practical teaching, the legacy found documented in both; Islam and the Christianity. So these pages are intended, for the sole purpose of a comparative study, of both religions and are not intended to attack, defame, disrespect and demean any person(s), or point presented!
THE BASIC BACKGROUND
(Similarities and Differences).
Islam is different from any other religion on one ground which is the following; Islam is a Religion and State and comes from Arabic phrase,
“Al-Islam Wadena and Wad olla.” So in addition to the theological background of Islam there is a political background of Islam and this is where the Islamic fundamentalists; the supporter of Jihad have their ideology. Jihad is the sixth; unofficial pillar of Islam. The first five pillars are somewhat similar to Judeo-Christian tradition. These five pillars will be discussed later, in the following pages.
For now, going back to why Islam is different from other religions.
Again, I need to mention, Islam is not only a religious system, it is also a society involving political, economical educational and legal system. Because of Muslims’ view of religion and state (society), being one, they view Christianity and European culture as the same. That is why, they view Christianity as a society being weak, corrupt and immoral, because they see all the pornography, drugs, crime, and immoral relationship seen in movies and magazines, and are openly practiced by many people!
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Another problem is that most Muslims identify religion with nationality. This is, they think to be a Turk, Arab or Iranian is to be Muslim.
That’s the reason, they think if one changes his religion then he/she becomes a traitor to his country.
THE FIVE OFFICIAL PILLARS OF ISLAM
These five pillars, some believe Mohammed and the other early Muslims were exposed to during their traveling to various market places with their caravans-- going to Syria and Egypt as merchants.
Before elaborating on these five official pillars of Islam, we need to understand the sources of Islam and its prophet; Mohammed.
The only source for the life of Mohammed comes from Islamic records. As far as is known, no non-Muslim source on life of Mohammed exists. Most of the information about the prophet is based on Muslim tradition written about 200 years or more after his birth.
It is believed that the prophet Mohammed was exposed to the teaching of Judaism and Christianity in Arabia. We need to keep in mind that Islam started about 600-650 A.D.
In Medina, a major town 280 miles north of Mecca, there were three large tribes of Jews—with their synagogues, even some Churches with Bibles and other books related to the Old and the New Testaments.
These large tribes of Jews; they were successful businessmen and owned large tracts of lands. They controlled the commerce of the town. The Jews had a higher education and standard of living than the other nations around them. The Arabs knew that the Jews and Christians worshipped the unseen God; who did not have a statue or image to represent Him.
In the north of Arabia were several Arab tribes which had become Christian. The Nestorian (Syrian) Church was also a major source of Christian influence on early Islam. The Nestorians especially taught about the Day of Judgment and the return of Christ at the end of the world.
Both of these ideas were accepted by Muslims early in their history.
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It is believed that Mohammed, although he could not read or write; he was exposed to Christianity while traveling with the Jewish and Christian merchants, going to various surround cities and countries.
But it seems those early Jewish Christians Mohammed came in contact with were an unorthodox group of Christians—not well informed about true Christianity and believed many apocryphal stories about Christ. Such story about Christ is that Christ among His many miracles once was He made a bird out of clay—became alive and flew away. This story is mentioned in Quran (Koran), found in Sura 3 verse 49.
Sura 3, The Amramites (Ãli-‘Imrãn)
Qur’an [3:49] “As a messenger to the Children of Israel: "I come to you with a sign from your Lord—I create for you from clay the shape of a bird, then I blow into it, and it becomes a live bird by GOD's leave. I restore vision to the blind, heal the leprous, and I revive the dead by GOD's leave. I can tell you what you eat, and what you store in your homes. This should be a proof for you, if you are believers.”
There are other stories from both the Old and New Testament recorded in the Quran. But, they are usually distorted—such as Mary the mother of Jesus being the sister of Moses and Aaron. See: Sura 19: 27-28.
“At length she brought the (babe) to her people, carrying him (in her arms). They said: "O Mary! Truly an amazing thing hast thou brought! "O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!" [Qur'an 19:27-28]
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THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM
(These are the five duties required of all
Muslims—making up the essential core of
their religion.
These five pillars have some seeming similarities to Christianity, which I’ll be explaining in details in the following pages are:
1- Keeping the Fast,
2-Praying; (Five times a day).
3- Confessing the Creed (there is one God),
4- Giving Tithes (Alms),
5- Making the pilgrim to Mecca.
Because of such Islamic influence, it is estimated in the last decade Islam grew by 400% in the United States. Presently, there are almost over five million Americans who are following the religion of Islam!
The first which comes to mind is this, why is it that so many, so fast are being drawn to Islam? Although there are multiple reasons but two elements which have been the most instrumental are:
1- They claim, other religious leaders—other denominations have failed to practice what they preach. In most cases, it seems and they say, “ the churches speak so loud by what they do, so those outside the church cannot hear what we say!”
I believe it was the German Philosopher; Haines; who said,
“You show me your redeemed life, then I’ll be inclined to believe in the redeemer.” How True! Now, this is not to say, when a person sincerely receives Christ, he /she has no obligation to follow through with learning the Word of God; the Bible—feeding on the living Word-- as the apostle Peter reminded us in ( 1 Peter 2:2; 2 Peter 1:5).
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So, although they cannot put all the blame on the Church leaders and denominational differences, but the fact remains that as the days are drawing near, more and more, the preaching which is coming from the pulpits, across the nation is only ticking the ears and majority and they love it.
The apostle Paul knew of the coming of such a time, and it seems “the times,” “the last days of such perilous times” is upon us and is being fulfilled, as Paul warned us in (2 Timothy 3:1-7, 13; 2 Timothy 4:1-5).
2- The “Seemingly Similarities.” As I indicated in the title, introducing the subject, “DEEP DIFFERENCES & SEEMING SIMILARITIES,”
In addition to the five pillars: Prayer, Keeping Fast, Giving Alms (tithes), and others which somewhat have similarities to the Christian practice, there are other elements which draws a nominal Christian to Islam! These are called, “The Five Paths to Truth.” These are:
A) Muslims believe in the four holy books given by their god; Allah:
a) Tevrat ( the law of Moses), Zebur (the Psalms of David), Injil (the Gospel of Christ), and the Koran.
b) Muslims believe in one God and no other gods.
c) Muslims believe in Heaven and Hell.
d) Muslims believe in Angels and Spirits. (Believe during the time of prayer, angels sitting on their shoulders.
e) Muslims believe in the prophets sent by God, and they include: Jesus, Adam, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, Isaiah, Daniel, and Mohammed.
CONTINUING WITH, “SEEMING SIMILARITIES.”
B) Muslims Belief about Jesus.
Jesus is mentioned ninety-three ( 93), times in the Quran, (Koran). He is called the Messiah eleven (11), times. He is called the Messenger ten (10), times, and the Word of God three (3), times.
The Quran, (Koran), says Jesus was born by Virgin Mary.
PART II
A Call for Comparison
Comparing Christianity and Islam
(Deep Differences & A Seeming Similarities)
“DEEP DIFFERENCES”
Muslims claim that they are monotheist—believing in one God as Christian do! This one single, supposed, --seeming similarity have drawn many individuals including many nominal Christians to embrace Islam!
As we consider this topic, the “Deep Differences,” in Part II of our study, the question is asked, “Is the God of the Bible the same as Allah of the Quran (Koran)? After in-depth consideration of what we learned in
Part I-- in previous pages, the question itself shows a misunderstanding of the issues involved. The Allah, the god of the Quran (Koran), and Jehovah; the God of Bible is not the same! Simply put, Allah is described in some places in the Koran in a way unacceptable to Christians and the God in the Bible is described in some ways which are unacceptable to Muslims. But here is the difficulty! It seems that Mohammed believed the revelation he received and his understanding of Allah, the (god of Islam), is the same God as revealed Himself, in Old and New Testament. And, it seems Mohammed intended to proclaim a continuing revelation by the God of the Jews and Christians. He believed, as God spoke to Adam, Abraham, Moses, David and other Old Testament prophets, He also spoke to Mohammed.
But the fact is that the Bible portrays the God of the Old and the New Testament as “LOVE;” Who came and died in man’s place in order to receive man back to Himself. The God of the Bible does not demand, or force man to receive Him. He took man back in spite of man’s fallen sinful nature according to Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his [LOVE] toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
In 1 John 4:7-10, we read, “Beloved, let us love one another: [FOR LOVE IS OF GOD;] and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. V-8, He that loveth not knoweth not God; for [GOD IS LOVE].
In Matthew 5:43-44, we read what the Lord Jesus said, “Ye have heard that it hath been said, THOU SHALT LOVE THY NEIGHTBOUR, and hate thine enemy. V-44, But I say unto you, Love your enemies, and Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”
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Now, in considering the, “DEEP DIFFERENCES,” the perplexing question which is facing us is as follow:
1- if it is the same God who spoke in the Old and the New Testaments would give us the following verses; ( MATTHEW 5:43-44; ROMANS 5:8; 1 JOHN 4:7-10, as stated earlier concerning His LOVE for the humanity and what we read from the god of the Koran in Sura 5:33.
2- In Sura 5:33, it clearly states how to treat-- whoever is not in agreement with you! That might even include a close friend or a relative.
Surat Al-Mā'idah (The Table Spread) - سورة المائدة
This is a portion of the entire surah. 5:33
Sahih International
Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment,…
A Call for Comparison
PART II
CONTINUED
Comparing Christianity and Islam
(Deep Difference & A Seeming Similarities)
Continuing With the
DEEP DIFFERENCES
“Muslims Understanding About the Bible”
In Part II, I briefly discussed—comparing the god of Koran, Allah with the God of the Bible the LORD (Jehovah). The deep difference stemmed from fact that the Bible portrays God as the God of Love, grace and mercy. According to Romans 5:8, God did not wait for man to return to Him; He came to man and took man’s sin upon Himself. In Matthew 5:43-44, we were shown how the Lord Himself instructed the believers to treat their enemies. In Matthew 22:37-40, we find how the Lord Jesus reduced the Ten Commandments into two; Loving the LORD God and no other gods, and loving our neighbors as ourselves!
Today, as we continue with Part II, we examine briefly how Muslims view the Bible.
Muslims recognize that there are four holy books given to man by God (Allah), to guide him in the right path. The four books they recognize are: The Law of Moses (Tevrat), The Psalms of David (Zebur), The Gospel of Christ (Injil), and the Koran of Mohammed. The Muslims believe, these four men who received these books were the prophets of God.
The Koran confirms and gives a number of references attesting to the fact that, the Old and the New Testaments as being true and faithful and the true source of knowledge about God—showing the path of salvation.
The references concerning the reliability of the Old and the New Testament regarding the Bible and man’s salvation are listed in : ( Sura 5:48-50; Sura 45:15; Sura 29:45; Sura 10:94; Sura 4:135).
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Although, Muslims are taught the Bible was initially given by God and was true—but later it was corrupted by evil men and the original message was lost. They are told the original Gospel preached by Jesus was lost and later four other false gospels were replaced the true Gospels! And they believe, this is why God had to send the Quran (Koran), through Mohammed; the prophet—to restore His message to mankind again.
But the Koran says something different. According to verses (Sura), in the Koran, the Word of God cannot be changed by man because it is protected by the Lord Himself. ( Sura 6:115; Sura 5:52; Sura 10:64-65; Sura 4:45). This sound contradictory, when we compare this paragraph with the views listed in the previous paragraph, that the Bible was corrupted by evil men.
The Bible and The Quran
The major point of "The Bible and the Quran" is to show that the Quran creates difficulties for itself when it contradicts the Bible. Why look at contradictions if God gave each group of people different revelations (Sura 5:48)? The answer is, both Christianity and Islam claim to be the only way (John 14:6 and Sura 3:85) and if they contradict each other they cannot both be the only way. Sura 10:94, "If you have any doubt regarding what is revealed to you from your Lord, then ask those who read the previous scripture."
Issues To Consider: Has The Bible been changed?
Issue #1: The Quran strongly Supports The Bible.
Many Suras (like 2:97, 2:136, 3:3, 4:136, 4:163, 5:43-8, 6:92, 10:94, 12:111, 37:117, 41:43 and others, see *Bible support from Quran*) strongly support the Bible. From Sura 5:44 to Sura 5:47 the Quran talks about the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus). Three times in this context the Quran says something like, "And whoever judges not by that which GOD has sent down, it is [they] who disbelieves". The "scripture that was sent down" in these passages is not referring to the Quran because only after these passages (in 5:48) does the Quran talk about its own roll to "confirm
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the previous scriptures", that being the Law and Gospel.
Why does the Quran encourage us to read the Bible?
First, the Bible contains the truth; Sura 29:46, "We believe in what was revealed to us and in what was revealed to you."
Second, the Quran says that the Bible contains prophecies about Mohammad. No such Bible passage is quoted in the Quran. If you look at *Mohammad in The Bible* you will find out that "Mohammad" is NOT in the Bible. Some Muslims find Mohammad in the Gospel of Barnabas but see *Problems in the Gospel of Barnabas* to see how we know that the Gospel of Barnabas is a Medieval European forgery. It also contradicts the Quran (It calls Mohammad the Messiah).
The Gospel of Barnabas says that Mohammad is the Messiah and Jesus is the Christ! This is a contradiction for Christ is Messiah in Greek. Read *Problems in the Gospel of Barnabas* for more.
Issue #2: Divine Preservation . There is an amazing check-and-balance system in the Bible. Both the Old and New Testaments support each other. The New Testament contains over 180 quotes, and a multitude of references to the Old Testament. These quotes act as a preservative by not allowing the Christians or Jews to change their Scripture without creating a contradiction between the two. Even Sura 5:46 (We gave [Jesus] the Gospel, containing guidance and light, and confirming the previous scriptures) supports this.
Remember that the Christians and Jews were not friends at this time (Sura 2:113) so a collaboration to change both; the Old and the New Testaments was impossible. How could they agree to change every Bible (in every language and nation) in the same way?
The Bible confirms itself when we compare the Scripture with the Scripture. The Bible was written by the Inspiration of God,
(God Breathed), and man only held the pen and wrote it, SEE:
2 TIMOTHY 3:16; 2 PETER 1:20-21.
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Jesus Himself said in Matthew 16:18,
“…And upon this [Rock] I BUILD [My Church]; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” God was not relaying (depending), on man to protect His Word; the (Bible), and His Church! It was His Word and His Church not man’s, so no man could have corrupted the Word of God and the Church of God!
It is so interesting that the Mormons use the same line of reasoning as to way God had to appear to the “prophet” Joseph Smith on September 21, 1823 and gave him “another testament (gospel), of Jesus Christ.” They believe the original Gospels which were given were corrupted by man and the Church was dissolved after the death of the Twelve Apostles! It is as if, the Lord was depending on the Apostles to run His Church. “…And upon this Rock, I build [My Church]…” He is the Head of the Church,
(Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 1:18).
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