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Themes covered in this section are:
God of Muslims, Jews & Christians
Similarities between Islam, Christianity & Judaism
God of Muslims, Jews & Christians;
Islam is not a new religion, but the same message that God revealed through all His Prophets including Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and the last Prophet, Muhammad (peace be upon them all), to all people in different periods of civilisation. For more than a fifth of the world’s population, Islam is both a religion and a complete way of life.
The main misconception enshrouding Islam is that Muslims worship a strange deity called Allah. The word Allah is Arabic for God. The same God in Christian and Jewish scriptures. We must remember that the Old Testament was originally revealed in Hebrew and the name of God was Elohim. In the New Testament the word for God was Il’ah in Aramaic. The word for God varies from language to language. But the identity of God remains the same in all three monotheistic faiths.
"Say: He is Allah (God), the One and Only; Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; And there is none like unto Him" (112:1-4).
No person can be a Muslim if he does not believe in Jesus. Muslims revere Jesus Christ as a prophet of God. They also believe that his mother, Mary, was chosen by God above all women of all nations and that Jesus was miraculously conceived. He performed many miracles in his short life, like giving life to the dead and healing the blind and the lepers through God’s power. The Holy Qur’an teaches Muslims that Jesus was not crucified by the Romans but in fact raised to Heaven and to return to Earth before the end of time as we know it.
Christians and Jews are regarded as "People of the Book" because they follow one of the four Holy Scriptures; the psalms of David, the Torah of Moses, the Injeel (Bible) of Jesus and the Qur’an of Muhammad (peace and blessings to them all). These books contain the same fundamental message from God; that is to return to the righteous path and belief in the one true God. Muslims believe in all the prophets that Christians and Jews believe in - Joseph, Jonah, Job, Zachariah and John the Baptist among others."In matters of faith, He (God) has ordained for you that which He had enjoined upon Noah - and into which We gave thee [O Muhammad (pbuh)] insight through revelation - as well as that which We had enjoined upon Abraham, and Moses, and Jesus: Steadfastly uphold the [true] faith, and do not break up your unity therein" (42:13).
Allah says, "We did aforetime give Moses the Guidance, and We gave the Book in inheritance to the Children of Israel - a guide and a reminder to men of understanding (40:53-54).
By saying "there is no god except God, and Muhammad (pbuh) is the Messenger of God" the believer announces his or her faith in God and all His messengers, and the scriptures they brought. It is incumbent upon the potential believer to research and study the teachings and explanations of the Qur’an in order to make a balanced and rational decision when embracing Islam as there can be no compulsion. Acceptance of Islam must be by one’s free will. By embracing Islam, in fact, a person comes back to his/her Creator (hence referred to as a "revert" rather than a "convert" to Islam), and receives the greatest blessing of God. The All-Forgiving and Most-Merciful God forgives all the past sins and mistakes of such a person and he/she starts his/her life with a clean slate, as if born again.
According
to the saying of the Prophet (pbuh):
"If a person embraces Islam sincerely, then God shall forgive all
his past sins, and after that the reward of his good deeds will be ten
times to seven hundred times, and an evil deed will be recorded as it
is, unless God forgives it" (Al-Bukhari).
Among the reasons for the rapid and peaceful spread of Islam was the simplicity of its doctrine - Islam calls for faith in only One God worthy of worship and that all humans are equal. In a world where slavery was widely practiced the message of Islam appealed to the poor and the disadvantaged. It also repeatedly instructs man to use his powers of intelligence and observation.
Within a few hundred years, great civilizations and universities were flourishing, for according to the Prophet (pbuh), ‘Seeking knowledge is an obligation for every Muslim [man and woman]’ (Ibn Majah). The synthesis of Eastern and Western ideas and of new thought with old, brought about great advances in medicine, mathematics, physics, astronomy, geography, architecture, art, literature, and history. Many crucial systems such as algebra, the Arabic numerals and also the concept of the zero (vital to the advancement of engineering), were transmitted to medieval Europe from the Islamic world. Sophisticated instruments, which were to make possible the European voyages of discovery, were developed, including the astrolabe, the quadrant and good navigational maps.
Freedom of conscience is laid down by the Qur’an itself: "There is no compulsion in religion" (2:256); and, "If it had been thy Lord’s Will, they would have all believed - all who are on earth! Wilt thou then compel mankind, against their will, to believe!" (10:99).
The life and property of all citizens in an Islamic state are considered sacred whether a person is Muslim or not. Racism is incomprehensible to Muslims, for the Qur’an speaks of human equality in the following terms:
"O’ Mankind! We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly, the most honoured of you in God’s sight is the greatest of you in piety. God is All-knowing, All-Aware" (49:13).
It is inconceivable for Muslims to force one to accept the love and peace of God by using threatening and violent means. Those who reverted during the rapid expansion of Islam did so because of the humane and just behaviour of the early pioneers of Islam and most of all because of the simple message of Islam.
It is also historical fact that Muslims, Christians and Jews lived in harmony for centuries in the early Islamic states of Spain and the Balkans. No churches or synagogues were destroyed and Christianity and Judaism remained intact. Those who became Muslims did so because of the exemplary behaviour of Muslims and their great improvements in the standard of living of their communities.
