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Monotheism is the concept based on recognition that there is one all-powerful God. It is frequently affiliated with three global religions: Judaism, Christianity, and also Islam. The monotheistic worldviews of the religions do not claim that their one God is greater than other smaller gods or that He competes for any supremacy, rather that only one God exists, and He alone is sovereign over everything.
Of particular interest in this paper are the resemblances and dissimilarities in Islamic and Christian monotheism. The believers have long shared belief in one God; nevertheless, the way monotheism is represented within two religions is vastly dissimilar. Although Muslims and Christians have faith in one God, their beliefs differ a lot. For Christians, this God exists in three separate essences that are named The Trinity. The Trinity comprises Father, Son and Holy Spirit. At the same time, Muslims think that there is one God - Allah. Allah is not Trinity. The Islamic view of God is recognized as strict Monotheism that presupposes the belief in the oneness of God. It is the aim of this paper to discuss the differences and commonalities between Christianity and Islam, Islamic monotheism, and Islamic beliefs concerning Christian monotheism as represented in the Scriptures, and, lastly, analyze the 10 Commandments and 5 Pillars.
Common Ground
Both Christianity and Islam are religious convictions of revelation centered on the book. Abraham is as crucially important in the Qur’an as he is in the Bible. He is the initial in a long line of prophets of God (or Allah). Also, Muslims and Christians have faith in the absolute truth. Most importantly, Islam and Christianity are monotheistic religions, thinking there is only one God. More specially, they are ethical monotheists, presupposing their “monotheism was firmly ethical, focused on the God-given law code, which had clear, well-enunciated ethical standards” (Catherwood 46).
Both religions accept as true that God is the source of everything. God cares about the total creation and wishes that everyone be happy. God offered the fundamental regulations for humans’ guidance, so that they can be righteous, in accordance with God's intention.
The Abrahamic religions think God and humans may and should communicate with one another. By exposure, God communicates with human beings, which comes in the shape of revelation through prophets. The revelations are written in the Holy Scriptures of every religion (Bauckham 25-28). The duty of individuals is to pay attention to the Holy Writings and to reply with praise, prayer, and with proper acceptance of commandments or pillars in individual lifestyle. Both religions have what is called a “Golden Rule”: doing to other people what we want others do unto us. These religions foster moderation, modesty, and honest work. Additionally, Christianity and Islam’s views of existence after death are fundamentally identical (Hell and Heaven), with the only difference being Catholic faith in purgatory.
There are also resemblances to the practices performed by both Muslims and Christians, for instance, in choosing a place of worship. All Christians worship in cathedrals or churches while Muslims worship in mosques. Believers attend holy structures under dissimilar names, in which they pray and attain closeness to God. For Christians, the Sabbath day is Sunday, at times Saturday. For Muslims, this day is Friday. One of the big differences is the use of statues of various Holy Figures. Statues are really widespread in Christian denominations, whereas Muslims totally forbid the usage of statues as they treat as idolatry.
The 5 Pillars of Islam and the 10 Commandments
Religions of Islam and Christianity share the same aim that applies to humans ("Five Pillars of Islam"). They both strive to evolve morality, ideological and social community, and spiritual enlightenment. The 5 Pillars of Islam and the 10 Commandments are presupposed to assist in this spiritual enlightenment and in evolvement of the ideological and social community.
The Five Pillars are the essential beliefs of Islamic religion. The Five Pillars are considered to be primary in guiding the way a person lives. They hold the same sort of sacred features that the Ten Commandments hold to Christians and Jews. The key dissimilarity is that the Five Pillars do not simply explain what to escape, but what a person must do to be accurate and true in his or her practice of faith.
The Pillars are prioritized, and the initial one is Shahadah or Testimony of Faith. Every believer Muslim has to believe and accept no other God but Allah. This stresses the monotheistic essence of Islamic faith that differed from polytheistic practices that were common in the seventh century CE ("Five Pillars of Islam"). Though representatives of the Christian and Jewish religions inhabited the places where Muhammad came to power, many people worshipped numerous Gods. Therefore, focus on one real God, the Allah of Abraham, and the concept of one God distinguished Muslims from those people who were polytheistic. Also, it made them brethren with the Christians and the Jews ("Five Pillars of Islam"). The following Pillar of Islam is the Ritual Prayer, or Salat. Believers pray in Arabic five times every day. These prayers are at all times performed facing Mecca, the religious home of Islam ("Five Pillars of Islam"). Providing alms is the next Pillar of Islam, named Zakat in Arabic. Basically, all Muslims have to help the poor. This approach is similar to tithing, common in Christian denominations. Nevertheless, not everybody has to provide the same percent. A rich person might give two percent of the entire savings annually. Those who have prosperous farms might donate nearly 10% of their goods annually, or a part of the profits ("Five Pillars of Islam"). The fourth Pillar is fasting (Siyam). All who are capable have to fast among the hours of sunset and sunrise during the ninth month of Islamic calendar that is Ramadan. Youngsters, pregnant females and old people need not fast. Most humans who are ill do not have to fast either ("Five Pillars of Islam"). Still, all others have to observe Siyam in line with the Five Pillars. The final of the Five Pillars is Hajj or Pilgrimage. Each believer has to try to make the yearly Hajj to Mecca. Most feel the Hajj is of remarkable spiritual significance as one follows in the footsteps of Muhammad ("Five Pillars of Islam").The believers across the globe take part in the ritual no matter the color, caste, or tradition. It reduces the dissimilarity of the social position and unites all Muslims together. Just as Christians have the Ten Commandments to direct them, Muslims use the Five Pillars as their guidelines .
Islamic and Christian Monotheism
It may appear Islam and Christianity agree, at least superficially, on their monotheistic opinions. Nevertheless, there is little compatibility between the Islamic and Christian views. The dissimilarities become much more obvious in how Muslims and Christians approach Jesus Christ and the Bible. Muslims assert that Christians are not actually monotheistic, for Christians and the Scriptures claim Jesus is God. Therefore, the doctrines of the Incarnation and the Trinity are expressly denied and condemned by Islam (Armstrong).
The personality of Jesus (Isa in Arabic) is of ultimate importance in Christianity and of some importance in Islam. There are dissimilarities in terms of beliefs concerning the essence and living occurrences of Jesus Christ. Most of the Islamic data concerning Jesus is, in fact, discovered in the Quran. This holy book was revealed by God to the Prophet Muhammad, and written in his lifetime. Nowadays, any Muslim has faith in the dependability of the Quran as the primary discovered guidance from Allah. Christians take their data concerning Jesus from the Bible, which comprises the New and Old Testaments. These include four biblical stories covering the living and bereavement of Jesus. They have been written, in accordance with tradition, by Matthew, Luke, Mark, and John. They are put in the New Testament and embrace close to half of it (Armstrong).
In the Bible, Jesus Christ is the son of God, He is the second Person of Trinity and was born of Virgin Mary. In the Qu’ran, Jesus is the prophet, sent by God and born of Virgin Mary, but Jesus is not thought to be a divine being. At the same time, Muslims think every person may be called a son or daughter of God as he or she was made by God. Thus, Muslims believe, there is nothing extraordinary or divine about Jesus being recognized as son of God.
Both religious convictions believe that Jesus was of a virgin birth, He is on Heaven now, and there will be another coming of Jesus in the future. However, the religious convictions disagree on the nature of Jesus’ passing away. Christians think Jesus was crucified by the Roman Army and resurrected in three days, yet the Muslims think he did not die but rather climbed alive into Heaven.
Therefore, it is the claim of Christ’s deity that is the major point of debate between these religions . The Christian doctrine of deity of Christ and the Triune Godhead are profoundly troubling for Muslims. It appears to be mathematically irrational; how can one three persons create a single one? Also, Muslims will point to the Scriptures that obviously tell there is one God and not three. Another argument against the Trinity that Muslims have has to do with Jesus and His demise on the cross. Muslim apologists reason, “If Jesus is God and He passed away on that cross, then God passed away on the cross. But as God cannot depart this life, and it was just Jesus who departed this life, then Jesus should be detached from God…How can God be one and three simultaneously?” (Janosik 73). Ultimately, Muslims are perplexed when they are told that God has begotten the Son. How can God give birth to God?
Muslims think that Jesus was the prophet of God, much like other prophets who came before him. They think that when the Scriptures claim he is one with the Father, this presupposes oneness of aim and mission, not of essence. They believe that when the Scriptures claim Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, this is simply something true of all prophets of Allah. They think that when Jesus says that He lived before Abraham, the sound way is to respond that all preexist in the mind of Allah. According to Islam, Jesus being recognized as the “Son of God” is nothing important since several before Him were also treated as the sons of God (Janosik 73-76).
Furthermore, Muslims think that the Scriptures signify that Jesus was in submission to the Father. They argue that many passages demonstrate that Jesus did not speak or act on His own authority, that the Father was greater than He, that He was tempted, that He prayed to God, and that He lacked some knowledge. So Muslims conclude that Jesus’ acts and words are that of the prophet, not of God Himself. They suppose that the attributes of God are not shown in the personality of Jesus. For the Muslim, this proves that Jesus and God are not one in the same. Moreover, the Muslims assert that the Trinity is merely not taught in the Scripture. They wonder how Christians can believe such a doctrine with no foundation in the Scriptures? (Janosik 73-76).
Christianity’s Reply to Islam
The reply to these facts and opinions expressed by Muslims must be twofold. First of all, it is crucial to confirm the dependability of the Scriptures, which are the basis of Christian faith and doctrine. Second, if Scriptures are dependable and not corrupted, then the substantial argument may be made that Jesus is God and that God exists as three personalities in one. Thus, Christianity is, indeed, the monotheistic worldview and that the concept of the Trinity does not compromise this fact (Armstrong).
Much may be asserted concerning the dependability of the Scriptures. There are three common tests used to examine any text: bibliographical, external, and internal. The bibliographical test considers the amount of manuscripts accessible and how close they are to the autographs. The external test uses the archaeology or other writings close to same period to verify the testimony of the text. The internal test is the examination of the text itself to see if it claims to be a genuine story of real historical events written by eyewitnesses or those with access to the eyewitnesses. The Scriptures pass all three tests (Armstrong). If the New Testament passes three tests, then the Muslim criticism that it is corrupt has no solid basis. There is no manuscript confirmation that the statements affirming Christ’s deity were added to the Scriptures at a later date.
At the time the New Testament writers taught the Deity of Christ and the Trinity, they also taught the strict monotheism. Richard Bauckham (1998) claims early Christians were not breaking away from the monotheistic origins when they embraced the Deity of Christ (Bauckham 25-28). This is achieved by recognizing that Jesus takes part in the unique Identity of God, Who is one Creator and Ruler of all things. Insofar as Jesus shows the attributes of God, there is no hazard to monotheism when Christians worship Jesus as God (Bauckham 25-28).
Although other prophets are recognized the sons of God in the Scriptures, there is a difference when it comes to Jesus. He is the only Son Who is begotten of God, Who preserves the status of supremacy, and Who passed away and was resurrected for the sins of all humans. Jesus is not some other prophet like Moses, who claimed just to be a humble person and a friend of God.
Yet God is not two Personalities, but three. God the Holy Spirit is the third personality in the Triune Godhead. For any Muslim, God in His complete oneness is a distant God, but the Triune God of Christianity is God who reveals Himself and wishes to be recognized by His people (Armstrong). Although the term “Trinity” or any explicit teaching concerning the Trinity never appear in the Bible, the concept is taught throughout. Berkhof (1941) summarizes this in the following way: “The Bible never deals with concept of the Trinity as the theoretical truth, but shows the Trinitarian living in its dissimilar relations as the living reality…” (Berkhof 85).
Moreover, the New Testament borrows some of the Old Testament passages concerning God and reinterprets them to refer to Jesus (Armstrong). Not only does this reaffirm the Deity of Christ, but it also educates the believers that God is revealed as more than one Personality. The New Testament provides an absolute revelation of the personalities of the Trinity in comparison with the Old Testament. Passages, for instance, 2 Corinthians 13:14, Ephesians 4:4-6, and I Peter 1:2 name all three Personalities of the Trinity as being God or possessing the characteristics of God. These verses educate about the distinctions of all three persons, yet there is only one God (Armstrong).
Conclusion
Islam and Christianity are two related religious convictions as they respect Abraham and other patriarchs named in the Bible as the religious ancestors. Thus, both religions are recognized as Abrahamic religions. Numerous points of worship and belief hold similarity, however, this does not guarantee that the believers get along. There are numerous points of belief and worship that are alike if not exactly the same, but there are others which are opposite or contradictory, such as Islam and Christianity’s notion of Deity, for example. Christians have faith in the Trinity that is three personalities in one Godhead: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, while Muslims think Allah is one and inseparable, promoting extremely strict monotheism.
In Islam the oneness of God is of the upper significance. God can have no associates, peers, or co-equals. The God in this religious conviction is transcendent and cannot be personally known by His believers. Despite the claims of Muslims, the concept of the Trinity, even being extremely complex, is not self-defeating or irrational. This concept is crucial to God and to Christianity. Personality does not evolve nor live in isolation, but only in the connection with other personalities. Thus, it is not achievable to imagine the Personality of God apart from the link to equal Persons in Him. Without Triune Godhead there is no Son of God (fully God and fully Man) by whom people are saved and there is no Holy Spirit by whom people are indwelled. It is by means of the three-Person God that Christians are redeemed, obtain the revelation, and have a relationship with the personal God.
Works Cited
Armstrong, Michele. "Christian vs. Islamic Monotheism." Matthew22:37. N.p., 1998. Web. 25 Nov. 2012.
Bauckham, Richard. God Crucified: Monotheism and Christianity in the New Testament. Grand Rapids: WB Eerdmans Publishing, 1998. 25-28. Print.
Berkhof, Louis. Systematic Theology. Grand Rapids: WB Eerdmans Publishing, 1941. 85. Print.
Catherwood, Christopher. Christians, Muslims, and Islamic Rage. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003. 46. Print.
"Five Pillars of Islam." BBC. N.p., 8 Sept. 2009. Web. 25 Nov. 2012.
Janosik, Daniel. "Explaining the Trinity to a Muslim." Christian Apologetics Journal 4.2 (2005): 73-76. Print.