Christianity & Islam - A Comparison (Part 2)

By definition, God is beyond human comprehension; otherwise, He would be less than God. Still, we can know some of His attributes, because both the Bible and Qur'an speak of them.

For the most part, Christianity and Islam agree about the attributes of God. Christians and Muslims both believe that God is - among other things - omnipotent, omnipresent, all-wise, kind, gracious, merciful, forgiving, just, entirely self-sufficient, eternal, all-good, holy, immanent yet transcendent, unchangeable, infinite, loving, and sovereign. In addition, both religions teach that God is One Being, but, as I mentioned in Part 1, Christians believe that the One God is composed of three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), while Muslims teach that the One God is absolutely One, without partners or associates.

Another of God's attributes is His wrath. Christianity and Islam both affirm that God will judge all people on the Last Day. Those who are the objects of God's wrath will be cast into Hell.

Both religions say that God is the Creator and Sustainer of all that exists, having brought everything into existence ex nihilo (out of nothing). Each teaches that He governs all that happens, though the degree to which He uses predestination varies between the two faiths.

It's generally accurate to say that Christianity and Islam agree concerning the attributes of God. One major difference, however, concerns which of His attributes is predominant. This difference of understanding affects the way each religion views God's relationship to man. I want to discuss these two views in my next post.

And this I will do, if God permits.

Christianity & Islam - A Comparison (Part 1)

In comparing Christianity and Islam, the most logical place to begin is with the doctrine of God. Although both religions are monotheistic - that is, they believe in only One God - each expresses its belief quite differently from the other. What are these beliefs, and how do they differ?

Simply put, Christianity is trinitarian, while Islam is unitarian. Christians believe in One God revealed in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Muslims believe in One God Who is absolutely One, without equals, partners, or associates. In other words, Muslims worship the One Whom Christians call God the Father, while rejecting the belief that Jesus and the Holy Spirit share in His Divinity. 

Christians see the Muslim view as both inadequate and unacceptable, since belief in the divinity of Jesus is required for one to be saved from eternal damnation. Muslims see the Christian view as erroneous, unacceptable, and spiritually dangerous, since associating anyone with God (called shirk in Islam), is the most serious sin a person can commit. 

It's worth noting that the Islamic doctrine of God corresponds exactly with the Jewish doctrine of God as found in the Torah (the Old Testament of the Christian Bible). Muslims would say that Jesus himself, being a devout Jew, believed what the Torah taught regarding God. In support they quote the Gospel of John, chapter 17, verse 3, where Jesus, praying to God, says these words: "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent". According to Muslims, this verse (from the Christian New Testament) clearly shows that Jesus saw himself as both separate from, and subordinate to, God.

It's clear that Christianity and Islam have very different views about the identity of God. Those differences are mutually exclusive and irreconcilable. 

At this point, I want to try to clear up a misperception that many American Christians have about the name by which Muslims refer to God. Allah is, according to some authorities, a contraction of the words al-ilah, which simply means "The God". In the Middle East, both Arabic-speaking Christians and Arabic-speaking Jews use the word "Allah" to refer to God. I've heard some American Christians, including ministers, claim that Allah is the ancient pagan moon god of the Arabs, or "the Muslim god", different from the God of the Christians and Jews, or worst of all, Satan the Devil. Not only are these opinions deeply offensive to Muslims, they are also offensive to Arabic-speaking Jews and Christians, and most importantly, offensive to God Himself.

Let's move from the identity of God to the attributes of God. What do Christians and Muslims believe, do they differ, and if so, how? I plan to address this subject in my next post.

And this I will do, if God permits.

Christianity & Islam - A Comparison (Introduction)

Monotheism is the belief in one God, as opposed to polytheism, which is the belief in many gods. The three major monotheistic religions are Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the latter two being the largest of the monotheistic faiths. While Judaism doesn't actively seek converts, both Christianity and Islam do.

How do Christianity and Islam compare? How do they differ? Other than the belief in one God, do they have anything in common? Though I'm not a scholar, I've studied both of these religions for a long time, so I hope to shed some light on them, while sharing some personal insights from my own search for spiritual truth.

For starters, Christianity is much more diverse than Islam. Christianity is divided into three main groups - Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant. Within Protestantism there are thousands of denominations. There are other groups that don't fit into any of these three categories. Each group differs in significant ways from the others. Because of that, it's hard to speak of Christianity in a way with which all Christians will agree; therefore, my descriptions will be of a general nature.

Islam is divided into two main groups - Sunni and Shia. Within Sunnism there are differences of understanding. There's also a mystical sect referred to as Sufism. These groups represent what is commonly known as "Orthodox Islam".  In addition, there are some Muslims who don't identify with any of these groups. The differences within Islam, however, are much less significant than the differences within Christianity. 

In this series of blog posts, I plan to address the Christian and Muslim beliefs about God, Scripture, Jesus Christ, sin, and salvation, to name a few. In so doing, I hope that those who avail themselves of this information will develop a greater understanding of, and appreciation for, these two monotheistic faiths.

And this I will do, if God permits.