X-Received: by 10.50.176.229 with SMTP id cl5mr2184965igc.3.1396621710010; Fri, 04 Apr 2014 07:28:30 -0700 (PDT) X-Received: by 10.50.13.97 with SMTP id g1mr100799igc.0.1396621709870; Fri, 04 Apr 2014 07:28:29 -0700 (PDT) Path: news.cambrium.nl!textnews.cambrium.nl!feeder3.cambriumusenet.nl!feed.tweaknews.nl!212.27.60.9.MISMATCH!feeder2-2.proxad.net!proxad.net!feeder1-2.proxad.net!news.glorb.com!l13no2649948iga.0!news-out.google.com!xg2ni98igc.0!nntp.google.com!ur14no2285036igb.0!postnews.google.com!glegroupsg2000goo.googlegroups.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: comp.databases.oracle.server Date: Fri, 4 Apr 2014 07:28:29 -0700 (PDT) Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com Injection-Info: glegroupsg2000goo.googlegroups.com; posting-host=79.173.228.2; posting-account=LM679QoAAADoRo7eGZeZZyPPlop4Lglc NNTP-Posting-Host: 79.173.228.2 User-Agent: G2/1.0 MIME-Version: 1.0 Message-ID: <95508a12-447c-4bcc-9c8b-6809884c57ba@googlegroups.com> Subject: Jesus: an Islamic view From: BV BV Injection-Date: Fri, 04 Apr 2014 14:28:29 +0000 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Xref: news.cambrium.nl Jesus: an Islamic view In this pamphlet, the author shows the nature of the Prophet Jesus as Islam= provides. He shows that the Prophet Jesus is a human prophet and does not = have any divine nature as Christian believe. Did you know that it is obligatory for Muslims to believe in Jesus, or that= a record of Jesus' life and teachings is preserved in the Qur'an and sayin= gs of Muhammad, as well as in little-known traditions handed down by Muslim= communities over the centuries? Christians brought up in the West are often surprised to discover Muslims w= ho are familiar with the life and teachings of Jesus through the teachings = and scriptures of Islam, while they themselves are unlikely to have learned= anything about the Prophet Muhammad at church. This is partly a matter of = history: Islam incorporates the Judeo-Christian tradition and embraces Jesu= s in the same way that Christianity incorporates the Old Testament and embr= aces Moses (peace be upon them both). All three religions trace their roots= to Abraham, and in fact the Qur'an and the Bible share and uphold many bel= iefs, practices and virtues in common -- belief in God, angels and the Day = of Judgement, in the virtues of prayer, charity and fasting, and in the imp= ortance of truthfulness, patience, and love. Together, Christians and Musli= ms make up more than half the world's population, and rather than being ide= ological opposites as some people imagine, their faiths are in many ways th= e most alike of the world's major religions. =20 Early Muslims were granted protection in Christian Abyssinia This common ground is one of the reasons the Prophet Muhammad (PBH) advised= the weak and poor among his early followers to seek refuge in Christian Ab= yssinia (present-day Ethiopia) to escape persecution by the idolatrous Arab= tribes, before Islam became established in Arabia. Muslim historians' acco= unt of the event succinctly conveys the heart of the relationship between t= he two faiths. When the corrupt leaders of Makkah pursued the Muslims into = Africa and asked the Negus to return them, the Abyssinian ruler summoned th= e small community of Muslims, then asked them: 'What is this religion which has caused you to become separate from your pe= ople, though you have not entered my religion or that of any other folk aro= und us?' Their spokesman Ja'far, Muhammad's young cousin, replied, 'O King, we were = a people steeped in ignorance, worshipping idols, eating unslaughtered meat= , committing abominations, and the strong would devour the weak. That is ho= w we were until God sent us a Messenger from out of our midst, one whose li= neage was known to us, and whose truthfulness, trustworthiness and integrit= y were renowned. He called us to God - that we should testify to His Onenes= s, and worship Him and renounce what we and our ancestors had worshipped in= the way of stones and idols; and he commanded us to speak truly, to fulfil= our promises, to respect the ties of kinship and the rights of our neighbo= urs, and to refrain from crimes and bloodshed. So we worship God alone, set= ting nothing beside Him, counting as forbidden what He has forbidden and as= permissible what He has allowed. For these reasons have our people turned = against us, and persecuted us to try to make us forsake our religion and re= vert from the worship of God to the worship of idols. That is why we have c= ome to your country, having chosen you above all others, We have been happy= under your protection, and it is our hope, O King, that here with you we s= hall not suffer wrong.' =20 His speech was translated by the royal interpreters, after which the Negus = asked if they had with them any revelation their prophet had brought them. = Ja'far then recited the following verses of the Qur'an, from the chapter en= titled 'Mary': =20 And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she withdrew from her peopl= e to a place towards the east, and secluded herself from them. We sent to h= er Our spirit (the angel Gabriel), and he appeared to her in the likeness o= f a perfect man. She said, 'I seek refuge in the Compassionate God from you= ; (do not come near me) if you fear the Lord.' He replied, 'I am none other= than a messenger from your Lord, (to announce) to you the gift of a pure s= on.' She said, 'How can I have a son when no man has touched me, nor am I u= nchaste?' He said, 'Even so will it be; your Lord says, "This is an easy th= ing for Me. And We shall make him a sign for humanity and a mercy from Us. = So it has been decreed."'(Qur'an 19: 16-21) =20 Ja'far's recitation and the translation of these verses brought tears to th= e king's eyes. He responded, 'This has truly come from the same source as t= hat which Jesus brought.' He granted the Muslims his protection. But the tr= ibesmen of Makkah, furious that their plans and alliances had been frustrat= ed, decided to rouse the king's ire against their monotheist cousins by pla= ying up the differences between Christianity and Islam regarding Jesus. The= king assembled them together once again and asked, =20 'What do you say about Jesus, son of Mary?' Ja'far replied, 'We say of him what our Prophet has brought us, namely that= he is the servant of God and His Messenger, and His Spirit and Word which = He cast into Mary, the blessed virgin.' =20 The Negus then lifted his wooden staff and said, 'Jesus does not exceed wha= t you have said by the length of this stick.' The bishops present objected = to the king's judgment, but that did not deter him from granting the small = Muslim community full protection, declaring, 'Not for mountains of gold wou= ld I harm a single one of you'. (Adapted from Muhammad: his life based on the earliest sources, by Martin L= ings) =20 That was Christianity's first encounter with Islam, and is how Islam first = came to flourish -- in Africa, under the protection of a benevolent Christi= an king. =20 Differing Christian views on Jesus It may surprise some to think of any Christians accepting a description of = Jesus that fell short of 'only-begotten Son of God' and 'Saviour', but the = Negus would have known of the theological arguments that had raged between = various sects in the Eastern birthplace of Christianity for centuries after= Christ. Christians had been divided roughly into two 'camps' from the begi= nning, which can perhaps best be described as people who followed the relig= ion of Jesus, versus those who followed a religion about Jesus. The first i= s exemplified by his disciples, who lived as Jews, believed in One God, and= followed the Law of Moses -- which Jesus had come 'not to destroy, but to = fulfil' (Matthew 5:17). They had no concept of Jesus originating a new reli= gion: they worshipped in the temple, and focused their efforts on spreading= the good news to fellow Jews that their Messiah had come. This group furth= er developed and became known as Arians, after Arius, a North African bisho= p who emphasized Jesus' human nature. The second was led by Paul, a charism= atic speaker who had never met Jesus and had persecuted many Christians bef= ore his sudden conversion. Under his leadership, Pauline Christians directe= d their conversion efforts towards non-Jews and developed a theology foreig= n to the Old Testament, including belief in a Trinity (which had been preva= lent among Romans, Egyptians and other pagans), an emphasis on Jesus as the= 'son' of God, associated concepts of original sin and atonement, and the c= entral dogma of Jesus' (supposed) crucifixion and resurrection. =20 The Council of Nicea Disagreements between these and other sects had grown so great by the 4th c= entury that the Roman Emperor Constantine decided to convene the Council of= Nicea (Iznik, Turkey) in 325, to settle the matter of true belief 'once an= d for all'. During this event (in which Constantine's own trinitarian leani= ngs were made known), the bishops of the Christian world gathered together = for the first time to debate doctrine, and a draft creed espousing belief i= n a Trinity of 'Father, Son and Holy Ghost' received the most votes. Dissen= ting bishops were suddenly declared heretics; their writings were banned, a= nd the gospels supporting them burned. That marked the birth of the Roman C= atholic Church, state religion of the Roman empire. Tens of gospels and oth= er writings that individual churches had been free to use, some which prese= nted an alternative view of Jesus, were destroyed; only four were included = in the New Testament collection, along with a heavy dose of Paul's writings= . Despite this totalitarian approach to achieving 'religious unity', a smal= l number of dissenting Christian sects survived, together with alternative = gospels that were carefully hidden and only came to light in the 20th centu= ry. Viewed in historical context, the main theological differences between Musl= ims and Christians are largely the same differences that have been a major = source of disagreement between Christians themselves from the beginning. Th= ese concern the nature and role of Jesus, his relationship with God, and ho= w best to venerate and follow his example. =20 Beloved servant, son of Mary; not 'Son' of God In contrast to the often contradictory passages of the New Testament, the Q= ur'an teaches monotheism, pure and simple: faith in One God, Creator and Su= stainer of the universe, a Supreme Being without partners, associates or fa= mily members. There is no concept of an intermediary in Islam, whether prie= st or saviour, who must intercede between a human being and his Creator. Wh= atever individual Christians may understand by the term 'son' or 'Father' -= whether in their minds the terms symbolize no more than a caring, loving r= elationship, or whether they regard belief in the Trinity as the key to avo= iding eternal damnation - Islam considers that the Christian view in which = Jesus is 'idolized' while God is 'humanized', obscures Jesus' invaluable ro= le as master teacher and role model, while vastly underestimating God's tra= nscendent majesty. It is impossible, indeed inconceivable to Muslims that t= he Almighty Creator of the Universe could appear in any human form, whole o= r in 'part', constrained by time and space. As the prophet Solomon is repor= ted as saying after completing the Temple of Jerusalem, =20 'But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain You. How much less this temple I have built!' (I Kings 8:27) =20 While the Qur'an, like the Bible, confirms that Jesus had no human father, = it does not accept that this makes Jesus the son of God any more than it do= es Adam himself, who was created without either father or mother. Rather, w= hen God decides something, 'He need only say to it 'Be!' and it is' (Q. 3:4= 7). It is interesting to note that the term Jesus most often used of himsel= f in the New Testament gospels is 'son of man' (in Hebrew, literally the 's= on of Adam'); a term that for Muslims emphasizes his human nature. The phra= se 'son of man' also appears in the Old Testament, where it underscores man= 's insignificance before God as well as the undeserved honour God has shown= him: =20 'How then can a man be righteous before God?... If even the stars are not pure in His eyes, how much less man, who is but a= maggot-- a son of man, who is only a worm!' (Job 25:4-6) =20 'When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the s= tars, which You have set in place, What is man that You are mindful of him,= the son of man that You care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings, and crowned him with = glory and honour.' (Psalms 8:3-5) =20 Christian arguments against the trinity Many Arians, Unitarians and other like-minded Christians have argued agains= t the existence of a trinity, basing their reasoning on passages of the Bib= le itself. The lack of any mention of the word or concept in the Old Testam= ent is one of the most important, as God surely would have found it importa= nt enough to mention to Moses and the many other prophets of old. Yet the c= ornerstone of the Jewish faith has always been, 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord o= ur God, the Lord is One. You shall love the Lord your God with all your hea= rt and with all your soul and with all your strength.' (Deut. 6:4), and, 'Y= ou shall have no other gods besides Me.' (Deut. 5:7) =20 Jesus never taught his followers to worship him, and no record exists of hi= m preaching about a trinity. 'By myself I can do nothing' (John 5:30), 'the= Father is greater than I' (John 14:28), and many similar statements of his= support pure monotheism, although other passages in the New Testament cont= radict it. Many Christians came to the conclusion that the Biblical texts m= ust have been corrupted, as indeed the Qur'an asserts. The reader is referr= ed to the writings of John Biddle, father of Unitarianism, as well as other= s such as John Milton, Sir Isaac Newton, John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, and = Benjamin Franklin for examples of this kind of reasoning. =20 The Qur'anic position on Jesus =20 The Qur'an speaks of 'the Gospel' (Injil) as a Scripture revealed to Jesus = by God, from which he preached, like the Torah of Moses. It is clear from e= arly Christian history as well as modern Biblical studies that this origina= l Scripture has been lost forever, and the fragments that remain in the for= m of various gospels have been corrupted so that they do not inspire confid= ence. The Qur'an, which was revealed partly in order to clarify points that= had been misunderstood by previous religious groups, paints a brief but cl= ear portrait of Jesus as Messenger of God. Responding to the views of an early Christian sect known as 'Adoptionists',= who believed that God had 'adopted' Jesus, the Qur'an says: 'It does not befit (the majesty of) the Compassionate God that He should ad= opt a son. There is none in the heavens and the earth but shall come to the= Compassionate One as a servant.' (Q. 19:92-93) The Qur'an further cautions: 'O People of the Scripture, do not exaggerate or go to extremes in your rel= igion, or say anything about God but the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, son of = Mary, was no more than an (honoured) Messenger of God, and His word that He= imparted to Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in God and His Messeng= ers and do not say, 'Three (in One).' Cease, for your own good! For your Lo= rd is One God; Glory be to Him - (He is far) above having a son! All that i= s in the heavens and the earth belongs to Him. And God is Sufficient as Gua= rdian (of the affairs of the universe). The Messiah would never scorn to be a servant of God, nor would the angels = who are near (to Him)...' (Q. 4;171-2) The Angel Gabriel announced to the Virgin Mary the miraculous nature of the= child she was to bear by saying: 'O Mary, God gives you the good news of a word from Him, whose name is the = Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, held in high honour in this world and the Next= , and one of those brought near (to Him). 'He will speak to people in his cradle and in the prime of manhood, and he = is one of the righteous... ...(God) will teach him the Scripture and wisdom, and the Torah and the Gos= pel, And (will appoint him as) a Messenger to the Children of Israel (saying), '= I come to you with a miracle from your Lord (as proof of my message). I wil= l make the likeness of a bird for you out of clay; (then) I will breathe in= to it and, by God's permission, it shall become a (living) bird. And by God= 's permission I will give sight to those born blind, and heal the leper, an= d raise the dead to life. And I will inform you of what you eat and what yo= u store in your houses. Surely that is a sign for you, if you are believers= . 'And (I come to you) confirming (what has been sent down before me in) the = Torah, and in order to make some of the things which were forbidden (in the= past) lawful for you. I came to you with a sign from your Lord, so fear Al= lah and obey me. God is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. That is the straight path.' (= Q. 3: 45-51) Some of these miracles are unfamiliar to modern readers of the Bible, but t= he accounts do appear in the 'Infancy Gospels', which enjoyed wide circulat= ion in eastern churches for centuries. Jesus was saved by God, not crucified; his return is awaited by Muslims. =20 Another point of contention surrounding the life of Jesus has been that of = the crucifixion: whereas Christians have regarded it as an essential point = of faith, Jews took it as proof that Jesus was not the promised Messiah, si= nce God would not have allowed His chosen one to suffer such humiliation at= the hands of his enemies. The Islamic position is that the crucifixion of = Jesus never happened, although it appeared to. . We may note that the descr= iptions given in the New Testament gospels of the crucifixion cannot be con= sidered accurate eyewitness accounts since, in their words, 'all the discip= les fled' when Jesus was arrested. The work of modern Biblical scholars len= ds support to the Islamic position. They have established that the earliest= (original) gospels make no mention of either crucifixion or resurrection, = but focus instead on Jesus' teachings and miracles. What did happen to Jesus if he was not crucified? The Qur'an says: '(The Jews who rejected Jesus earned God's displeasure) because of their de= nying the truth and slandering Mary with a terrible accusation; and because= of their (boasting) claim, 'We killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, God= 's Messenger!' They neither killed him nor crucified him, though it was mad= e to appear that way to them. Those who disagree about this (matter) are fu= ll of doubts; they have no knowledge about it except to follow guesswork an= d speculation, but they certainly did not kill him. Rather, God raised him = up to Himself; and God is ever Mighty, Wise. There is not one of the People= of the Scripture who will not believe in him (as he should be believed in)= before his death (e.g. after his Second Coming), and on the Day of Judgeme= nt he will be a witness against them.' (Q. 4:156-9) The most prevalent interpretation of these verses among Muslim scholars is = that someone else (such as the traitor Judas Iscariot) was crucified instea= d, while Jesus was raised to heaven, as God often saves those beloved to Hi= m. The Prophet Muhammad taught that Jesus will return to earth one day to r= ule in peace and justice, although Islamic prophecies on the subject differ= from Christian ones. The historical Jesus: Messiah, Messenger, Wise Teacher and Prophet The Islamic view of Jesus is a logical and reasonable one, which is consist= ent with earlier Biblical teachings, and people today can relate to: he was= a virtuous and wise teacher; an ascetic who taught by personal example and= spoke without fear against corruption in high places; prophet and Messiah = of the Jewish people, who healed and brought the dead to life by God's perm= ission; an honoured Messenger of God. Rather than being sent to found a new= religion, he came to 'breathe life' into and revitalise the interpretation= of Mosaic Law. Teachings of Jesus as related by generations of Muslims Stories related by Muslims about Jesus are plentiful, and highlight his rol= e as teacher of wisdom. A few examples are: Jesus said, 'Do not hang jewels around the necks of swine. Wisdom is finer = than gems, and those who do not value it are worse than swine.' Jesus said, 'A plant can only grow in yielding earth, not on hard rock. In = the same way, wisdom flourishes only in a humble heart, not one which is pr= oud and unyielding.' (The above and many other sayings are related by the classical Muslim schol= ar Al-Ghazali in his Revival of the Religious Sciences. For translations of= and information on other gospels, see The Complete Gospels, edited by R.J.= Miller.) =20 Sayings of the Prophet Muhammad relating to Jesus The Prophet Muhammad spoke with much affection and respect of Jesus, and ta= ught Muslims to do the same. Relating some of Jesus' teachings, he said: 'Jesus, son of Mary, used to say, "Do not speak much without mentioning God= , for your hearts will become hardened. A hard heart is far from God, if yo= u only knew.' 'Do not look at the wrong actions of others as though you were lords; look = at your own wrong actions as if you were slaves. And Muhammad emphasised the true and common message of Christianity and Isl= am, saying: 'Both in this world and in the Hereafter, I am the nearest of all people to= Jesus, son of Mary. The prophets are paternal brothers; their mothers are = different, but their religion is one.' =20 Islam's invitation to Christians =20 Many Arab Christians converted to Islam during and soon after Muhammad's li= fetime because they recognised the simple truth of his message, and were co= nvinced that New Testament passages foretelling the appearance of a 'Comfor= ter' and other Biblical prophecies referred to him. Those who seek a truly = historical prophet, whose life and teachings have been lovingly and meticul= ously preserved in remarkable detail, may wish to learn more about Muhammad= -- another great leader who continues to be widely misunderstood, especial= ly in the West. We conclude with the words of the Qur'an: Say, 'O People of the Scripture, let us) come to an agreement together: tha= t we will worship none but God, and that we will not associate any (other g= od) with Him, and that none of us shall take others for lords besides God.'= And if they turn away, then say, 'Bear witness that we are (the ones who h= ave surrendered to Him, as) Muslims.' (Q. 3:64) =20 =20 Recommended Reading 'Ata ur-Rahim, M., Jesus: A Prophet of Islam (available in several editions= ) Miller, R. J. (ed.) The Complete Gospels (1992), Sonoma, CA. (USA), Polebri= dge Press Siddiqui, F., The Bible's Last Prophet (1995), Alexandria, VA (USA), Al-Saa= dawi Publications http://wamy.co.uk/jesus-in-islam/ Thank you