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The person of Jesus or Isa in Arabic (peace be upon him) is of great
significance in both Islam and Christianity. However, there are
differences in terms of beliefs about the nature and life occurrences of
this noble Messenger.
Source of information about Jesus in Islam .
Most of the Islamic information about Jesus is actually found in the
Qur'an.
The Qur'an was revealed by God to Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be
upon him), and memorized and written down in his lifetime.
Today, anyone who calls him or herself a Muslim believes in the complete
authenticity of the Qur'an as the original revealed guidance from God.
Source of information about Jesus in Christianity
Christians take their information about Jesus from the Bible, which
includes the Old and New Testaments.
These contain four biblical narratives covering the life and death of
Jesus. They have been written, according to tradition, respectively by
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. They are placed at the beginning of the New
Testament and comprise close to half of it.
Encyclopedia Britannica notes that "none of the sources of his life and
work can be traced to Jesus himself; he did not leave a single known
written word. Also, there are no contemporary accounts written of his life
and death. What can be established about the historical Jesus depends
almost without exception on Christian traditions, especially on the
material used in the composition of the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and
Luke, which reflect the outlook of the later church and its faith in
Jesus.
Below are the views of Islam and Christianity based on primary source
texts and core beliefs.
Islam
1. Do Muslims believe he was a Messenger of One God? Yes.
Belief in all of the Prophets and Messengers of God is a fundamental
article of faith in Islam. Thus, believing in Prophets Adam, Jesus, Moses,
and Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon them) is a requirement for
anyone who calls him or herself a Muslim. A person claiming to be a Muslim
who, for instance, denies the Messengership of Jesus, is not considered a
Muslim.
The Qur'an says in reference to the status of Jesus as a Messenger:
"The Messiah (Jesus), son of Mary, was no more
than a Messenger before whom many Messengers have passed away; and his
mother adhered wholly to truthfulness, and they both ate food (as other
mortals do). See how We make Our signs clear to them; and see where they
are turning away!" (Quran 5:75).
2. Do Muslims believe he was born of a Virgin Mother? Yes.
Like Christians, Muslims believe Mary, Maria in Spanish, or Maryam as she
is called in Arabic, was a chaste, virgin woman, who miraculously gave
birth to Jesus.
"Relate in the Book the story of Mary, when she
withdrew from her family, to a place in the East. She screened herself
from them; then We sent to her Our spirit (angel Gabriel) and he appeared
before her as a man in all respects. She said: I seek refuge from you in
God Most Gracious (come not near) if you do fear God. He said: Nay, I am
only a Messenger from your Lord, to announce to you the gift of a pure
son. She said: How shall I have a son, when no man has ever touched me,
and I am not unchaste? He said: So it will be, your Lord says: 'That is
easy for Me; and We wish to appoint him as a sign unto men and a Mercy
from Us': It was a matter so decreed" (Qur'an 19:16-21).
3. Do Muslims believe Jesus had a miraculous birth? Yes.
The Qur'an says: "She (Mary) said: 'O my Lord!
How shall I have a son when no man has touched me.' He (God) said: 'So (it
will be) for God creates what He wills. When He has decreed something, He
says to it only: 'Be!'- and it is" (3:47(.
It should also be noted about his birth that:
"Verily, the likeness of Jesus in God's Sight is the likeness of Adam. He
(God) created him from dust, then (He) said to him: 'Be!'-and he was"
(Qura'n 3:59).
4. Do Muslims believe Jesus spoke in the cradle? Yes.
"Then she (Mary) pointed to him. They said: 'How
can we talk to one who is a child in the cradle?' He (Jesus) said:
'Verily! I am a slave of God, He has given me the Scripture and made me a
Prophet; " (19:29-30(.
5. Do Muslims believe he performed miracles? Yes.
Muslims, like Christians believe Jesus performed miracles. But these were
performed by the will and permission of God, Who has power and control
over all things.
"Then will God say: 'O Jesus the son of Mary!
recount My favor to you and to your mother. Behold! I strengthened you
with the Holy Spirit (the angel Gabriel) so that you did speak to the
people in childhood and in maturity. Behold! I taught you the Book and
Wisdom, the Law and the Gospel. And behold: you make out of clay, as it
were, the figure of a bird, by My leave, and you breathe into it, and it
becomes a bird by My leave, and you heal those born blind, and the lepers
by My leave. And behold! you bring forth the dead by My leave. And behold!
I did restrain the children of
Israel
from (violence to you) when you did show them the Clear Signs, and the
unbelievers among them said: 'This is nothing but evident magic'" (5:110).
6. Do Muslims believe in the Trinity? No.
Muslims believe in the Absolute Oneness of God, Who is a Supreme Being
free of human limitations, needs and wants. He has no partners in His
Divinity. He is the Creator of everything and is completely separate from
His creation.
God says in the Qur'an regarding the Trinity:
"People of the Book (Jews and Christians)! Do
not exceed the limits in your religion, and attribute to God nothing
except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, was only a Messenger of
God, and His command that He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him. So
believe in God and in His Messengers, and do not say: 'God is a Trinity.'
Give up this assertion; it would be better for you. God is indeed just One
God. Far be it from His glory that He should have a son. To Him belongs
all that is in the heavens and in the earth. God is sufficient for a
guardian" (Quran 4:171).
7. Do Muslims believe that Jesus was the son of God? No.
"Say: "God is Unique! God, the Source [of
everything]. He has not fathered anyone nor was He fathered, and there is
nothing comparable to Him!" (Quran 112:1-4).
The Qur'an also states: "Such was Jesus, the son
of Mary; it is a statement of truth, about which they vainly dispute. It
is not befitting to the majesty of God, that He should beget a son. Glory
be to Him! When He determines a matter, He only says to it, 'Be' and it
is" (Qur'an
9: 34-35).
8. Do Muslims believe Jesus was killed on the cross then resurrected? No.
"And because of their saying, 'We killed Messiah
Jesus, son of Mary, the Messenger of God'- but they killed him not, nor
crucified him, but the resemblance of Jesus was put over another man (and
they killed that man), and those who differ therein are full of doubts.
They have no knowledge, they follow nothing but conjecture. For surely
they killed him not (Jesus, son of Mary). But God raised him (Jesus) up
(with his body and soul) unto Himself (and he is in the heavens). And God
is ever All-Powerful, All-Wise" (Quran 4:157-158).
Christianity
1. Do Christians believe Jesus was a human being and Messenger of God? Yes
& No.
With the exception of Unitarian Christians, who like all the early
followers of Jesus, still do not believe in the Trinity, most Christians
now believe in the Divinity of Jesus, which is connected to the belief in
Trinity. They say he is the second member of the Triune God, the Son of
the first part of the Triune God, and at the same time "fully" God in
every respect.
2. Do Christians believe he was born of a Virgin Mother? Yes.
A chaste and pious human woman who gave birth to Jesus Christ, the second
member of the Trinity, the Son of God, and at the same time "fully" God
Almighty in every respect.
Christians believe however, that while she was a virgin, she was married
to a man named Joseph (Bible: Matthew:1:18).
According to Matthew 1:25, Joseph "kept her a virgin until she gave birth
to a Son; and he called His name Jesus".
3. Do Christians believe he had a miraculous birth? Yes.
"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows. When His mother Mary had
been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be
with child by the Holy Spirit" (Bible: Matthew 1:18).
4. Do Christians believe he performed miracles? Yes.
"And now, Lord, look upon their threats, and grant to thy servants to
speak thy word with all boldness, while thou stretches out thy hand to
heal, and sign and wonders are performed through the name of thy holy
servant Jesus (Bible: Acts 4:30).
Christians believe that Jesus performed these miracles because he was the
Son of God as well as the incarnation of God.
5. Do Christians believe in the Trinity? Yes.
With the exception of the Unitarian Christians, who do not believe in the
Divinity of Christ, the Trinity, according to the Catholic encyclopedia,
is the term used for the central doctrine of the Christian religion. The
belief is that in the unity of the Godhead there are Three Persons, the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three Persons or beings are
distinct from each another, while being similar in character: uncreated
and omnipotent.
The First Vatican Council has explained the meaning to be attributed to
the term mystery in theology. It lays down that a mystery is a truth which
we are not merely incapable of discovering apart from Divine Revelation,
but which, even when revealed, remains "hidden by the veil of faith and
enveloped, so to speak, by a kind of darkness" (Const., "De fide. cath.",
iv).
The First Vatican Council further defined that the Christian Faith
contains mysteries strictly so called (can. 4). All theologians admit that
the doctrine of the Trinity is of the number of these. The Catholic
Encyclopedia notes that of all revealed truths, this is the most
impenetrable to reason.
6 . Do Christians believe that Jesus was the son of God? Yes.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the
Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be
saved through Him (Bible: John 3:16).
However, it is interesting to note that the term "son of God" is used in
other parts of the Bible to refer to Adam (Bible: Luke 3:38), Israel
(Bible: Exodus 4:22) and David (Bible: Psalms 2:7) as well. The creatures
of God are usually referred to in the Bible as children of God.
The role of Paul of Tarsus in shaping this belief
and the belief in Trinity.
The notion of Jesus as son of God is something that was established under
the influence of Paul of Tarsus (originally named Saul), who had been an
enemy of Jesus, but later changed course and joined the disciples after
the departure of Jesus.
Later, however, he initiated a number of changes into early Christian
teachings, in contradiction, for instance, to disciples like Barnabas, who
believed in the Oneness of God and who had actually lived and met with
Jesus.
Paul is considered by a number of Christian scholars to be the father of
Christianity due to his additions of the following ideas:
that Jesus is the son of God, the concept of Atonement, the renunciation
of the Law of the Torah.
Paul did these things in hopes of winning over the Gentiles (non-Jewish
people). His letters are another of the primary sources of information on
Jesus according to the Christian tradition.
The original followers of Prophet Jesus opposed these blatant
misrepresentations of the message of Jesus. They struggled to reject the
notion of the Divinity of Jesus for close to 200 years.
One person who was an original follower of Jesus was Barnabas. He was a
Jew born in Cyrus and a successful preacher of the teachings of Jesus.
Because of his closeness to the Prophet, he was an important member of the
small group of disciples in Jerusalem who had had gathered together
following the disappearance of Jesus.
The question of Jesus's nature, origin and relationship with God was not
raised amongst Barnabas and the small group of disciples. Jesus was
considered a man miraculously endowed by God. Nothing in the words of
Jesus or the events in his life led them to modify this view.
The Gospel of Barnabas was accepted as a Canonical Gospel in the Churches
of Alexandria till 325 CE Iranaeus (130-200) wrote in support of pure
monotheism and opposed Paul for injecting into Christianity doctrines of
the pagan Roman religion and Platonic philosophy. He quoted extensively
from the Gospel of Barnabas in support of his views. This indicates that
the Gospel of Barnabas was in circulation in the first and second
centuries of Christianity.
In 325 (CE), a council of Christian leaders met at Nicaea and made Paul's
beliefs officially part of Christian doctrine. It also ordered that all
original Gospels in Hebrew script which contradicted Paul's beliefs should
be destroyed. An edict was issued that anyone in possession of these
Gospels would be put to death.
The Gospel of Barnabas has miraculously survived though.
7 . Do Christians believe he was killed on the cross? Yes.
This is a core Christian belief and it relates to the concept of
atonement. According to this belief, Jesus died to save mankind from sin.
However, this is not stated explicitly in the four gospels which form the
primary source texts of Christianity. It is found, however, in (Romans
6:8,9).
Christians believe Jesus was spat on, cut, humiliated, kicked, striped and
finally hung up on the cross to endure a slow and painful death.
According, to Christian belief, the original sin of Adam and Eve of eating
from the forbidden tree was so great that God could not forgive it by
simply willing it, rather it was necessary to erase it with the blood of a
sinless, innocent Jesus.
Resurrection
The four Gospels and the Epistles of St. Paul are the main sources of
Christianity which discuss the Resurrection of Jesus after his
crucifixion.
According to St. Matthew, Jesus appeared to the holy women, and again on a
mountain in Galilee. Mark's Gospel tells a different story: Jesus was seen
by Mary Magdalene, by the two disciples at Emmaus, and the Eleven before
his Ascension into heaven.
Luke's Gospel says Jesus walked with the disciples to Emmaus, appeared to
Peter and to the assembled disciples in Jerusalem. In John's Gospel, Jesus
appeared to Mary Magdalene, to the ten Apostles on Easter Sunday, to the
Eleven a week later, and to seven disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
Another account of the resurrection by St. Paul is found in (Bible:
Corinthians 15: 3-8).
According to Christian belief, Resurrection is a manifestation of God's
justice, Who exalted Christ to a life of glory, as Christ had humbled
Himself unto death (Phil., 2: 8-9). This event also completes the mystery
of Christian salvation and redemption. The death of Jesus frees believers
from sin, and with his resurrection, he restores to them the most
important privileges lost by sin (Bible: Romans 4:25).
More importantly, the belief in the resurrection of Jesus indicates
Christian acknowledgment of Christ as the immortal God, the cause of
believers' own resurrection (Bible: I Corinthians 4: 21; Phil., 3:20-21),
as well as the model and the support of a new life of grace (Bible: Romans
4: 4-6; 9-11) |