Islam is one of the major six religions in the world, and has come to light even more after the September 11th attacks in 2001. Many questions arose regarding the nature of the faith, and many answers were given that seemed to assert that the violence that was committed in the name of Allah was not in fact intrinsic to faith. Rather, the religion was actually a religion of peace, and these terrorists were simply extremists after whom the religion as a whole should not be characterized.
This essay will examine the nature of the Islamic faith, and will conclude whether the violence attributed to Islamic terrorists, is in fact intrinsic to the faith or not. It will also compare and contrast Islam to Christianity, by analyzing the different prophets and scrutinizing the faiths apologetically. The aim of this essay is to 1: show that these two religions do not simply worship the same god in different ways, and 2: answer that if only one can be true, which one is it?
Islam and Christianity
First and foremost, we must acknowledge our perspective from which we examine the Islamic faith. Though we can never fully “step outside” of our own perspective, we must do our very best to examine objectively. As a convert from Islam to Christianity, Tony Weedor has advised that “you can never use your western worldview to interpret Islam; you will always get it wrong.”
The best example of this is in examining Allah, the god of Islam. We must not assume Allah is like the god of the Judeo-Christian faith. “The concept of God as ‘Allah’ is of a being thatis totally other, wholly transcendent to the point of implying that Allah is unknowable in himself but known in his will and requirements revealed in the Qur’an (Sura 42:11, 112:1-4). Islam is a monotheistic religion, like Christianity, however they deny the trinity, considering it polytheism, as well as denying the incarnation which is essential to the Christian faith (Col 2:9).
Where did this faith come from? By asserting that it completes Christianity, Muslims maintain that their religion came from Abraham, through Ishmael, through the Arab people, and was revealed to Muhammed, the great prophet. This revelation came to Muhammed alone, in a cave, by the angel Gabriel. Before this, however, Muhammed had been told he was the prophet that was prophesied in Deuteronomy 18:15. More on the life of Muhammed will be reserved for the section below.
This is where the concept of abrogation begins to surface.Completion involves retaining the former, whereas abrogation involves the abolishment of the former. “Although the Qur’an considers the Old and New Testaments as God’s word (Sura 3:93; 4:163; 5:46 etc.), it considers its own authority as greater than theirs (Sura 5:48). Not only does Islam abrogate Christianity, it abrogates former teachings of Islam in favor of latter teachings. For example, Muhammad’s first revelation taught that repayment should be made only to those who mistreat you, while his second revelation now teaches to conquer your whole region.
As we do our best to put aside our western perspective, we must realize that the purpose of the Islamic faith is not merely religious. “True Islam functions within a community (the umma) that optimally carries its own political identity.” It is a “comprehensive reality – the state is to be as much Islamic as is the local mosque.” What proves crucial to the Islamic faith is its sheep’s clothing that it is simply a culture wanting freedom to practice their values. They are given their freedom under the first amendment. However, their exercise of this freedom is not found in simply worshipping their god, but rather in bringing in the Trojan horse of the very threat to the country which gives them this freedom in the first place.
Islam works with three stages: the weakened, the preparation, and the Jihad stage. They begin by submitting to the law of the land, all the while working to increase their numbers.Islam grows principally through enculturation, procreation, intimidation, immigration, and capitulation. Muslim men seek to intermarry with the women of the area, and then they begin brainwashing their own children at the age of three. Tony has insightfully pointed out, that as Islam builds its army, it is of no surprise that they do not speak out against gay marriage or abortion. Though these are prohibited for a Muslim, the cause of Islam is actually aided when the infidels practice such things.
Next is the preparation state, where preparations are made financially, physically, mentally, and militarily. Here we see the concept of Taqiyya surface, which “justifies and practices lying under war circumstances…lying and deceit are part of the Islamic mind-set.” This is also a crucial concept that must be understood in order to understand Islam.
Once these two phases are complete, the Jihad stage beings. “At this stage every Muslim’s duty is to actively fight the enemy, overturning the system of the non-Muslim country and establishing Islamic authority.” This is exactly what we have seen with Islamic terrorist actions, but it would appear that these actions are not of the extremists, but rather what the faith calls for in order to fulfill its ultimate purpose.
Christianity also stems from Abraham, but rather can be traced through Isaac, the Jewish people, and Jesus (who was not simply a prophet). The God of Christianity is also singular, however he is Trinitarian by nature and came to the earth (1 John 2:22-23). “That’s the difference, brothers and sisters, God came down.” God is transcendent, but he is also immanent and personal. He is knowable and is unchanging, unlike Allah.
The Christian faith is not lacking in anything and therefore not able to be completed by anything else. In response to the claim the Islam does simply what the New Testament of the Bible does to the Old Testament, David Nobel explains that “Islam is not to Christianity as Christianity is to the Old Testament [because] the New Testament appeals to, depends upon, and develops from the Old Testament.”
Salvation is through faith, and with it comes assurance (Eph 2:8, Titus 3:5-6, John 10:28). This is opposed to Islamic salvation which is attained through works, and it never comes with a sense of assurance, and how could it if Allah is not immutable? Christianity grows principally through prayer (Matt 6:5-13), teaching (Matt 28:18-20), preaching (Rom 10:14), service (1 Peter 4:11) and demonstration of love (John 13:35). It is a winsome proclaims of the life-giving news of the Gospel, rather than the intimidation, threat, and fear that drives Islam.
Jesus and Muhammad
There were many prophecies regarding the birth of Jesus throughout the Old Testament. Muhammad had also been prophesied over, as we saw earlier. A man by the name of Bahira, who claimed to be a Christian (all the while denying Jesus as son of God), told Muhammad’s uncle that he was the final prophet. Jesus embraced the beliefs of his people, and was aware of his identity as mediator (John 14:6). Muhammad was not a mediator, but rather, a final prophet. He initially embraced the beliefs of his family, the Quraysh tribe, but then later tried to persuade them of his own revelation. Both of these men experience times of testing during their ministry. Jesus was directly tempted by Satan and Muhammad experienced a time where he did not receive many revelations. “Jesus was confident about his purpose and identity from the very beginning. He was not troubled by his time of testing. In contrast, Muhammad became suicidal when his revelations stopped coming.”
Jesus and Muhammad were both rejected during their ministries: Jesus, by his hometown and religious leaders, and Muhammad, by his very own Quraysh tribe. He was harassed and insulted. His followers were boycotted. It is interesting, that around this time, the revelations Muhammad received often included rebukes of the very people whom were persecuting him. “Jesus showed frustration and anger with the religious leaders… He also used parables to protest their actions (Matt 21:28-46; 22:1-14). However, he did not attempt to cause physical harm to any of them.”
Jesus relied on preaching and healing throughout his ministry. Once the boycott of Muhammad’s followers was repealed, he attempted to rely on preaching alone. However, his“efforts met little success.” Both Jesus and Muhammad appointed 12 key people to work with them. Both Muslims and Christians look to these men as moral exemplars for what their lives should imitate. Every Muslim wants to be like Muhammad. “The Hadith presents Muhammad as the exemplary human whom Muslims must imitate in all respects.”
Jesus did give authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal (Matt 10:1), however, he always taught his followers to leave the judgment to God, even when they were persecuted (Matt 10:14-19). Muhammad’s first revelation gave permission to fight anyone who rejects Islam, only to be replaced by his second revelation which was to spread Islam by force. “Jesus practiced his ministry the same way from beginning to end. But in Muhammad’s life, there was an event that marked a major change”
In Mecca, Muhammad displayed cooperation, tolerance and forgiveness. However, “this soft lamb turned into a roaring lion.” Muhammad’s Islamic ministry went from preaching, to using the sword. He went from being perceived as a priest to a military commander. He went from one wife to twelve, and he went from fighting idol worshiper a to fighting the Jews and Christians.
Inconsistent Nature of Islam
The nature of Islam proves to be quite inconsistent. It does not have a correspondence theory of truth. Winifred Corduan has penned that “Islam can be a paradoxical religion.” We see this through the later revelations of Muhammad that abrogate his previous revelations. We even see this within the concept ofTaqiyya, where even lying is justified under the cause of Allah.Tony Weedor has quipped that “one of the dirty secrets of Islam is that in a way it is relativistic.”
Muslims hold that the biblical prophets of the Old and New Testaments originally taught Islam, while they simultaneously deny the reliability of those very scriptures because the Bible does not teach Islam. However, “they have never successfully shown that the Bible is corrupted.”
C.S. Lewis insightfully gave a moral argument for the existence of God, claiming that God necessarily had to be good.What we see in the Islamic faith, is that “certain actions are good not because they derive from God’s character, but because God chooses to call them good.” Again, even good is not defined by an ultimate standard, but rather by the whims of this false god. If good is relative, then is anything really evil? A Muslim cannot consistently maintain that goodness is relative, and yet anything that opposes Islam is evil.
The logical conclusion of the Muslim’s presupposition, being the Islamic faith, proves to be unlivable. “Once a Muslim starts thinking, they are on their way to becoming Christian.”However, we must realized that what keeps a Muslim a Muslim is not the truth claims of the faith, but rather what seems to be a crippling fear of Allah.
Conclusion
“The West is a sucker for anything that sounds tolerant or broadminded.” In spite of these American “virtues,” we must recognize Islam for what it is: “a political, cultural and religious system…a religious primarily oriented toward law rather than theology.” As has been shown above, we must also realize that “to claim that [Christians, Jews, and Muslims] worship the same God is misleading.”
The call for Christians is to be salt and light in the earth.“We must set [Muslims] free with the gospel.” It is interesting that Muslims try to make Mohammed into a mediator, though he never claimed to be. This speaks psychologically and anthropologically to the human condition.
Muslims are hungry for truth because they are disenchanted with the spirit of deception in Islam. Muslims are thirsty for love, forgiveness and mercy. Muslims are searching for peace in this world because they are disillusioned by the religious jihad, which leads to bloodshed and hatred. Women are frustrated with persecution and denial of their rights. Muslims are longing for a personal relationship with God as the Savior.
As Christians, we must first be informed (Matthew 22:37-40; 1 Peter 3:15-16). “Early Islam spread largely through force; the radical Muslims of the twenty-first century desire to return to that golden age.” We must also be courageous and act (2 Timothy 1:7; James 2:14-26), in spite of the threat(s) we may receive.
“Islamic countries are among the most vociferous persecutors of Christians, presenting probably the greatest missionary challenge to the Church and exhibiting the most prominent external threat to the biblical values of freedom, justice, and order.” In this we find our opportunity to suffer for Christ (Phil 1:29), knowing that God does not want anyone to perish but rather to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
The Islamic community has been deceived and it is the very threat of Allah which keeps them from seeing the truth. They should be engaged gently, yet logically. Our compassion for the lost should drive us in our endeavors, yet we should never coward in the name of tolerance to keep from exposing the realities of threats. In the words of Jesus himself, we should seek to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves (Matt 10:16).
Bibliography
Weeder, Tony. Class Lecture in Religious Pluralism, Denver Seminary, Littleton CO, October, 29,2013.
Hyseni, Nezir. “Tolerance and the Qur’an: Understanding the Unavoidable Islam,” Answering Islam. November 7,2013, accessed October 29, 2013.
Noebel, David. Understanding The Times: The Collision of Today's Competing Worldviews, 2ndEd. Manitou Springs: Summit Press , 2006.
Gabriel, Mark. Islam and Terrorism. Lake Mary: FrontLine, 2002.
Gabriel, Mark. Jesus and Muhammed. Lake Mary: FrontLine,2004.
Corduan, Winifried. Neighboring Faiths: A Christian Introduction to World Religions, 2nd ed. Downers Grove: InverVarsity, 2012.
Groothuis, Douglas. Class Lecture in Religious Pluralism, Denver Seminary, Littleton CO,October, 29,2013.
Lewis, C.S. Mere Christianity. New York: HarperCollins, 2001.
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