Islam and Christianity

Isaiah 42   1 Behold, my servant, whom I uphold; my chosen, in whom my soul delighteth: I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.   2 He will not cry, nor lift up his voice, nor cause it to be heard in the street.   3 A bruised reed will he not break, and a dimly burning wick will he not quench: he will bring forth justice in truth.   4 He will not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set justice in the earth; and the isles shall wait for his law.   5 Thus saith God Jehovah, he that created the heavens, and stretched them forth; he that spread abroad the earth and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:   6 I, Jehovah, have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thy hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;   7 to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the ...

The Baptism of Jesus   13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”   15 Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented.   16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” New International Version, ©2010 (NIV)

Qu’ran -- Surah 5:51 ff: “Believers, take neither the Jews nor the Christians for your friends. They are friends with one another . Whoever of you seeks their friendship shall become one of their numbers” and later “Believers, do not seek the friendship of the infidels and those who were given the Book before you, who have made of your religion a jest and a pastime. Have fear of God, if you are true believers… Say: ‘People of the Book, is it not that you hate us only because we believe in God and in what has been revealed to us and to others before, and because most of you are evil-doers?’ … When they came to you they said: ‘We are believers.’ Indeed, infidels they came and infidels they departed. God knew best what they concealed… That which is revealed to you from your Lord will surely increase the wickedness and unbelief of many among them. We have stirred among them enmity and hatred, which will endure till the Day of Resurrection . Whenever they kindle the fire of war, God puts it...

THE OPENING “ In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate, Praise be to God, The Lord of the Worlds, The Merciful One, the Compassionate One, The Master of the Day of Doom. You alone we worship, to You alone we call for help. Guide us in the straight path, The Path of those You have blessed, Not of those with whom You are angry, Nor of those who go astray.” “The Fatiha , the opening sura of the Qur’an, the Sura of Praise, is recited every time Muslims begin their prayer and when any new thing is to be undertaken.” (from the beginning of John Alden Williams, The Word of Islam , U. of Texas Press) The Call to Prayer “At first the people gathered to him (Muhammad) for the ritual prayers without any summons. The Messenger thought of using a horn like that of the Jews who call to their prayers with it. Then he disliked the idea and ordered a wooden gong (like those of the Eastern Christians) to be beaten when the Muslims should pray.     “Meanwhile, ‘Abdallah b. Zayd ...

By Curt Tilleraas ”This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those in whom he is well pleased!” (Luke 2:12-14)      When I was a child I was taught that there is only one God, and that people either worship false gods or they worship the one true God. In the Old Testament it is made clear from the get-go that (1) our God is a jealous God, and (2) that anyone who desires to receive the Lord’s protection and promises must abandon the worship of all other gods.       The revelation of God as a jealous God was not lost in the New Testament, either. Nowhere in the New Testament do we find Jesus speaking about the equality of the gods or saying anything that might be construed as meaning that all paths lead to His Father. In fact, ...

Allah – the proper name for God in Islam – Allah is also the name for God among    Arabic speaking people, including Arabic speaking Christians ‘arif – one who knows Allah by experience/vision Aya/ayat – verse/verses in the Qur’an – also means sign/miracle Dar al-Salam , “the abode of bliss/peace”, or Paradise Dar al-Islam :    “the abode of Islam” – parts of world where Islamic law ( sharia ) rules Dar al-Harb :     “the abode of war” – the parts of the world ruled by unbelievers Dar al-Sulh –   territory not under Islamic rule, but which exists via a treaty, or     agreement-- This status is, at most, a temporary status (truce). Djinn, or Jinn – We get the word “genie” from this word. In the order of created beings    (humans, jinn, and angels). They are created from air and fire. Angels from light, and    humans from the earth. Fatiha –   The Opening, or, The Opener – first Surah of the Quran “ In th...

“Abada b. al-Samit stated, I heard the Messenger of God say, “ Five prayers are prescribed by God for His servants in the space of a day and a night. Those who observe these have God’s promise that he will let them enter Paradise . One who does not perform them has no promise from God. If God wills, He will punish the person, and if he wills, pardon.”      The five prayers are obligatory for every Muslim who has reached the age of puberty and has the use of reason, except for women who are menstruating or recovering from childbirth. If Muslims deny the necessity of prayer through ignorance, one must instruct them; if they deny it willfully, they have apostatized .      It is not permitted to delay a prayer, unless one has formulated the intention of combining it with another prayer, or was prevented from fulfilling the conditions for it [e.g., great ablution].      If Muslims abstain from saying the prayers from negligence, o...