As a rabbi and professor of rabbinic literature, I am naturally drawn to interpreting texts. The best moments are when these texts come alive and inform my life (inshallah). I have long been intrigued by an ancient text attributed to a pre-rabbinic figure from the first century BCE (Before the Common Era – rabbis did not emerge until after the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 CE). The text reads:

Joshua ben Perahia said, “Find a teacher for yourself, and acquire a colleague, judge every person favorably” (Mishnah Pirke Avot 1:6).

This triplet of good advice requires some explanation. Find (or “make,” which is closer to the Hebrew original) a teacher for yourself might also be translated that you should make someone your “master.” In the Hebrew text the word for teacher is Rav which can mean master, as well as being the root of the word rabbi. In other words, choose a rabbi to study with and to follow.

Next, we are taught to acquire a colleague. Most likely this means someone to study with, but it also can mean someone who you can share a meal with (that is to say, you trust that his food is kosher or halal). In general, it is a blessing to have good colleagues.

The final piece of advice, while commendable, seems on the surface to be disconnected: Judge everyone favorably. Might it refer to choosing a teacher or your study-buddy?

I will come back to what I think this text means, but first, I want to consider a text from the Torah, which commands: Love your neighbor as yourself (Lev 19:18). This text, too, seems straightforward, until we wonder how do we “love” on command? Some commentators assume this means that you would care about your neighbor’s finances as you would your own. A small minority of others, I am embarrassed to say, have construed this to mean that you need only love your neighbor who is like yourself. This implies that the commandment is limited to only loving other Jews!

Indeed, there is a rabbinic text from the second century that might be construed precisely this way – it is alarming:

In the Mishnah (Yoma 8:7) we read about a case where a wall falls upon someone on Shabbat. Now uncovering a pile of rubble is a forbidden labor on the Sabbath. But the Mishnah of the second century CE seems to make an exception: If there is doubt whether he was there or not there, if there is doubt whether he was alive or dead, if there were doubt whether he was a Jew or a non-Jew – then one removes the rubble.

The text is clear that to save a Jewish life, one may violate Shabbat, as saving a life takes precedence over all other commandments. But we must ask: whose life? Does this only apply, God forbid, to saving a Jew? This one of those famous “difficult texts” that we stumble over in interfaith dialogue. When we compare “our best” to “their worst” during dialogues, such difficult texts are stumbling blocks. We all have such texts. And until we learn to dialogue by proudly sharing our best with their best, we will stumble.

My teacher 45 years ago was a man in his eighties, Rabbi Saul Lieberman. He was widely regarded as the foremost authority on the Talmud in his generation. He once told me the story about taking a Shabbat stroll with a colleague from Columbia University, Prof. Morton Smith. Now it happens that Morton, although many years my elder, was my teacher but also my colleague and my friend. He had been ordained an Episcopal priest early in his career, and he loved to tweak the supercilious pieties of religion. Morton was also an expert in rabbinic literature. As the story goes, Morton Smith and Rabbi Lieberman walked past a building site on Broadway when Morton asked my rabbi, “Prof. Lieberman, if that wall fell on me now during the Sabbath, would you save me?”

On the face of it, this was a serious challenge to what might have been understood as the law of the Mishnah. A strict reading might have required Prof. Smith’s body to remain under the rubble until Shabbat ended. But Prof. Lieberman replied in an instant, “Why Morton, of course I would save you! And then, I would go home, consult my tomes of Jewish law, and find the correct reason for having done so.”

Actually, it would not have been very hard to find a legal authority. As we mentioned above, saving a life certainly would take priority over Sabbath law. That’s what the Mishnah is trying to teach us. But would it apply to saving a non-Jew? Both Lieberman and Smith knew perfectly well that the Torah explicitly teaches, You shall not oppress the stranger. You must know the heart of the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt (Exodus 23:9). And if that wasn’t clear enough, the Torah commands, You shall love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt (Deut 10:19).

Indeed, the Mishnah and other rabbinic literature bend over backward to assure that Jews have good relations with their non-Jewish neighbors (the word used is Shalom) and require that Jews greet non-Jews, care for their poor, mourn and bury their dead, offer condolences, care for their animals, midwife their births, heal their sick, much as would be done for other Jews.

What I learn from the story of my teacher Rabbi Lieberman and my colleague and teacher Prof. Smith is that teachers and colleagues who are NOT Jewish require us to confront, and solve, our tradition’s difficult texts. Interaction with the other, collegiality, even friendship, to say the least of discipleship, require us to love one another as we would ourselves.

My teacher of New Testament, Father Raymond Brown, offered an example from the Catholic tradition. Prof. Brown took scrupulous care in carefully teaching Gospel texts, lest other priests or their parishioners might learn anti-Semitism from those ancient texts. Christianity had a long and sorry history of enmity towards the Jews. Anti-Semitism had been the norm for almost 2,000 years. But in the aftermath of the Holocaust, Christian teaching radically changed. As Pope Francis said in March, 2019, “I stress that for a Christian any form of anti-Semitism is a rejection of one’s own origins, a complete contradiction.”

We take care to find the right teachers. I am blessed to have such teachers and to have made good colleagues in the Muslim world, as well. This is not surprising as the Holy Qur’an teaches,

O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you (Qur’an 49:13, after Yusuf Ali).

In the Hadith of al-Nawawi (Forty Hadith, no. 15): we learn that on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should speak good things or keep silent. Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should be generous to his neighbor. Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should be courteous and generous to his [travelling] visitor.” This is reported in Bukhari and Muslim.

In other words, this Hadith seems to teach a tradition similar to that of the Torah and the rabbis. Further, al Nawawi teaches (ibid. no. 13): on the authority of Abi Hamza Anas bin Malik, the servant of the messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) from the prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) who said: “None of you [truly] believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself. ” This is also reported in Bukhari and Muslim.

These Hadith traditions emphasize that what is true for Jews is true for Muslims. We must learn to love one another and want what is best for our brothers and sisters of the other religion, much as we would want for ourselves.

Now we know that despite these teachings, there are Jews who hate Muslims and Muslims who revile Jews. Thank God / Al hamdulillah, that we have teachers who clearly teach against this tendency. Our master, Hocaefendi Fethullah Gülen stated:

“A crucial step in healing the sick mindset that leads individuals to kill people out of hatred or other reasons is for every individual to acknowledge the dignity of every human being, to respect them as a work of art that was created by God and to inculcate this perspective in the minds of our youth.”

If we all come from our common ancestors Adam and Eve, Hocaefendi Gülen seems to say to us, then every person shares the same human dignity. No one can say, “My ancestry is better than yours.”

A couple of months ago, I had the wonderful privilege of meeting with Hocaefendi Gülen at his home in rural Pennsylvania. We drove there from New York City, but were warned that Hocaefendi was tired and might not spend more than a few minutes greeting us. As it turned out, we were honored to share an hour of discussion with our teacher. By the end of the meeting, I had found for myself another “rabbi.” I was thrilled to meet this revered leader, a man near in age to my rabbis of old. But I was utterly astounded by the act of humility with which he welcomed me. Hocaefendi Gülen rose from his chair and said, “Rabbi, please sit here in my place.” Had I traveled hours only to experience his hospitality and humility, it would have been a lesson well learned.

But I was privileged to engage further in a wide-ranging conversation on how we might confront anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. As with all good teachers, the conversation and Hocaefendi’s questions have continued to turn over in my mind since that extraordinary meeting.

What can we do to better relations between Muslims and Jews? Here are some suggestions I have learned in my nearly three decades of Jewish-Muslim dialogue.

First, as the Holy Qur’an teaches, we should meet and “know one another.” A good example of how this is accomplished is through the organization the Sisterhood of Salaam / Shalom (https://sosspeace.org/ ). Or we can arrange visits between Mosque and Synagogue. (see http://mideastweb.org/muslim-sermon_cg.htm ). We can celebrate our festivals together (see http://nyc.muslimjewishsolidarity.org/). Here, the Hizmet movement has excelled in arranging interfaith Iftar dinners during the Holy month of Ramadan (e.g https://hizmetnews.com/24889/interfaith-ramadan-iftar-dinner-held-in-montville/#.Xg9tJLpOmEc ).
 
We can also study to learn about one another. I recommend a book jointly published by the Jewish Theological Seminary and the Islamic Society of North America: Sharing the Well: A Resource Guide to Jewish-Muslim Relations (www.jtsa.edu/sharingthewell ). And, of course, we must protect one another and fight Islamophobia and anti-Semitism by standing together SHOULDER TO SHOULDER (https://www.shouldertoshouldercampaign.org/ ).  Both the Jewish and Muslim traditions demand that we work for social justice and righteousness (e.g. feeding the hungry: https://www.denverpost.com/2012/11/18/muslims-jews-gather-at-denver-mosque-to-help-feed-the-hungry/ ).

Now that I have shared what I learned from loving my neighbor, the non-Jewish other, the Christian or the Muslim, I have a new understanding of the text I quoted at the outset of this article.

Joshua ben Perahia said, “Find a teacher for yourself, and acquire a colleague, so that you will learn from them to judge every person favorably” (Pirke Avot 1:6).

Rabbi Burton L. Visotzky
Director, Milstein Center for Interreligious Dialogue Jewish Theological Seminary, New York

Upon the birth of her first child, the author took it upon herself to bestow an important blessing. Twenty-five years later, she used that blessing to help another new mother take her first steps into parenthood.

The story begins in the ninth month of my pregnancy, as I was reading a book entitled Special Delivery. While reading the detailed instructions on how to have a home birth, my curiosity was piqued by the author’s sharing of a “personal touch.” She described it as her “Persian tradition,” and explained the importance of blessing a newborn. This was something I had never heard of in my whole life.

At the time, I was not a practicing Muslim, even though I had been raised by Muslims parents (and grandparents). Despite the fact that I was the second generation born in America, I grew up without a mosque, because there were none in all of New England – at least not until 1964. Moreover, I had never been a part of any Muslim community.

That meant there was no place for me (or my parents) to learn about my religion, Islam. Consequently, like most Americans, I knew very little. But, there was one word in the book that was familiar to me. From my upbringing, I recognized the word, “Allah,” the word for God in Arabic.

The author stated that most babies are blessed by an imam, or a man in the family, such as a father, grandfather, or husband. But since I was having my child as a single parent, isolated from my family, and had no knowledge of what an imam was or did, I immediately considered the difficulty of my situation in a new light.

As I read on, I realized that there was something urgent at stake here. The author explained that if the baby heard the call to prayer as soon as h/she was born, there would be an immediate recollection of having just been in the presence of God, before birth. By reinforcing this memory at birth, the child’s iman (faith) would be guaranteed for the rest of his life. The tradition and its aim were similar to a Christening. Knowing this, I began to covet the blessing for my child, trusting that he would grow up believing in the Creator, who had gifted this life to me.

I carefully read the author’s how-to instructions about whispering in the baby’s right ear at birth and learned the “call to prayer,” which was in italics in the book:

(Allah whoo Akbar) God is the great
I bear witness that there is no god but One God
I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God
Come to prayer
Come to success
God is the greatest
There is no god but One God

Unencumbered by cultural taboos or religious traditions, I decided to do the blessing myself. I wanted my child to hear this word, Allah, and thus, renew his relationship with God, a relationship that I had somehow neglected to develop during my childhood and early twenties.

The fact that this book came into my possession at the exact time I was preparing to give birth seemed to be Divine intervention. This strengthened my faith when I needed it most. Imagine, I thought, to have missed a moment that comes but once in a lifetime.

The Importance of Blessing a Newborn: Carried forward 25 years later

One day, during my chaplaincy residency at Brigham & Women’s hospital, where I was studying to become a Muslim chaplain, I was called to the room of a young Muslim woman on the maternity floor. Asma was 20 years old, with a soft brown complexion and dark curly hair that framed a sweet, round face. When I walked in, she was sitting up in bed. Unlike most new mothers who had just given birth and are tired but radiant, Asma was just plain tired. Her beautiful face was marred by a deeply troubled expression. With no baby present and no visitors, the room was lonely, joyless, and dark.

Asma asked me to arrange for the imam in the hospital to bless her newborn baby. I went downstairs and proceeded to check the imam’s schedule, only to learn that the patient would be leaving the hospital before he came on duty.

On my way back to tell Asma about the scheduling problem, I was intercepted by her social worker outside the room. She informed me that Asma was not married, and that she was in physical danger from her boyfriend. The social worker had just been advising Asma not to move in with the boy, once discharged from the hospital, because he had been violent on several occasions in the past. My colleague let me know that Asma would be better off moving in with her grandmother, who had offered a room for her and the baby, and that this was her best choice right now, even if it was only temporary.

As we parted, my thoughts turned to my own life, long ago: a single mother, a new baby, a lonely and difficult situation, and the book, Special Delivery. I knocked and entered the room, finding Asma sitting up in bed, her face still absent of joy or relief, and with no baby present once again. I explained that the imam was unable to do the blessing due to the scheduling conflict. I asked if she knew anyone else in her family who could do it; maybe a father or brother, another imam?

Asma started to cry silently and spoke in a small voice, “No. There isn’t anyone.” Pausing to dry her eyes, “But I want it done. It’s important to me. Can you do it?”

I had done the blessing before, at the request of new parents. And, I would have done it for Asma, if the baby had been present, and if my own schedule had permitted it. But I had no time either. Asma was scheduled to be discharged within the hour. Then, I had a better idea.

I said, “Asma, I’m sorry, but I don’t have time to do the blessing because my shift is almost over. But, let me tell you something. I think you should do it yourself.”

This elicited a big negative reaction, “But I can’t do it. I don’t know how to. I can’t do it. She pleaded with me, “Can’t you do it, please?”

“Asma, do you plan to raise this child to be a Muslim?”

“Absolutely,” she said, listening now.

“Okay, then. Since this is your child, your responsibility, and you are planning to raise her as a Muslim, you can take the responsibility. As her mother, you will always be the most important person in her life, and as the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said, ‘the mother is a child’s first teacher.’ You can do the blessing yourself, right here and now.”

Tentatively, Asma acquiesced, “Yes… but… will you show me how to do it?”

“Asma,” I said, looking into her frightened eyes, “I will show you how to do it. You, Asma, will give your child this most important blessing. Are you ready to learn?”

Asma paused, thoughtfully, and when she finally spoke, it was with a new resolve,

“Okay. I mean, yes, I’m ready. I want to do it.”

After explaining how the blessing was done, I asked Asma where she was planning to go when she left the hospital. I noticed that she had perceptibly changed, perhaps empowered by the simple idea that she could bless her own baby.

Without hesitating, she said, “I think I’m going to my grandmother’s house. It’s really nice there, and I love my grandmother. I’ll only stay for the first few weeks, so she can help me with my baby. She paused to restate her decision, “Yeah. I can’t wait to go there.”

Upon seeing her beautiful face, wearing a smile for the first time, I affirmed, “That sounds like a great idea, Asma. I’m sure you’re going to be a wonderful mother.”

We all say Inshallah to that!

Christians

In Acts 10:38 we read the following: “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.” And in Matthew 9:36 we read: “At the sight of the crowds [who seemed lost], his heart was moved with pity [with compassion] for them.” In brief, this explains what was responsible for the life and actions of Jesus of Nazareth and how it is that he did no harm, but rather only good: He was moved with pity, with compassion for others. And what is compassion?

The Greek word for compassion is “splanchnizomai” or “spankhnomai.” It means to be moved as to one’s bowels moved with love and pity or sorrow. It means to suffer with someone, to feel and identify with someone’s pain. To have compassion is to have mercy, to recognize and have sorrow for someone’s suffering. It is to have love, care, kindness and tenderness for someone, especially for those in need.

Clearly, those who are planting bombs or blowing themselves up or who are plotting similar schemes in Nigeria (and people of similar minds who are perpetuating violence in other parts of the world) no longer have compassion for others and for themselves. And yet, they claim, for the most part, that they are doing this in God’s name. The real question is: In the name of whose God? Is there a God without compassion? It is certainly not in the name of the God of Jesus of Nazareth, nor is it really in the name of Allah of Islam. And it is definitely not in the name of YHWH (God) of the Jews either.

In John 14:9-11, Jesus said to Philip who asked him to show them the Father, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. … I am in the Father and the Father is in me. … The Father … dwells in me.” Unequivocally, one can say that what we see and love in Jesus of Nazareth, namely, his compassion for the poor and for everyone in need, his gentleness, his unconditional and faithful love, to name only a few, is equally true of the God that he has revealed to us. And Saint Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 11:1, saying, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”

Muslims

What do we know about the God of Islam? Asghar Ali Engineer remarks that the very first chapter of the Qur’an has the second verse as follows: Al-Rahman al-Rahim (i.e., The Compassionate, the Merciful). In fact, every chapter of the Qur’an (there are one hundred and fourteen of them), from surat al-fatiha to surat al-nas, begins with Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim (i.e., “in the name of Allah the Compassionate and the Merciful”) (with the exception of the chapter Tawbah in which this phrase is not in the beginning but comes later). Thus, among Allah’s own 99 names are al-Rahman and al-Rahim (i.e., The Compassionate and The Merciful), and Allah has sent his Prophet Muhammad into the world as the Mercy of the world, as rahmatu lil’alamin (i.e., as “mercy of the worlds”) and as al-risalat al-alamiyyah (i.e., as one who represents universal mercy). And a Muslim, according to Asghar Ali Engineer, begins everything by reciting, “Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim” (that is, “begin [every step] in the name of Allah Who is Compassionate and Merciful”). One can infer from this that the predominance of mercy and compassion in the life of Muslims is indisputable. Thus, even when one may engage in a “rescue mission” – that is, plot or participate in a war against the oppressor in order to liberate the oppressed, who cries for justice – even then the Qur’an (in chapter 4, verse 75) does not expect the violence to be reckless. In other words, Muslims may never fight a war “without compassion”; they may never fight a war except on compassionate grounds (and only with compassion). Not even in the name of the most oppressed of peoples may they fight a godless war, an unholy war. A war that is considered holy is that which is fought fi sabili Allah (i.e., in the way of Allah). The way of Allah is of justice and of protecting the rights of the poor and exploited. For more on this matter, one may consult the commentary of Maulana Muhammad Ali’s The Holy Qur’an (Lahore, 1973). Meanwhile, it is most certainly unjust and ungodly to kill the innocent. Is it not?

Now we have seen that like the God of Jesus of Nazareth, Allah of Islam is compassionate and merciful. Among Allah’s 99 names none is used as frequently as al-Rahman al-Rahmin. And Allah demands that Muslims be compassionate and merciful to others even in circumstances where they are morally compelled to liberate the poor and exploited from the callousness, godlessness and decadence of the oppressor. Otherwise, those that they seek to help may in fact end up being worst off, and even destroyed by their actions.

Additionally, in the ninth century the servant of God Umar, the second successor of the holy and most venerable Prophet Muhammad, decrees as follows in respect of Christians: “Their churches shall neither be used as dwellings nor destroyed. They shall not suffer any impairment nor shall their dependencies, their crosses, nor any of their property. No constraint shall be exercised against their religion (Q. 2:256) nor shall any harm be done to any among them” (cited in J. M. Gaudeul’s Encounters & Clashes: Islam and Christianity in History, Rome, 2000, p. 47). All in all, the soul of Islam is mercy and compassion.

The Jews

Finally, what do we know of the God of the Jews? According to Richard H. Schwartz, YHWH (God) is referred to in synagogue services as Ha-rachman, that is, as “The Compassionate One” and as Av harachamin, that is, as “Father of Compassion.” And the Talmud (i.e., a collection of books, which is considered as one of the holiest of Judaism’s books and taken to be very authoritative in Judaism) also teaches that Jews are to be rachmanim b’nei rachmanim, that is, “compassionate children of compassionate ancestors.” Thus, one who fails to be compassionate cannot be a true descendant of Abraham (Bezah 32b). And the Talmud says categorically that heaven will grant compassion exclusively to those who have shown compassion to others (Shabbat 151b). This insistence on and importance of compassion in Judaism is taken further by the Baruch Sheh’amar prayer which is recited daily in the morning (Shacharit) services. Here is the prayer: “Blessed is the One (God) Who has compassion on the earth; blessed is the One Who has compassion on the creatures [animals and people].”

In Judaism, compassion is not only an attribute of God, it is imperative for all Jews to show compassion. Rabbi Dovid Sears states, “Compassion for all creatures, including animals, is not only God’s business; it is a virtue that we too must emulate. Moreover, compassion must not be viewed as an isolated phenomenon, one of a number of religious duties in the Judaic conception of the Divine service. It is central to our entire approach to life.” Why is compassion at the core of Judaism? As Richard H. Schwartz reminds us affirmatively of Isaiah 11:9, the answer is: so that “no one shall hurt nor destroy in all of God’s holy mountain”; so that no one may hurt or be hurt; so that no one may destroy or be destroyed in all of God’s creation.

We may now conclude by saying that if and when all men and women of Nigeria realize that those who have shown no mercy and compassion on earth to their fellow men and women and children will not be shown mercy and compassion in heaven by God, then they will most certainly, consciously and actively cultivate compassion, and the current reckless violence and killings in Nigeria will begin to die a natural death.

Rev. Dr. Pachomius Okogie
University of Saint Anselm,
Rome, Italy

Zainab believed, according to her religion Islam, that Allah, the loving Creator, prohibited certain actions to Muslims because those actions had the potential for the most harm. Gambling was one of the most destructive among them. So Zainab could not reconcile her father’s beloved status with the abominable act he was committing.

But, it was life, and her father did what many people do: rationalize the wrong he was doing when, in fact, the wrong he committed affected everyone in his life. It caused Zainab’s family to be dysfunctional and had a disastrous effect on her mother. This unhappiness rained down from the mother onto her children. And though Zainab’s parents tried their best to hide their shame and to protect their children from this wrong, they fought constantly in the house.

Many a night Zainab would hide at the top of the stairs silently cowering and listening, as the battle raged below over the gambled money-whether won or lost. Her home was a scary place that she forever associated with emotional turmoil. In Zainab’s home, the rights that were given to the children by their religion were violated each time she and her siblings were exposed to the wrong and the undeniable harm it caused. Her one thought was to grow up and get away from that house, from the confusion, the humiliation, and the pain.

About six months before he died, her father quit gambling. At the time of his death, Zainab was 25, and she had already succeeded in getting as far away from home as possible. She came back for her father’s funeral, went through all the motions, but she didn’t shed a single tear. She could never understand why because she had loved her father so deeply.

Five years after Zainab’s father died, she finally dreamt of him. In her dream, there was a room full of people crowding around the bottom of a long staircase, anticipating her dad’s arrival. He was delayed upstairs for some reason. Earlier in the day, Zainab had agonized over what to wear-just as she always did in real life-but she finally borrowed the perfect dress from her friend for this special occasion of seeing her dad after so many years of being apart. With the arising of a loud hum of excitement, she looked up to see her father slowly descending the stairs. He was pale and sickly looking, but he never said a word as he made his way through the crowd. He came directly to Zainab and took her in strong arms, hugging tightly. The desperation of the greeting alarmed her.

The next thing she knew, her father had some sort of convulsion and he vomited all over the front of her dress. She tried to push him away, thinking foolishly only of the borrowed dress, but he held her and pulled her closer. Zainab straightened her arms, trying in vain to get out of the embrace. But then her dad had another convulsion. He seemed to be weakening and leaning on her for support. Responding, Zainab finally gave in. Ignoring the ruination of her dress, she held his weakened body, making sure he didn’t fall. When she awoke, she was squeezing her wet pillow and sobbing hard. For over thirty years to come, she wondered about the meaning of that dream.

Then one day she was reading how practicing Jews fasted on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) and asked God to forgive them their sins of the past year. It was interesting to learn that they must also ask for forgiveness from anyone they might have harmed. Thinking of the harm she had suffered as a child, Zainab suddenly realized the meaning of her dream: her dad had come to ask for her forgiveness. This revelation was really a shock to her. For so many years, she had held anger and resentment rightfully against her dad. Yet now, forgiveness was being asked of her.

In fact, her own religion Islam placed a great emphasis on seeking forgiveness from other people for the harms one might have caused them. So putting herself in her father’s shoes, Zainab could easily understand why he needed to free himself of this burden.

Zainab began her journey toward forgiveness by realizing how important it is to ask for forgiveness from Allah. It comforted her to know that one of the 99 names of Allah is the Most Forgiving (Al-Ghafur). A hadith qudsi (those words of Allah on the tongue of his prophet that are not part of the revelation of the Quran) reads as follows: “Oh son of Adam, were your sins so great as to reach the clouds of the sky, and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you” (Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith). She dared to think that even she might be forgiven for her sins. Then she pondered: doesn’t everyone want their sins forgiven?

Still struggling to free herself from anger and resentment, Zainab sought the advice of a Christian friend who directed her to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, in which he encouraged his readers to understand that as God has forgiven us, so we must also forgive one another. Paul’s words, like the hadith qudsi, described forgiveness as a gift from God.

These words strengthened Zainab’s belief in the Most Forgiving (Al-Ghafur), but forgiving another had never been easy for Zainab and granting forgiveness felt so much heavier than asking for it. But in this case, she wanted reconciliation more than anything. She wanted to feel her heart whole (not divided) again, as she did as a child. She wanted to forgive her dad… if only she could.

Then, one night, as Zainab was making a supplication, she felt the warmth of God’s love gripping her heart, and she heard herself whisper effortlessly, “I forgive you, Dad.” In that overwhelming moment, Zainab experienced forgiveness as both an act of giving and a gift from Allah. For Zainab, the greatest favor she had sought from Allah was forgiveness, and it brought her the peace and reconciliation that she had desired.

Mary Lahaj has a master’s degree from the Hartford Seminary in Islamic Studies and Christian/Muslim Relations. She is currently the first Muslim woman chaplain at Simmons College in Boston, an all girls’ undergraduate Liberal Arts College.

This article will focus specifically on Muslim-Christian dialogue by pointing out that in the inspired vision of our great and holy founders, Jesus and Muhammad, there is far more that we share in common than there is that divides us. If Jesus and Muhammad had lived at the same time and had actually known each other, it seems from what we know of them that they would have recognized each other not as rivals, but as friends. There are four themes that I find in the gospels and the holy Qur’an that convince me that their teachings were inspired by the same fundamental faith and vision for humanity.

First of all, it is clear from the New Testament and the Qur’an that both Jesus and Muhammad were the beloved of God. In Islamic tradition there are several titles of honor by which Prophet Muhammad is known. For example, he is known as Abdullah – “the servant of God;” he is also known as Mustafa, “the chosen one;” Ahmad, “the one who is praised,” is another commonly used title. Most often, he is known as rasool or “the messenger.” In addition to these titles, Muhammad is also known as habib or “the beloved of God.”

Likewise, Jesus in the New Testament is also referred to as the beloved of God. For example, in Matthew 3:16 as Jesus is being baptized by John, we read:

And when Jesus was baptized, he went up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.”

This same scene is repeated in the gospels of Luke and Mark, and it serves to reinforce the conviction that Jesus is indeed the beloved of God. So, for both Christians and Muslims, their founders are recognized as God’s beloved. It follows then that for those who love God, whether they be Muslims or Christians, it is important to love Jesus and to love Muhammad. For God, there is no rivalry between them. They are both the beloved of God. Those who would claim to be their followers must then have the same respect and love for both of them.

Historically, Muslims have shown much greater respect for Jesus than Christians have shown for Muhammad. Muslims are very knowledgeable about the life of Jesus, and he is spoken of with great respect throughout the Qur’an. The same has not been the case for the traditional attitude of Christians toward Muhammad in history. Sadly, some of those prejudices continue in some circles today. This is largely because of insufficient or inaccurate information about Muhammad and his life. A better knowledge of the life of Prophet Muhammad can serve well to help Christians understand why he also is known as “the beloved of God-al habib.”

Another similarity between Jesus and Muhammad is evident in their strong and uncompromising vision of social justice. They both recognized the inequalities and injustices that existed in their respective societies, and both of them were passionate defenders of the poor, widows, and orphans. For example, in the Qur’an, God speaks through his messenger, Muhammad, these words:

Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer the (funds); for those whose hearts have been (recently) reconciled (to Truth); for those in bondage in debt; in the cause of Allah; and for the wayfarer: (thus is it) ordained by Allah, and Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom. (Qur’an 9:60)

It is on the basis of passages such as this one that the concept of zakat became one of the five pillars of Islam and thereby an obligatory act of devotion for all Muslims. The sense of equality of all people that is derived from this principle is one of the central tenets of Islam. It is also exemplified in the various sunnah and hadith of Prophet Muhammad; for example, the honor he gave to Bilal in inviting him to be the first to chant the words of the adhan calling Muslims to prayer. This gesture was nothing less than revolutionary for that time and place.

Another example from the sunnah, as recounted by Karen Armstrong in her book Muhammad, is the story of a poor man who had committed a minor crime and is told to give alms to the poor as a penance for what he did. Just as the man was telling the Prophet that he did not have anything to give away, a basket of dates was brought into the mosque by someone as a gift for Muhammad. The Prophet, in turn, gave the basket to the poor man and suggested that he use those dates to distribute to the poor. The man replied that he didn’t know anyone who was poorer than he was. Muhammad laughed at his response and suggested that he give the dates to his family as his penance.

Like Muhammad, Jesus spoke out frequently on behalf of the poor and disadvantaged. The famous teaching of the beatitudes, which were part of the Sermon on the Mount, are one example, and another is found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter four, where Jesus uses the words of Prophet Isaiah to refer to himself as he reads from the scroll:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord” And he closed the book, …and began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Not only did Jesus preach this powerful message of love and justice for all the most marginalized members of society, but in his own actions he brought these words to life. The four gospels frequently make reference to Jesus’ special compassion for the sick, the poor, and the forgotten and neglected members of his society. In Matthew, 25: 31-46, he further suggests that his disciples will be known and judged by their actions of feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and visiting the sick and imprisoned. In fact, whenever one performs one of these actions to the “least” of his brethren, it is as if he were performing it for Christ himself. It is perhaps for this very reason that the Qur’an honors and respects Jesus. His sense of charity and justice, which is very much rooted in the justice proclaimed by the Hebrew prophets, is totally in sync with the vision of justice taught and practiced by Prophet Muhammad.

A third trait shared by both Jesus and Muhammad is their love for God. Jesus referred to God as abba, an Aramaic word which means “father” (or most closely translated, “daddy”), and Muhammad addressed God as Allah, the Arabic word for God. For both of them, God was the center of their lives. They lived their lives always deeply conscious of God’s power and presence and of themselves as the beloved of God. The gospels speak frequently of Jesus going off by himself to pray-either into the desert, or to a mountain, or to a garden (such as the Garden of Olives where he prayed the night before he died). The spiritual writer Anthony Padavano reminds us:

He prays at every turn, on any occasion, each day, during the night, while on the water, lost in the mountains, alone in the temple, forsaken in the garden, at supper with his friends, throughout the ordeal of the cross. (from his book, Dawn without Darkness)

The strength of Jesus’ ministry was the relationship that he cultivated with God in prayer. Jesus was a man of God because he was a man of prayer.

Likewise, Prophet Muhammad was recognized by all of his followers as a prayerful, deeply God-conscious person. The very revelation of the Qur’an came to Muhammad while he was praying on Mt. Hirat, and the two great moments of epiphany that Muhammad was privileged to receive, the Night of Ascent (laylat al- miraj) and the Night of Power (laylat al- qudr), are examples of his deep devotion to prayer and the deep intensity of his prayer. Indeed, of the night of power the Qur’an says: “The Night of Power is better than a thousand months.” The practice of salat five times daily is meant to keep each Muslim aware of God throughout the hours of the day, following the example of Prophet Muhammad in his deep devotion to God and all-encompassing God-consciousness. In addition to the five times of daily prayer, there is the prayer known as du’a, which corresponds more to the Christian understanding of prayers of petition. From the sunnah and hadith there are many traditions relating Muhammad’s devotion to prayer on many different occasions of the day and the long periods of time he often spent in salat. As with Jesus, the rhythm of Muhammad’s daily life was one of prayer and devotion to God-God-consciousness. Peace and praise be upon them both.

A fourth characteristic that Jesus and Muhammad shared was respect for the equality of women. Both of them lived in a highly patriarchal culture in which women were highly subjugated, had few rights, and were often treated unjustly and harshly. In speaking out on behalf of the rights of women, Jesus and Muhammad went against the prevailing norms of their respective cultural and religious heritage. We see, for example, in the ways that Jesus related to women a teaching that was quite revolutionary for his time. He would talk to women, and always treated them with the respect and dignity that they deserved. It is a woman, Mary Magdalene, who is recognized as one of his closest followers, and it was she to whom Jesus first appeared after his resurrection, entrusting to her the task of telling the other disciples that he had risen from the dead. In Jesus’ understanding of the Kingdom of God, men and women were equals.

Prophet Muhammad also courageously opposed the prevailing norms of his time with regard to women. In the fourth chapter of the Qur’an, Allah reminds believers:

“O mankind! Reverence your Guardian-lord, Who created you from a single Person, created, of like nature, his mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women; reverence Allah, through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and (reverence) the wombs (that bore you): for Allah ever watches over you. (4:1)

In addition to this ayat from the Qur’an, there is a hadith in which Muhammad says that “women are the twin halves of men.” These teachings taken together are compelling evidence of the essential equality that exists between men and women, as it was revealed to Muhammad. It is this recognition of equality that forms the basis for the various laws of the Shariah which protect the rights of women. There are, for example, laws that protect women’s right of inheritance, their right to divorce, their right to vote and run for office, their rights to alimony and palimony, and strict laws limiting polygamy. Indeed, one of the principle reasons for the limited conditions under which polygamy could be practiced was the protection of the many widows and orphans that lived without a husband or father in the often violent society of 7th century Arabia.

Though Islam is often criticized as being oppressive to women, the fact is that the teaching and example of Prophet Muhammad demonstrate something quite the opposite. Muhammad, like Jesus, was very counter-cultural in championing the rights of women. Yet it has often been the followers of Muhammad and Jesus who have misunderstood or misrepresented the true nature of their view of women and their rightful roles in society and in their respective religions.

Certainly, there are other convergences that can be pointed out between the lives of these two great messengers of God, and certainly there are some differences, but the four that we have mentioned-being the beloved of God and defenders of the poor, their devotion to prayer and speaking up on behalf of women’s rights-serve to highlight how much Muhammad and Jesus had in common. They lived several centuries apart, though they emerged from the same part of the world. One cannot help but wonder and speculate that if they lived at the same time and knew each other how they would have responded to each other. It is surely a hypothetical question, but the evidence would seem to indicate that they would not have seen each other as rivals, but would rather have had nothing but the highest respect for one another. The famous Night of Ascent in which Muhammad was mystically transported to heaven (laylat al-miraj) bears remarkable resemblance to the gospel account of Jesus’ Transfiguration, where he was joined by the prophets Abraham and Elijah. In Muhammad’s ascension he was also joined by Jesus. What a beautiful image. What would they have said to each other? It is a fascinating question to ponder.

It is not hard to imagine them being glad to see each other, embracing each other as friends, and becoming engaged in deep and genuine dialogue. Indeed, it is not hard to imagine Jesus and Muhammad as friends, linked by their love of God and their vision of a world characterized by justice, compassion, and equality-a world where people lived in awareness of and submission to God. They would have recognized each other as friends because they were friends of God. They would have the same hope and expectation for their followers. May we, their followers, learn from them.

Thomas Petriano, PhD, is a faculty member at Religious Studies Department, St. Joseph’s College, New York.

Diana Eck, leader of Harvard University’s Pluralism Project, introduces readers to America’s new religious landscape of mosques, temples, and monasteries. Focusing mainly on the period after the passage of the 1965 Immigration and Naturalization Act, she calls this change very subtle and largely unnoticed.

She discusses the meaning of religious diversity and freedom. Basing herself on the Great Seal of the United States ”E pluribus unum (From Many, One) ” she asks: What is the measure of our manyness? What is the meaning of our oneness? Each religion and culture, she asserts, has its own way of addressing these questions.

For example, a Muslim imam referred to Qur’an 49:13 in the Chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives: Do you not know, O people, that I have made you into tribes and nations that you may know each other? Hinduism’s Rig Veda (I.64.46) says: Truth is One. People call it by many names.

The author defines pluralism as the dynamic process through which we engage with one another in and through our very deepest differences. Some of its manifestations are Nikes and Reeboks adorning shoe racks in gurdwaras, mosques, and temples; a Muslim Girl Scout who promises to serve Allah and my country; and consecration rituals at a Hindu temple using a mixture of sacred Ganges river water and regular Mississippi river water.

This well-written and thought-provoking book provides an historical context, describes legal battles and pivotal court cases, and addresses stereotypes, religiously motivated hate crimes, how some communities have welcomed religious pluralism, and appropriate models for engagement.

Islam, Judaism, and Christianity have much in common. For example, they are monotheistic and have their roots in the Abrahamic tradition. Islam is closer to Christianity, for Muslims recognize Christianity as being based upon Divine Revelation, whereas Jews do not accord this status to either religion. Ironically, while Jesus is the common link between Islam and Christianity, nearly all doctrinal differences between the two religions center around his nature. Therefore, we shall start with this topic.

What Do Muslims Think about Jesus?

Reputable scholars of Christianity continue to portray Islam and Muslims as enemies of Jesus. However, nothing could be further from the truth. It is often a surprising experience for Christians to learn that Muslims hold a deep love and respect for Jesus and Mary. In fact, a Muslim cannot be considered a true believer if he or she rejects Jesus (Qur’an, 2:136). One of Qur’an’s chapters is named Mary (Surat Maryam). The Qur’an praises Jesus and his family, and Muslims consider Jesus one of the five great Prophets, among hundreds of thousands of others.(1) In an authentic Tradition, Prophet Muhammad says: I am the nearest of all people to Jesus, son of Mary, in this life and the Hereafter.(2)

The Qur’an acknowledges the virgin birth (19:18-24), reports the miracles Jesus performed by God’s will (5:110), and praises his sincere followers not only at his time but also at the time of Prophet Muhammad. We give two examples below:

Behold! the angels said: Mary, Allah gives you glad tidings of a Word from Him. His name will be Christ Jesus, son of Mary, held in honor in this world and the Hereafter, and of (the company of) those nearest to Allah. (3:45)

In their wake, We followed them up with (others of) Our messengers: We sent after them Jesus, son of Mary, bestowed on him the Gospel, and ordained in the hearts of his followers Compassion and Mercy. But the monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them. (We commanded) only the seeking for the Good Pleasure of Allah, but that they did not foster as they should have done. Yet We bestowed on those among them who believed their (due) reward. But many of them are rebellious transgressors. (57:27)

At the root of all doctrinal differences lies the perspective on God and the relationship between God and humanity. The Qur’an leaves no room for subjective interpretation, for God is as He describes Himself: eternal and infinite, with absolute knowledge of everything, and able to do anything. We cannot imagine any form for Him, or define Him in any limited fashion.

Based on this, any anthropomorphic characterization of God or assignation to Him of any shortcomings or partners contradicts what Islam teaches.

Jesus As a Prophet

Muslims believe that Jesus was a genuine Prophet sent by God for the Jews.3 God created Jesus without a temporal father (4:171). But this does not make Jesus the son of God. Rather, it is a sign of God’s ultimate power. If such a birth made one a son of God, clearly Adam deserved it more, since he was created without a father or a mother.

The Qur’an relates that Jesus performed miracles. This does not make him a son of God, for all the religious texts report that other Prophets performed miracles. Muslims believe that if Jesus ever used the phrase son of God, he did so metaphorically, as is explicit in several places in Gospels.4 Consequently, Muslims do not believe that God sacrificed His only son so that humanity would be forgiven.

What Do Muslims Think of the Trinity?

In its simplest terms, the Trinity means that God is the union of three divine persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Christian Church accepts this as a divine mystery that cannot be fully comprehended. Muslims acknowledge that a lack of knowledge on something’s nature does not imply its non-existence. For example, they believe in angels, God, and Heaven and Hell, yet know little or nothing about such things’ nature. However, the Trinity is not one of those concepts.

First of all, the Qur’an and Prophetic traditions reject the existence of any deities other than God. Sometimes the Trinity is explicitly mentioned, as in:

O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: Nor say of Allah aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (only) a messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a spirit proceeding from Him. Believe in Allah and His messengers, and say not: Trinity. Desist, it will be better for you, for Allah is One. Glory be to Him, (far exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belong all things in the Heavens and on the Earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer of affairs. (4:171)

They do blaspheme who say: Allah is one of three in a Trinity, for there is no god except One Allah. If they desist not from their word (of blasphemy), a grievous penalty will befall the blasphemers among them. (5:73)

Some Christians say that they do not worship three gods, that Christianity is monotheistic, and that people who say they are worshiping three gods do not understand the Trinity. However, Muslims feels that even if they do not understand the Trinity (but how many Christians understand it, assuming it is a divine mystery?), it is clear to them that God, speaking in the Qur’an, understands it and rejects it for reasons discussed above.

If there were several gods, none of them could be omnipotent, which contradicts the Islamic concept of God. Those who live on the Earth cannot be accepted as God, for they have needs: food, sleep, fulfillment of desires, and so on. In the Qur’an, God invites humanity to reflect upon the universe and thereby realize that God has no needs. The harmony and perfection of creation is enough evidence for His power and oneness. In fact, one can ask the following questions: Where is the evidence of the Trinity? If the concept of Trinity were so crucial to faith, why do the four canonical Gospels not refer to it? Why did Jesus not explicitly detail this issue in his teachings? Such questions make the Muslims doubt its veracity.

Do Muslims Believe in Earlier Scriptures?

Muslims are required to believe in all Prophets sent by God, and all Scriptures revealed to them in their originally revealed form (2:136).

The phrase in their originally revealed form is critical, for if it is ignored the Islamic viewpoint might be misinterpreted. Muslims believe that essentials of pure faith do not change, although laws that Prophets are sent with might be subject to change.5 Thus statements in earlier Scriptures that are at variance with Islam indicate human interference in those scriptures. The Qur’an refers to the Gospel of Jesus and Torah of Moses, but those are believed to be different from the Gospels and Torah as we now know them. This does not mean that Muslims reject the current Scriptures altogether; rather, Muslims use the Qur’an and the authentic Prophetic Traditions as criteria to see what is correct in other religious texts.

How Do Muslims Know That the Qur’an Has Not Been Altered?

The Qur’an was written and preserved immediately after it was revealed. The pieces were assembled shortly after the Prophet’s death, and with incredible sensitivity on the collectors’ part, and checked against by those who had memorized it fully. This careful process resulted in the Qur’an that eventually belonged to Caliph Uthman, who died 34 years after the Prophet, and which is preserved in Istanbul’s Topkapi Palace. There is no difference between it and the Qur’an that Muslims read today. There is no other version of the Qur’an in existence. If anyone can find such a thing, we would be interested in seeing it.

Do Muslims Believe in the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is mentioned in several Qur’anic verses.6 However, this does not refer to the Christian idea of Holy Spirit, but rather to the Angel Gabriel.

Will Christians Go to Hell?

Although this is a frequently asked question, it is hard to find a satisfactory answer. The reason is twofold. No one, not even the Prophet, can say that someone is going to Hell or Heaven unless God informs him on the issue. Also, there is a difference of opinion among Muslim scholars. The opinion we present here is the one that most fits the Qur’an and the essence of Islam.

People who are exposed to pure faith in an undistorted way, have a fairly good idea that it may well be true but do not search further and reject it out of arrogance or stubbornness, and then die in such a state will go to Hell. Those who have pure faith or are ignorant (i.e., they have not been exposed to pure belief) and have no practical means to search for more knowledge eventually will go to Heaven. These two groups are outlined fairly well in the Qur’an. As for those in the middle, meaning most believers in other faiths or in no faith at all, Muslims are told to leave the judgment to God, Who will judge them according to their specific conditions and render a final and absolutely just decision.

What about Original Sin and Salvation?

One fundamental disagreement between Islam and Christianity is Adams original sin. Christianity declares that Adam sinned by disobeying Gods order and that this sin is inherited by all of Adams children. In other words, humanity is born sinful, as everyone is a child of Adam. Gods justice requires a price to be paid for every sin, and only the shedding of blood can wipe out this sin. Since the original sin was infinite in nature, an infinite recompense was necessary. For this reason, God allowed Jesus Christ, His son, to have his holy, sinless blood shed. His suffering and dying on the Cross paid for humanity’s sins. Only those who accept Jesus Christ as their redeemer can be saved in the Hereafter. According to Islam, Adam and Eve were created and put into the Garden. After this, God told them to enjoy the Garden but not to eat a certain fruit. Satan deceived them, and they disobeyed God by eating the fruit. As a result, God ordered them to leave the Garden and descend to the Earth, where they and their children would live and die (7:24-25). In the Quranic perspective, both Adam and Eve share this sin. Islam does not recognize Original Sin or the need for a savior to redeem an inherently sinful humanity. It regards children as pure and sinless at birth, says that sin is not inherited, and that no one is responsible for someone else’s sin (53:38). God is just and holds every person responsible for what they do. Even after people sin, God forgives those who sincerely turn to Him and seek forgiveness. Thus He did not curse Adam or Eve, for they sincerely sought”and received”forgiveness from God.

Was Jesus Crucified?

The crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ represent the heart of Christianity. Everything a Christian believes in and hopes for is based on Jesus death on the Cross for unworthy sinners. His resurrection is the Divine vindication of the fact that Jesus did not die for any crime he had committed, but died in the place of sinners needing redemption and justification before an infinitely holy and just God. (Cf. 1 Corinthians 15:12-19; Romans 4:25, 5:8-11) Islam rejects these events, for the Quran gives very direct and clear information about what happened to Jesus: That they said (in boast), We killed Christ Jesus, son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah; but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them. Those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow. They killed him not. Nay, Allah raised him up unto Himself; and Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise. (4:157-58) Some Muslim scholars think that Quran 4:159 refers to Jesus return before the Day of Judgment. This belief is supported by several authentic Traditions. Thus, although Christians and Muslims disagree on Jesus mission, they agree that he will return before the Day of Judgment.

Dealing with the Differences

Faced with many things in common and serious doctrinal differences, how do Christians and Muslims deal with those differences? The Quran commands Muslims to avoid counterproductive debate and, whenever a controversial topic arises, to discuss it according to the highest ethics of civilized debate: And do not dispute with the followers of the Book except by what is best, except those of them who act unjustly, and say: We believe in that which has been revealed to us and revealed to you, and our Allah and your Allah is One, and to Him do we submit (29:46). Though it would be naive to assume that Christians and Muslims do not disagree on certain issues, it would be equally foolish to portray their relationship with each other as composed of conflict. Is there any religion whose followers have no form of virtue? Clearly there is not. And, especially in the case of Christianity and Islam, both parties have a lot to learn from each other. Christian civilization was built upon an Islamic heritage, yet even most respectable Christian scholars are unwilling to admit this freely. This is also true of those Muslims who wanted to stay away from Christian civilization, because the Christians have gone astray. Thanks to advances in mass communication, Christians and Muslims now realize that the other was not that bad. Shortly, we will realize that the other is not so different from us, hence not bad at all. Today, thanks to the Internet, we can increase our knowledge of the other rather easily. For example, the entire Quran can be read online at http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/Quran/, while the Bible can be read online at http://bible. gospelcom.net/. To reach this point, Christians and Muslims living in Americas democratic and highly heterogeneous society have a tremendous responsibility to serve as role models for people in less tolerant and more prejudicial countries, where the vision of the other remains entrenched. We have to carry out this task in the most efficient way, by continuously seeking for opportunities to learn about each other. Even if we can afford to live without getting to know the other, our children cannot

Footnotes:

1. Bukhari, Prophets, 652. See http://db.islam.org:81/ hadith/ssearch.htm. The other great Prophets are Abraham, Noah, Moses, and Muhammad.
2. Ibid. The authentic Traditions of Prophet Muhammad represent the second source of religion, immediately after the Quran.
3. The Gospels also state that Jesus was sent for the Jews: For example: He answered, I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel (Matthew 15:24).
4. For example: Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God (John 1:12); …and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one (John 11:52).
5. That is, believing in a monotheistic God, His Prophets, the Scriptures revealed to them, His Angels, the Hereafter, and that both good and evil are decreed by God.
6. For example: We gave Moses the book and followed him up with a succession of Messengers. We gave Jesus son of Mary clear (Signs) and strengthened him with the holy spirit (2:87).

According to Islam, the eschatological descent of Jesus is one such manifestation. Jesus, along with Adam, Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, John, and Muhammad, is considered one of the elite Prophets. Muslims believe that Jesus received a Divinely revealed book (the Injil [Gospel]), was born of a virgin, had no human father, and was sinless. He is given titles of honor, and pictured as a wandering preacher who performed miracles and spoke beautiful words. Many Sufis use his words in their prayers. The Qur’an states that Jesus’ people did not crucify him, for someone took His place on the cross. He then ascended to the heavens, after promising to send a comforter (Muhammad).

Muslims have surrounded Jesus with many pious legends. Some believe he will return and marry in the distant future. A grave site has been reserved for him. Others say he will judge the world at the end of time, help Muhammad rule, be Muhammad’s last Companion, or that he will appear at the eastern white minaret of the Damascus mosque or in Jerusalem. He will pursue the Antichrist (Dajjal) and, overtaking him at the gate of Lydda (a town near Jerusalem), will slay him.

Islamic scholars interpret some Qur’anic verses and hadith pointing to the second coming as a significant pre-Day of Judgment event.(2) The earliest Muslim scholars believed this so strongly that they attached it to the eminence of the Day of Judgment. At times, .expectations ran so high that commoners prepared a white horse and brought it to the white minaret in Damascus where they believed Jesus would reappear. Reputable texts give no credence to such details, although they have been dramatized by interpreters of lesser reputation. Jesus appears in the horizon at dawn and leads the people against the Antichrist who, helpless before such power, dissolves into nothingness.

Will this eschatological event occur? Is there any truth to this belief? How has the subject been treated in kalam (Islamic theology) literature? The starting point in seeking answers is the Qur’an.

Much of what the Qur’an teaches about Jesus is acceptable to Christians: the virgin birth, his sinlessness and ascension, and his miracles. The Qur’anic evidence for Jesus’ descent is somewhat obscure and ambigious, but later Muslim traditions took up the idea eagerly. According to them, Jesus is still alive in the heavens and will return to signal the Last Days.(3) The Qur’an, which considers Jesus a great Prophet, mentions him as ‘Isa (25 places),(4) al-Masih (Annointed One, Messiah), al-Nabi (Prophet), al-Rasul (Messenger), Min al-Muqarrabin (of those close to God), Mubarak (Sacred One), Qawl al-Haq (True Word), ‘Abd Allah (Servant of God), and in 33 places as Ibn Maryam (Son of Mary).

Before delving into this subject further, we will examine the events leading up to it. For example, his second coming necessarily implies his ascension to the heavens alive. This begs the question: Did Jesus die on the cross?

THE QUESTION OF JESUS’ DEATH

This very contentious question has engendered several schools of thought. Some claim that Roman soldiers charged into a cottage where Jesus was believed to be with twelve of his disciples. During the attack, one person disappeared. Soldiers took one of the twelve remaining men and crucified him. Others believe that when the soldiers entered the cottage, they could not identify him, as everyone had taken on his physical attributes, and so picked and crucified someone at random.(5)

While the Qur’an offers no details on this point, it clearly states that Jesus was neither killed nor crucified. Moreover, his ‘killers’ were never sure if they had killed him or not (4:157-58). We know that someone-but not who-was crucified. Jewish and Christian sources say it was Jesus, an assertion rejected outright by the Qur’an.

THE QUR’ANIC ACCOUNT

And remember when Allah said: “0 Jesus. I will take you and raise you to Myself and clear you of those who disbelieve” (3:55). In other words, Jesus was not executed. A perusal of the classical and more modern literature on this verse will clarify matters.

According to Ragheb al-Isphahani (d. 1696), mutawaffika (I will take you) here does not mean death in the sense we understand it, even though he mentions that the noted Companion Ibn ‘Abbas understood this literal meaning.(6) Al-Tabari (d. 922), a well-known Qur’anic scholar, states that mutawaffika means “to take and raise him to the heavens.” After offering several interpretations, he expresses his own preference: “In my opinion, a healthier view on the meaning of mutawaffika is ‘to take from earth and raise to the heavens.'”(7) Moreover, the verse as a whole points to Jesus’ eschatological descent and a war against the nonbelievers that ends in a great victory for the believers.

The noted Islamic theologian al-Maturidi (d. 944) mentions several views, one of which is that even though the verse first mentions Jesus’ death and then his ascension, his death is postponed until after the second coming. God says: “I will take you and raise you to myself … to the day of resurrection: Then shall you all return unto me…” However, the probable meaning of literal death cannot be dismissed.(8) Al-Maturidi does not state his own view. If, however, mentioning one view before another amounts to a personal preference, one can argue that he believes Jesus was not killed before his ascension. This uncertainty, however, does not apply to his second coming, as al-Maturidi cites several relevant hadiths and the subsequent slaying of the Antichrist.(9)

Al-Zamakhshari (d. 1143), a Mu’tazilite scholar and Arabic linguist, argues that Jesus “will die a natural death after his victory over the Antichrist, not at the hands of the nonbelievers.”(10) The famous Qur’anic interpreter Ibn ‘Atiyya (d. 1152) writes that Jesus “will die a second time after descending to the Earth and slaying the Antichrist.”(11) Based on this, he seems to accept that Jesus ascended after his death, whereas he claims that Jesus is still alive.

Abu al-Faraj al-Jawzi (d. 1200), who defines mutawaffika as “to take something completely,” writes that Jesus was raised to the heavens by God. And he does not rule out a normal death: “Jesus’ real death shall occur after his second coming.”(12) The noted Muslim theologian al-Razi (d. 1209) gives what he calls a “sensible” interpretation: “I will complete your life and then take your soul. I shall not leave you in their hands to kill you. I will raise you to My heavens and place you next to my angels. They will not have the chance to kill you, for I will protect you.(13)

Ibn Kathir (d. 1372), a prominent Qur’anic interpreter offering the same explanation, interprets mutawaffika as “sleep” and provides several supporting verses.(14) A similar explanation, that Jesus ascended and will return before the Day of Judgment, is held by many people, among them Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, who uses the pertinent hadith literature to verify the meaning mutawaffa as “sleep.”(15)

Other respected Qur’anic scholars interpret tawaffa as “death as applied to Jesus.” However, as this death will occur after the second coming and the Antichrist’s subsequent defeat, Jesus is currently alive. Upon his second coming, Jesus will effect various social reforms and refute some established Christian beliefs.(16)

The Ottoman mystic scholar Bursevi accepts the traditional explanation and gives additional details: “When Jesus witnessed the virtuosity of the Prophet Muhammad’s community in the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawh al-Mahfuz), he asked God to count him as one of Ummah of Muhammad. God accepted this sincere supplication….”(17) The Qur’anic scholar al-Alusi (d. 1854) offers a different hypothesis: Jesus ascended alive and awake, stripped of all human needs and attributes.(18) In fact, he now lives in a world unknown to us.

Some contemporary Turkish and Egyptian scholars hold different views. Omer Riza Dogrul asserts that as Jesus could not have been killed, he must have died naturally.(19) According to the Egyptian Islamic scholar al-Qasimi, both literal and metaphorical interpretations are possible, although he appears to favor an idiomatic meaning for tawaffa.(20) The Pakistani scholar Abul Ala Maududi writes: “Mutawaffika in the Arabic text is from tawaffa, which literally means ‘to take and to receive,’ and ‘to seize the soul’ is not its lexical but rather its metaphorical meaning. Here it means ‘to recall from mission.'”(21) He castigates those who adopt the literal meaning (death) for tawaffa, accusing them of saying God cannot express Himself clearly.

Kawthari, who lived during the last phase of the Ottoman Empire, also emphasizes a metaphorical meaning based on historical analysis of the word’s meaning and more Qur’anic examples. During the Qur’an’s revelation, its audience would not necessarily have understood this word to mean “death,” for then the Qur’anic usage of mawt elsewhere would lose its significance as “death.” The Qur’an contains several words whose true meanings would be distorted if their contemporary meanings were ascribed to them. For example, today risalah means “letter,” while its original Qur’anic meaning is “Prophethood.”(22)

The Egyptian reformers Muhammad ‘Abduh and Rashid Rida accept the lexical meaning of “death.” Rida says Jesus literally died and his soul ascended. In conversation, it is not unusual to signify “soul” when a person’s name is mentioned, for the soul is the individual’s essence. Therefore when the Qur’an talks about Jesus in this verse, it means his soul.(23)

Mahmood Shaltut, a more contemporary Egyptian scholar, is certain of Jesus’ literal death. He cites two verses that mention Jesus’ forthcoming death and report his death (4:157 and 3:5, respectively). Several contemporary interpreters posit an energy-matter relationship, but provide no supporting evidence. According to them, Jesus had such a strong spiritual stature that his physical body became energy (spirit) and ascended to the heavens, similar to Muhammad’s Ascension. Mutawaffika naturally would refer to his death as tawaffa, “to call in a loan at the end of its term,” and is commonly used in that sense. But the verb also is used for nightly slumber. Therefore we cannot be certain that actual death is implied here.

QUR’ANIC VERSES and CRUCIFIXION

And because of their saying: We killed the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah,’ but they hilled him not nor crucified him, but the resemblance of Jesus was put over another man, and those who differ therein are full of doubts. They have no knowledge, they follow nothing but conjecture. For surely; they killed him not. But Allah raised him up unto himself And Allah is ever AU-Powerful, All-Wise (4:157-58).

These verses have been interpreted in two ways: Jesus did not die but ascended, or he really died. Early Qur’anic scholars offered various interpretations. The scholar Mujahid ibn Jabr (d.0722) claimed “they crucified someone other than Jesus, whom they mistook for Jesus,” and “Jesus ascended to the heavens alive.”24 According to Ibn Hazm (d. 1064), a famous Muslim theologian, Jesus did not die and is alive in the heavens, as the above verses clearly indicate.25 Once again, these verses remind us that Jesus has not died, will return before the Day of Judgment, and eventually will die a natural death. In fact, Jesus is known to have said: So peace is upon me the day I was born, the day that I die… (19 which shows that he is still alive. It mus remembered, however, that since he said this while still in his cradle, this verse does not prove that he is still alive.

The Qur’an tells us that faith always triumphs over evil. If Jesus’ enemies crucified him, evil would be triumphant, It also states clearly that God defends the faithful (22:38). Therefore, Jesus could not have been crucified.26

Arguments against Jesus’ crucifixion are considerably more convincing than those favoring it. But both groups have asked: If he is not dead, why is his second coming delayed until soon before Day of Judgment? Those v ‘ say he has died already dt^-y the second coming.

Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, the best-known Turkish interpreter of the Qur’an, concurs with the majority view, basing himself on the hadith: “Jesus has not died and will reappear shortly before the Day of Judgment.”‘7 Most Muslims believe that as Jesus has not yet completed his appointed task, he this verse, it means his soul.23

Mahmood Shaltut, a more contemporary Egyptian scholar, is certain of Jesus’ literal death. He cites two verses that mention Jesus’ forthcoming death and report his death (4:157 and 3:5, respectively). Several contemporary interpreters posit an energy-matter relationship, but provide no supporting evidence. According to them, Jesus had such a strong spiritual stature that his physical body became energy [spirit) and ascended to the heavens, similar to Muhammad’s Ascension. Mutawaffika naturally would refer to his death as tawaffa, “to call in a loan at the end of its term,” and is commonly used in that sense. But the verb also is used for nightly slumber. Therefore we cannot be certain that actual death is implied here.

QUR’ANIC VERSES AND CRUCIFIXION

And because of their saying: ‘We killed the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah,’ but they killed him not nor crucified him, but the resemblance of Jesus was put over another man, and those who differ therein are full of doubts. They have no knowledge, they follow nothing but conjecture. For surely; they killed him not. But Allah raised him up unto himself. And Allah is ever All-Powerful, All-Wise (4:157-58).

These verses have been interpreted in two ways; Jesus did not die but ascended, or he really died. Early Qur’anic scholars offered various interpretations. The scholar Mujahid ibn Jabr (d.722) claimed “they crucified someone other than Jesus, whom they mistook for Jesus,” and “Jesus ascended to the heavens alive.”(24) According to Ibn Hazm (d. 1064), a famous Muslim theologian, Jesus did not die and is alive in the heavens, as the above verses clearly indicate.(25) Once again, these verses remind us that Jesus has not died, will return before the Day of Judgment, and eventually will die a natural death. In fact, Jesus is known to have said: So peace is upon me the day I was born, the day that I die… (19:33), which shows that he is still alive. It must be remembered, however, that since he said this while still in his cradle, this verse does not prove that he is still alive.

The Qur’an tells us that faith always triumphs over evil. If Jesus’ enemies crucified him, evil would be triumphant. It also states clearly that God defends the faithful (22:38). Therefore, Jesus could not have been crucified.(26)

Arguments against Jesus’ crucifixion are considerably more convincing than those favoring it. But both groups have asked: If he is not dead, why is his second coming delayed until soon before the Day of Judgment? Those who say he has died already deny the second coming.

Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, the best-known Turkish interpreter of the Qur’an, concurs with the majority view, basing himself on the hadith: “Jesus has not died and will reappear shortly before the Day of Judgment.”(27) Most Muslims believe that as Jesus has not yet completed his appointed task, he will return to complete it and then die.(28) Relying on: Every soul shall taste death (3:185) and We granted not to any man before the permanent life (21:34), Ismail Fenni Ertugrul, a contemporary Turkish scholar, accuses Elmalili of hiding his real opinion. According to him, the above verses clearly presuppose Jesus’ death.(29) But such criticism is groundless; Elmalili does not contradict these verses, as all Islamic scholars agree that Jesus eventually will die and be resurrected.

Bediuzzaman Said Nursi (d. 1960), the most influential twentieth-century Muslim scholar, has defined five distinct levels of life, and places Jesus in the third level (along with the angels). The first level, that of humanity, is very restricted. The second level, that of Khidi and Ilyas (Elias), is free to some extent and allows its inhabitants to be present in numerous places at once. The third level is that of Idris (Enoch) and Jesus who, removed from human requirements, enter an angelic life and acquire a luminous fineness. Quite simply, they are in the heavens with their earthly bodies. In this life, Jesus is more like an angel than a man. The fourth level is for martyrs, and the fifth level is for the spirits of the dead in their graves.(30)

QURANIC VERSES INFERRING THE ESCHATOLOGICAL DESCENT OF JESUS

Whether the Qur’an addresses Jesus’ second coming has been a matter of contention.

Three Qur’anic verses have been advanced as evidence. The first refers to what Jesus said. Some classical interpreters, with the exception of the Mu’tazilite al-Zamakhshari, based themselves on hadith literature and inferred the second coming from: He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity… (3:45). According to them, the verb’s future tense implies the unfinished nature of Jesus’ mission. So, he will have to speak to people after his second coming.(31) Some contemporary scholars agree, notably al-Ghumari, who says that this verse refers to an extraordinary event, as he spoke while still in his crib. Before his ascension, Jesus preached among his kinsmen. However, the verse contains the word al-nas, indicating that he will speak to humanity. This necessitates his second coming. (32)

What is actually emphasized here, and in 19:29-31, is the miracle of Jesus speaking when still an infant. The verse also suggests that Jesus will speak to people. Of course he spoke to people as an adult before his ascension. So we cannot infer from the verse’s context that such an event will occur after his second coming. Those who assert this offer no concrete supporting evidence. The verse’s implied meaning of the second coming, I believe, appears at best to be forced, probably to provide additional support for hadith dealing with the subject.

The second relevant verse is: And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in Him before his death (4:159). Again, their argument is weak. Al-Zamakhshari assigns the pronoun bihi (in him) to Jesus, and infers the second coming in the verse’s context. Al-Suyuti and al-Qari (d. 1605) infer a similar meaning.(33) According to al-Baydawi, if both bihi and mawtihi refer to Jesus, his death can be considered real only after his second coming.(34) ‘Abd al-Hamid, an al-Azhar scholar, puts forward this verse to those who claim that the Qur’an does not mention clearly or even hint about the second coming.(35) The best interpreters of the verse are the Prophet’s Companions. Al-Ghumari points out that Ibn ‘Abbas and Abu Hurayra, two Companions with an outstanding command of Arabic grammar and knowledge of the Qur’anic mission, interpreted it in a way that infers the descent of Jesus.(36) The Prophet’s grandson Hasan agrees with this interpretation.(37) Therefore the majority of Muslim scholars believe that Jesus will return.

The verse: And he (Jesus) shall be a sign of the Judgment Day… (43:61), according to various classical and contemporary Qur’anic scholars, refers to his eschatological descent.(38) In this verse, la ‘ilmun can be recited in three variations: la ‘ilmun, refers to knowledge of the Day of Judgment; la ‘alamun, points to a sign of the Day of Judgment; and la dhikr, as a warning of the Day of Judgment.(39) Al-Azhar’s official fatwa on the second coming offers this verse as evidence.(40) There will be a second coming, because it has been foretold to be a sign of the Hour of Resurrection. Moreover, such Western scholars as Parrinder, also point to this verse as evidence when speaking of the second coming.(41)

Shaltut does not accept the second and third verses as indisputable evidence, but rather prefers al-Tabari’s interpretation that Jesus’ virgin birth is itself a sign of the Hour of Judgment.(42) This verse addresses those who deny the Hereafter. This miraculous birth is offered to provide evidence of the Hereafter to unbelievers. According to al-Kawthari, who diametrically opposes Shaltut, pertinent Qur’anic verses and traditions necessitate a belief in the second coming. He does not respond directly to Shaltut’s views; rather, he accepts the majority view by faith without insisting on concrete evidence. The contemporary scholar Ibn ‘Ashur, who also opposes the majority view, fails to offer any convincing supporting evidence.(43)

In the context, the pronoun hu naturally refers to Jesus, meaning that Jesus is a sign of the coming of the Hour. Then the return of Jesus is, of course, one of the signs of the only Qur’anic passage supporting this view. But others say this pronoun refers to the Qur’an, or to Muhammad. In my opinion, these two latter interpretations are not credible, for these verses are generally about Jesus. Therefore the meaning would be “Jesus is the sign of the Day of Judgment.” As the exact aspect of Jesus that supposedly is a sign of the Day of Judgment is not mentioned, many interpretations are possible.

For example, some scholars imply that Jesus’ virgin birth is a sign: God is showing us His power. Therefore, the All-Powerful God Who created Jesus without a father can create the Hereafter and the Day of Judgment. The verse compares Jesus’ creation with, that of Adam, presenting both as evidence of God’s infinite power. When God mentions Jesus as a sign of the Hour, the first meaning that logically comes to mind is his miraculous birth. According to others, the verse indicates the second coming because there is a close relation between Jesus and the Hour. Therefore, as Jesus is mentioned as a sign of the Hour, his descent must be meant.

The fourth verse cited as evidence is: And ice be upon me the day I was born and the day 1die and the day I shall be raised alive (19:33). The resurrection mentioned here signifies his second coming, according to those who claim it proves this event. They base this on the fact that the same verse also mentions his future death. In other words, Jesus did not die on the cross.(44)

Another indirect proof is: He (Muhammad) does not speak of his own desire. It is only an inspiration that is inspired (53:3-4). This verse literally explains that whatever Prophet Muhammad says is an inspiration from God. It is narrated, with a strong chain of transmitters, that the Prophet was talking to his Companions about the second coming. Therefore this verse is a proof that Prophet Muhammad was inspired about the second coming.(45)

Unlike most interpreters, Shaltut opines that all such proofs violate the verses’ literal meaning, and that interpreters devised such meanings to avoid conflict with some second-coming traditions narrated by such famous Companions as Abu Hurayra. Therefore, he believes that the Qur’an and the Sunnah provide no trustworthy evidence for this event. The Syrian scholar al-Buty claims that Shaltut changed his view, adopted the majority view during his last illness, and then buried all documents connected with his old views.(46)

But why did Shaltut deny the second coming despite all the proofs mentioned above? It seems to me that he viewed the majority interpretation as unreasonable and against general Islamic principles. He thinks that a person cannot come from heaven, and therefore denies such statements. They based their evidence on God’s power, saying: He is able to do all things (67:1) and therefore He can bring Jesus. They think of bodily descent. Is the descent of Jesus from heaven to be considered materially? 

In semantic terms, nuzul (descending) does not necessitate a material descent, for other verses treat this descent as a manifestation of God’s bounty. For example: He sent down for you eight pairs of cattle (39:6}.(47) We cannot say that the animals descended from the heavens, but we can say that they descended to us from God’s Mercy. Moreover, in some hadiths nuzul is used in relation to God: “God descends every night to the first heaven, the heaven of the world…”(48) Of course it is not a physical descend. Therefore, in this sense, the descend of Jesus in his second coming can be spiritual, meaning that God will send him from His Mercy to be a mercy to humanity.

There is another, more spiritual approach: His descent means that Christian spiritual leaders will purify Christianity and return it to the original religion of Jesus. Meanwhile, they do not deny the possibility of Jesus’ physical descent. Because of his strong spirituality, Jesus can come and go and appear in different human forms. But the focal point, according to this opinion, is his spiritual domination of the Earth in alliance with Islam. The true religion, seen in the togetherness of Islam and Christianity, will defeat materialism, communism, and atheism. This view is shared by the prominent Turkish scholar Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, the Indian scholar Siddik Hasan Khan, and partly by ‘Abduh. Therefore, the second coming can be a strong means for Muslim-Christians dialogue.

To clarify this matter, we cite Qur’an 30:1-5, which discusses the Muslims’ hope that the Roman Christians would defeat the pagan Persians. The Qur’an clearly mentions that Muslims shall rejoice over that victory. If we apply this historical event to today’s life, what can we say? In general, when one asks a Muslim about a possible war, for example, between the United States and China, Muslims must support the former, for it believes in God and religious values, and China does not. In fact, as far as I know, many Muslims are very upset over China’s persecution of its Muslims and Christians. Since Prophet Muhammad stated in many traditions that some Qur’anic verses hint of Jesus’ second coming, the concept of Muslim-Christian dialogue is readily understandable. To sum up, the huge restoration of the Last Days will witness true Christianity (the spirit of Jesus) working hand in hand with true Islam (the spirit of Muhammad) for the benefit of humanity. 

* Zeki Saritoprak is an Associate Faculty Member of the Department of Semitics at The Catholic University of America, and a Research Associate at Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The author wishes to thank Seyyid Hussein Nasr, Sidney Griffith, Theresa Ann-Druart, and Monica Blanchard.

FOOTNOTES

1. See ‘Abd al-Baqi, Muhammad Fuad, Al-Mu’jam al-Mufahras li Alfazi’l-Qur’an al-Karim, (Istanbul: 1982), 370-1, 581-2, 775-80.
2. Abu ‘Abd Allah al-Husayn b. Hasan al-Halimi, Al-Minhaj fi Shu’ab al-Iman, (Cairo: 1979), 1:142; Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Abi Sahi al-Sarakhsi, Sifatu Ashrat al-Sa’ah (Paris: Bibliotheque Nationale, n.d.), nr. 1800; ed. by Zeki Saritoprak, (Cairo: 1993), 35; Abu al-‘Abbas Ahmad b. Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, ed. by Muhammad Zaynuhum-Muhammad ‘Azab (Cairo: 1986), 84; Abu al-Tayyib Muhammad Ashraf b. Amir b. ‘Ali al-Azemabadi, ‘Anmu’l-Ma’bud Sharhu Sunani Abi Dawud (Madina: 1989), 11:424-5; ‘Ali al-Maliki al-Manshalili, Risale fi ‘Ashrati’s-Sa’ah wa Ahvali Yawmi’l-Qiyama, nis. (Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya, nr. B-19690) fol. la-3b; Ahmad ibn al-Faqih al-Shafi’i, ‘Ashratu’s-Sa’ah, ms. (Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya, Tasawwuf, nr. 2191), fol. 3a-6b; ‘Ali b. Sultan al-Harawi al-Qari, Sharh al-Fiqhi’l-Akbar (Cairo: 1323 CE), 112; Al-Mashrab al-Wardifi Haqiqati’l-Mahdi, ms. (Istanbul: Koprulu, nr. 1509), fol. 200a-200b; Kamal al-Din Ahmad al-Bayadi, Isharat al-Maram min ‘Ibarati al-Imam, ed. by. Yusuf Abd al-Razzak (Cairo: 1949), 67; Kamal al-Din al-Tai, Risale fi al-Tawhid wa al-Firaq al-Mu’asira (Beirut: n.d), 106; Muhammad Anwar Shah al-Hindi al-Kash-miri, Al-Tasrih bima Tawatara fi Nuzul al-Masih, ed. by Abd al-Fattah ‘Abu Ghudda (Aleppo: 1965), 9-11.
3. See F. E. Peters, Allah’s Commomwealth: A Histoiy of Islam in the Near East (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1973), 51.
4. ‘Abd al-Baqi, Al-Mu’jam, 494-5.
5. See Muhammad b. Umar Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb (Beirut: n.d), 11:100.
6. Ragheb al-Isfahani, Al-Mufradat fi Alfaz al-Qur’an (Istanbul: 1986), 830.
7. Abu Ja’far Muhammad b. Jarir al-Tabari, Jami’ al-Bayan an Ta’wili al-Qur’an (Beirut, 1984); ed. by Muhammad Mahmud Shakir (Cairo: n.d) 3:290-1.
8. Abu Mansur Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Mahmud al-Maturidi, Ta’wilat al-Qur’an, ms. Haci Selim Aga (Istanbul: n.d.) nr. 40 fol. 80 a-80b.
9. Ibid., fol. 239 a.
10. Abu al-Qasim Jarullah Mahmud ibn ‘Umar al-Zamakhshari, Al-Kashshaf ‘an Haqaiqi al-Tanzil wa Uyuni’l-Aqawil fi Wujuh al-Ta’wil, (Beirut: n.d.), 1:432-3.
11. Abu Muhammad ‘Abd al-Khaliq b. Ghalib b. ‘Atiyya al-Andalusi Ibn ‘Atiyya, Al-Muharrar al-Wajiz fi Tafsir al-Kitab al-‘Aziz, (Fez: 1977), 3:105,13:255.
12. ‘Abd al-Rahman b ‘Ali ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Jawzi, Zad al-Mathir fi ‘Ilm al-Tafsir (Beirut: 1964), 1:396-7.
13. Al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 2:100, 8:67.
14. ‘Imad al-Din Abu al-Fida ‘Ismail b. Umar Ibn Kathir, Tafsir al-Qur’an al-Azim(Beirut: 1969),1:575.
15. Jalal al-Din ‘Abdarrahman al-Suyuti, Al-Durr al-Manthur fi al-Tafsir bi al-Ma’thur (Beirut: n.d.), 2:225-7.
16. Abu Hayyan Muhammad b.Yusuf al-Andalusi, Tafsir al-Bahr al-Muhit (Beirut: 1983), 2:473.
17. ‘Isma’il Haqqi Bursawi, Ruh al-Bayan (Istanbul: 1389), 2:41.
18. Abu al-Fadl Shihab al-Din Sayyid Mahmud al-Alusi, Ruh al-Ma’ani fi Tafsir al-Qur’an al- ‘Azim wa Sab’i al-Mathani, (Beirut: n.d.), 3:179.
19. Omar Riza Dogrul, Tanri Buyrugu (Istanbul: 1980), 97.
20. Muhammad Jalal al-Din al-Qasimi, Mahasin al-Ta’wil, ed. by M. Fuad ‘Abd al-Baqi (Beirut: 1978), 4:107.
21. S. Abul A’la Maududi, The Meaning of the Qur’an (Lahore: Islamic Publications, 1985), 2:34.
22. Muhammad Zahid al-Kawthari, Nazra ‘Abire fi Maza’imi man Yunkir Nuzula ‘Isa qabla al-Akhira (Cairo: 1987), 99-100.
23. Rashid Rida, Tafsir al-Manar (Cairo: 1954), 3:169.
24. Ibn Jabr Abu al-Hajjaj Mujahid, Tafsiru Mujahid, ed. by ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Tahir (Qatar: 1976), 180-1.
25. Abu Muhammad ‘Ali b. Ahmad al-Zahiri Ibn Hazm, ‘Ilm al-Kalam ‘ala Mazhabi Ahli al-Sunna wa al-Jama’ah, ed. by Ahmad Hijazi al-Saqa (Cairo: 1989), 56-7.
26. See George Anawati, “Isa”, Encyclopedia of Islam, 2d ed. (Leiden: 1978), 4:84.
27. See Al-Bukhari, “Mazalim,” 31; “Buyu’,” 102; Muslim, “Iman,” 242; Ibn Maja, “Fitan,” 33.
28. Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, Hak Dini Kur’an Dili (Istanbul: 1992), 2:372-3.
29. Ismail Fenni Ertugrul, Hakikat Nurlari (Istanbul: 1949), 221-4.
30. Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, The Letters, trans. by Þukran Vahide (Istanbul: Sozler, 1994), 22.
31. Al-Tabari, Jami’ al-Bayan, 6:420; Abu ‘Abd Allah Muhammad b. Ahmad al-Qurtubi, Al-Jami’ li Ahkam al-Qur’an, (Beirut: 1967), 6:11; Abu Sa’id ‘Abd Allah b. ‘Umar al-Baydawi, Anwar al-Tanzil (Cairo: n.d.), 2:19; Al-Alusi, Ruh al-Ma’ani, 6:13.
32. ‘Abd Allah b. Siddik al-Ghumari, Iqama al-Burhan ‘ala Nuzuli ‘Isa fi Akhir al-Zaman (Cairo:1974), 97.
33. Al-Suyuti, Al-Durr al-Manthur, 2:241-2; ‘Ali b. Sultan al-Harawi al-Qari, Mirqat al-Mafatih (Cairo: 1309), 5:221.
34. Al-Baydawi, Anwar al-Tanzil, 1:240.
35. Muhyi al-Din ‘Abd al-Hamid, “Bab al-Fatwa,” Majalla al-Azhar, vol. 48 (1972), 4:552.
36. Al-Ghumari, Iqama al-Burhan, 100-1.
37. Ibn ‘Atiyya, al-Muharrar, 4:305-6.
38. ‘Abd Allah Ibn Mas’ud, Tafsiru Ibn Mas’ud, ed. by Muhammad Ahmad Isawi (Riyadh: 1985), 560; Abu ‘Abd Allah Sufyan b. Masruq al-Thawri, Tafsir (Beirut: 1983), 273; Al-Tabari, Jami’ al-Bayan, 25:90-1; Al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 27:222; Al-Sayyid Muhammad Siddiq al-Qanuji Khan, Fath al-Bayan fi Maqasid al-Qur’an (Cairo: 1965) 8:428.
39. See Anawati, “Isa”, EI2, 4:84.
40. Mustafa al-Tair, “Nuzul al-Masih min ‘Alamat al-Sa’ah, ” Majalla al-Azhar, vol. 47 (1971), 6:515.
41. Geoffrey Parrinder, Jesus in the Qur’an (London: 1967), 124.
42. Shaltut, al-Fatawa, 74-5.
43. Muhammad Tahir Ibn Ashur, Tafsir al-Tahrir wa al-Tanwir (Tunisia: 1984), 25:243.
44. See Parrender, 122; Anawati, “Isa” EI2, 4:84.
45. Ibrahim al-Tuwijary, “Iqama al-Burhan,” Majalla al-Buhuth al-Islamiyya, vol. 13 (1985), 104-5.
46. Sa’id Ramadan al-Buty, Kubra al-Yaqiniyyat, (Beirut: 1994), 352.
47. Cf. sending down iron (57:25) and clothing ( 7:26).
48. Al-Bukhari, “Da’awat,” 14; “Tawhid,” 35.

FAITH AND WORKS

To receive the favor of Allah, faith and works are crucial. The Prophet Muhammad stated that faith is required to enter Paradise (Muslim 1:96), and the Apostle Paul wrote that, “the righteous will live by faith” (Romans 1:17). In both religions faith goes hand in hand with good deeds and requires them to perfect it (Qur’an 2:177; James 2:22). Indeed, Jesus says that only those who do God’s will can enter heaven (Matthew 7:21). 

LOVE

Just as faith without works is dead (James 2:17), so, too, is it dead without love. 

Love of one’s neighbor

Muhammad affirmed: “You will not believe as long as you do not love one another” (Muslim 1: 96) and “No man is a true believer unless he wants for his brother that which he wants for himself” (Bukhari 1:12). Concurring, Jesus said that to love your neighbor as yourself was like loving God (Matthew 23:37-39).

Although the word “love” appears less frequently in the Qur’an than in the Bible, the notion of love permeates it. True love consists of right action towards one’s neighbor, of taking care of others, of and helping those in need. In verse after verse, the Qur’an enjoins believers to be charitable to orphans, widows, travelers, and the poor. According to one hadith: “The best Islam is that you feed the hungry and spread peace among people you know and those you do not know.” Similarly, Jesus tied Peter’s loving him to taking care of his disciples (John 21:15-17), and John asserts that those who do not help a brother in need when they are able to do so do not have the love of God in them (1 John 3:17).

Love of God

Love of neighbors is a cornerstone of both Islam and Christianity, but love of God is the foundation. Such love is expressed in many ways, but let’s look at four: prayer, repentance, contentment, and surrender to God.

People desire to be with and talk with those they love. Thus, Christians and Muslims who love God “pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and “remember Allah much” (Qur’an 33:21). Prayer is a cleansing activity, partially because engaging in it allows people to see God’s greatness and their own unworthiness. Such understanding brings repentance, which is essential to receiving God’s approval and forgiveness (Qur’an 20:82; Muslim 2:1142; Matthew 4:17; Mark 1:15; Luke 5:32; 15:7).

Through cycles of prayer, repentance, and forgiveness, the believers’ love of God grows. This gradually results in a weakening of the desires for worldly things, the cause of discontent. Becoming content with what God has allotted them, they “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18), whether good or bad. Such believers are loved by people and by God, as one hadith says: “Desire not the world, and God will love you; and desire not what men have, and they will love you.”

To be fully content means to be surrendered to Allah, a key concept in Islam. Indeed, the word “Islam” is understood to mean surrender, as it says in the Qur’an (3:19): “The religion before Allah is Islam.” Christianity believes the same, for as Jesus said, the greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). In other words, give your entire being to God.

Those who completely devote themselves to God are, naturally, are the closest to Him. Yet God is near all believers. Christians believe that God, in the form of the Holy Spirit, lives within them (1 Corinthians 6:19). For Islam, the indwelling concept is not prevalent, but God is nearer to the believer than his jugular veins (Qur’an 50:16) and says: “When my servants ask you about me, tell them I am near, I hear the prayer of the one who calls upon Me” (Qur’an 2:186).

PARADISE

Both Christianity and Islam teach that those who love God, believe in God, and do good deeds will receive rewards (Matthew 5:5-11, 6:1-6 10:41-42, 16:27, 1 Corinthians 3:14, 9:17, Ephesians 6:8, Qur’an 2:62, 3:144,145,148). The best reward, of course, is eternal life in Paradise.

Who gets this reward? In both religions, the answer is quite controversial. There are those who say that only adherents to of their own religion-whether Christianity or Islam-go to Heaven. Many Christians confidently assert that only those who believe in Jesus will have eternal life (John 3:18, 11:25-26), and many Muslims affirm just as strongly affirm that only those who believe in Allah and accept Muhammad as His Messenger will enter Paradise.

In both religions, however, others disagree. Some Christians claim that it is necessary only that one has to believe in God and try to do good (Matthew 7:21, 10:42, 25:31-46). Likewise, some Muslims who agree with this view cite the Qur’an (2:62): “Believers, Jews, Sabaeans, or Christians-whoever believes in God and the Last Day and does what is right-shall have nothing to fear or to regret.”

Adherents to both religions concur, though, that eternal life is a gift of God and based completely upon His mercy (Romans 9:15-16, Qur’an 3:74, 10:99-100; Bukhari 7:577). Nevertheless, God does not reject anyone who comes to Him: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8), and “He who loves to meet Allah, Allah also loves to meet him. . .” (Muslim 2:1120).

MISUNDERSTANDING

As the Bible and the Qur’an agree on many things, why then do Muslims and Christians perceive each other so differently and so often misunderstand each other? Such a question, of course, deserves an in-depth, multi-faceted answer; however, we will look at just one of those facets: a difference of emphasis and vocabulary.

Muslims tend to emphasize right action, while Christians tend to focus on right belief. Consequently, when Christians hear Muslims say that they are earning merit through their good deeds, they jump to the conclusion that Islam is a religion of works, not faith, and that Muslims are trying to earn their salvation, which no one can do. Also, Christians, disturbed by Muslims’ emphasis on imitating the prophet Prophet Muhammad, perceive Muslims as legalistic and fixed on externals rather than on such transforming internals like as love. They not realize that for Muslims, good deeds earn merit only if one has faith, and that it is love of the Prophet that leads them to follow his example.

In turn, when Muslims hear Christians talking about freedom and love, they believe that Christians can sin as much as they want and still enter Paradise, a perception bolstered by the immorality of not only ordinary people but also of the highly visible religious and political leaders in the West. Muslims fail to understand that the love of God prevents pious Christians from sinning. And there are other similar vocabulary problems resulting in misunderstanding and misperception that are exacerbated by the natural belief that theirs is the true and final religion. This misguided attitude causes both Muslims and Christians to exaggerate any potential difference to its worst extreme, and to forget that their own religions have the same concepts, albeit sometimes de-emphasized or expressed differently.

MAIN DIFFERENCES

Not all differences are a matter of misperception; a few are even fundamental. The most important one concerns the nature of God. Both Christianity and Islam agree that God is the Creator of the universe, the source of truth, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, eternal, full of compassion and mercy, but also the One who dispenses justice. Despite this agreement, however, Christians believe in a Trinity, three persons in one Godhead: the Father, the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit. In contrast, Muslims (and Jews) assert that Jesus is not God, but and that God is one without any has no partners (Qur’an 37:4; Deuteronomy 6:4).

A second major difference is the concept of atonement. Christians believe that Jesus died as a sacrifice for everyone’s sins (Hebrews 9:26; 1 Peter 1:2, 19; 1 John 2:2), which becomes effective for the individual upon his or her confession of belief to those who believe in Jesus (John 3:15-18; Romans 1:16). In Islam, though, sacrifices do not atone for sin but represent one’s devotion to Allah. Consequently, no sacrificial intercessor is necessary or possible (Qur’an 2:256). Instead, God forgives those who sincerely repent and make right correct their previous wrongs.

CONCLUSION

Although the disagreement on the nature of God and on the atonement of Jesus seems unresolvable, most differences are more a matter of emphasis rather than of disagreement.

Christianity stresses right belief and faith, but no Christian would deny that they should do good deeds and have good behavior. On the contrary, they “work” hard to please God because of their faith. Muslims, on the other hand, assuming that faith is necessary, prefer to emphasize the practical side of perfecting their faith via good works. Christians and Muslims agree that faith is necessary and that good works are important.

In reality, if one were simply to watch the outward behavior of pious Muslims and Christians in their daily lives, it would be quite difficult to know who was a Muslim and who was a Christian-for the pious of both religions who love their God and who have surrendered their lives to Him pray much, help the needy, and are kind towards their neighbors and their families. Due to its shortness, this article will necessarily make broad generalizations that have many exceptions.

All hadiths not given a source come from the book The Sayings of Muhammad by Allama Sir Abdullah Alal-Ma’mun Alal-Suhrawardy, who affirmed their authenticity (p. 18).

As someone born and raised in Britain. I am often asked what we as Muslims have to offer to the West. But before I answer, I should like to ask a question myself: Are we Muslims because we believe in God Almighty, or do we believe in God because we are Muslims?

The question occurred to me during a march through the streets of London, over a decade ago, to protest against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan. I’d made a formal conversion to Islam several years prior to this, and it wasn’t my first demonstration. There were banners and placards and much shouting and chanting. Towards the end of the demonstration I was approached by a young man who introduced himself as someone: interested in Islam. ‘Excuse me,’ he said, ‘but what is the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah?’

Without a moments hesitation I answered. There is no god but Allah.’

‘I’m not asking you to translate it.’ he said. ‘I’m asking you to tell me what it really means.’ There was a long awkward silence as it dawned on me that I was unable to answer him.

You are no doubt thinking. ‘What kind of Muslim is it that does not know the real meaning of La ilaha illa Allah’?’ To this I would have to say: a typical one. That evening I pondered my ignorance: being in the majority didn’t help, it simply made me more depressed.

Islam simply made sense, in a way that nothing else ever had. It had rules of government, it had an economic system, it had regulations concerning every facet of day-to-day existence. It was egalitarian and addressed to all races, and it was clear and easy to understand. Oh, and it has a God, One God, in whom I had always vaguely believed. That was that. I said La ilaha illa Allah and I was part of the community. For the first time in my life I belonged.

New converts are invariably enthusiastic to know as much as possible about their religion in the shortest possible time. In the few years that followed, my library grew rapidly. There was so much to learn, and so many books ready to teach. Books on the history of Islam, the economic system of Islam, the concept of government in Islam: countless manuals of Islamic jurisprudence, and best of all, hooks on Islam and revolution, on how Muslims were to rise tip and establish Islamic governments, Islamic republics. When I returned to Britain in early ‘79 from my trip to the Middle east to learn the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah. I was ready to introduce Islam to the West.

It was to these books that I turned for an answer to the question ‘What is the meaning of La ilaha illa Allah? ‘ Again I was disappointed. The books were about Islam, not about Allah. They covered every subject you could possibly imagine except for the one which really mattered. I put the question to the imam at the university mosque. He made an excise and left. Then a brother who had overheard my impertinent question to the imam came over and said: I have a tafsir of La ilaha illa Allah. If you like we could read ii together. I imagined that it would be ten or twenty pages at the most. It turned out to have over 5000 pages, in several books. It was the Risale-i Nur by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi.

Bediuzzaman had seen that modern unbelief originated from science and philosophy, not from ignorance as previously. Paradoxically, the Muslims’ neglect of science and technology caused them to fall behind the West in economic and military fields. But the science and technology which had provided the West with the power to achieve military and economic superiortiy in the world, had caused Western people to lose their faith and traditional moral and spiritual values and fall into a great pessimism, unhappiness and spiritual crisis. This was natural because although the Divine laws of ‘nature’, which are the subject-matter of sciences. are the counterpart of the Divine Scripture or religion, they had been separated from each other in the West and, consequently, a secular morality and economic self-interest, had replaced religious and other traditional values. Bediuzzaman was of the opinion that nature is the collection of Divine signs and therefore science and religion cannot be conflicting disciplines. Rather, they are two (apparently) different expressions of the same truth. Minds should be enlightened with sciences, while hearts need to be illumined by religion.

In his heroic struggle to argue for the religious truths-Divine Existence and Unity. the Resurrection, Prophethood, Divine origin of the Qur’an, the Unseen World and its inhabitants or immaterial dimensions of existence, the necessity of worship, morality, the ontological character of man. etc.-Bediuzzaman first tried to strengthen Islam with modern Western philosophy. Later, he saw that this way meant degrading Islam and that the essentials of Islam were too deep for the principles of human philosophy to reach. He then returned to the Qur’an almost exclusively. He writes:

Thinkers accept the principles of human philosophy and the Western way of thinking and depend on them in their struggle against Europe. I too have filled my brain with the philosophical as well as the Islamic sciences. I thought the philosophical sciences were the means to spiritual progress and enlightenment, and was of the opinion that European way of thinking and philosophy could be used to reinforce and strengthen the truths of Islam. By grafting the shoots of philosophy, which we supposed deep-rooted, on the trunk of Islam, we imagined that could strengthen Islam. However, I have given up this way as it is very difficult and an improbable way to overcome the anti-Islamic trends, and since it means degrading Islam to some extent. The essentials of Islam arc too deep for the principles of philosophy to reach.

In the struggle with the opponents of Islam, in resisting, even overcoming, modern (materialistic trends of thought. the Qur’an sufficed:

While there is a permanent miracle like the Qur’an, searching for further proof appears to my mind superfluous;

While there is a, roof of reality like the Qur’an, would silencing those who deny it weigh heavily on my heart?

Although wholly lacking in any positive rational arguments, unbelief and atheism coming from science and philosophy are more difficult to deal with and remove from hearts than unbelief coming from ignorance. It is unquestionably evident that creation of the universe and establishment of the relations among parts of it, requires an absolute, all- encompassing knowledge and will and power, and that being a design, not a designer, being something printed, not a printer, being a passive object, not an active agent, being a collection of Divine laws, not the law-giver, nature cannot be the creator of itself. Similarly, causes or the law of causality, being no more than things of nominal existence without any knowledge, will and power, cannot be creators of things either. If we ask those who attribute creation to causality or causes what makes, for example, a flower, they will not be able to say water, earth and sunlight make it. They will not simply because they should first answer how earth or water or sunlight know what exactly to do, how they do that and what qualities they have that enable a flower to grow.

So, the Risale-i Nur removes the veil of ‘sorcery’ that materialist science has laid over creation. In the words of Dr Turner:

The Risale-i Nur affirms that anyone who sincerely wishes to look upon the created world as it is, and not as he wishes or imagines to be, must inevitably come to the conclusion La ilaha illa Allah. For he will see order and harmony, beauty and equilibrium, justice and mercy, lordship, sustenance and munificence: and at the same time he will realize that those attributes are pointing not to the created beings themselves but to a Reality in which all of these attributes exist in perfection and absoluteness. He will see that the created world is thus a book of names, an index, which seek to tell about its Owner.

The Risale-i Nur takes the interpretation of La ilaha illa Allah even further. The notion that it examines is that of causality, the cornerstone of materialism and the pillar upon which modem science has been constructed. Belief in causality gives rise to statements such as: It is natural: Nature created it; It happened by chance, and so on. With reasoned arguments, the Risale-i Nur explodes the myth of causality and demonstrates that those who adhere to this belief are looking at the cosmos not as it actually is, or how it appears to be, but how they would like to think it is.

The Risale-i Nur demonstrates that all beings, on all levels, are interrelated. interconnected and interdependent, like concentric or intersecting circles. It shows that beings come into existence as though from nowhere, and, during their brief lives, each with its own particular purpose, goal and mission, act as mirrors in which various Divine attributes, and countless configurations of Divine Names, are displayed- Consider this: When you stand by a river, you see countless images of the sun reflecting in the floating bubbles on it. When those bubbles enter into a tunnel, the images are no longer seen. However, other bubbles coming to the point where you stand will also show the same reflections, and when they also go into the tunnel, the reflections will disappear. This evidently demonstrates that those images do not belong to the bubbles themselves: bubbles can not own them. Rather, by rellecting its images, the bubbles show the sun’s existence, and through their disapperance in the tunnel, they demonstrate their transience vis A vis the permanence of the sun- It is just like this that through their coming into life, impotence and contingence, their total dependence on factors other than themselves, beings demonstrate beyond doubt that they owe their existence to One who necessarily exists, creates and has power over all things, and that through their transience and death. They show the permanence of that One. The materialists, however, see things differently-they do not see different things. They ask us to believe that this cosmos, whose innate order and harmony they do not deny, is ultimately the work of chance. Of chaos and disorder, of sheer accident. They then ask us to believe that this cosmos is sustained by the mechanistic interplay of causes- whatever they may be and not even the materialists know for sure-causes which are themselves created, impotent ,ignorant, transient and purposeless, but which somehow contrive, through laws which appeared out of nowhere, to produce the orderly works of art of symphonies of harmony and equilibrium that we see and hear around us.

The Risale-i Nur destroys these myths and superstitions. Given that all things are interconnected, it reiterates, whatever it is that brings existence to the seed of a flower must also be responsible for the flower itself, as well as for the apparent causes of the flower’s existence such as air, water, sunlight and earth: and given their interdependence, whatever brings into existence the flower must also be responsible for the tree: and given the fact that they are interrelated, whatever brings into existence the tree must also be responsible For the forest, and so on. Thus to be able to create a single atom, one must also be able to create the whole cosmos. That is surely a tall order for a cause which is deaf and blind, and impotent, transient, dependent and devoid of knowledge of our purpose.

The attribution of creative power to Nature or natural laws is no more than a personal opinion reached not as the result of an objective, scientific investigation. Similarly, denial of the Creator of the cosmos, who has placed apparent causes there as veils to cover His hand of power for certain important purposes, is not an act of reason but an act of will. In short, causality is a crude and cunning device with which man distributes the property of the Almighty Creator among the created in order that he might set himself up as absolute owner and ruler of all that he has, and all that he is.

Inspired by the verse La ilaha illa Allah, the Risale-i Nur shows that the signs of God, these mirrors of His Names and attributes, are revealed to us constantly in new and ever- changing forms and configurations, eliciting acknowledgement,acceptance,submission, love and worship. The Risale-i Nur shows that there is a distinct process involved in becoming Muslim in the true sense of the word: contemplation to knowledge, knowledge to affirmation, affirmation to belief or conviction, and from conviction to submission. And since each new moment, each new day, sees the revelation of fresh aspects of Divine truth, this process is a continuous one. The external practices of Islam, the formal acts of worship, also contribute to this process. Belief is therefore subject to increase or decrease, or strengthening or weakening, depending on the continuance of the process. Thus it is the reality of belief that deserves most of our attention; from there the realities of Islam will follow on inevitably.

The Risale-i Nur also concentrates on the ontological character of man. Each of us is born in total ignorance: the desire to know ourselves and our world is an innate one. Thus “Who am I? Where did I come from’? What is this place in which I find myself? What is my duty here? Who is responsible for bringing me into existence? What is that which life and death ask of us?”-these are questions which each of us needs to answer and answers in his own way, either through direct observation or through blind acceptance of the answers suggested by others. And how one lives one’s life, the criterion by which one acts in this world, depends totally on the nature of those answers. According to the Risale-i Nur, all the answers given to these questions, by which each of us determines his own way of living and world-view, are given by either the Divine Revelation manifested in the form of Divine Religions or the ego of everyone. History records the conflicts between these two flows of human life or these two main branches of the tree of humanity, namely religion and human ego. Rejecting to follow the Divine Revelation, ego claims self-ownership in haughtiness, appropriating for itself whatever is given to it by the Creator, and attributing to itself all the accomplishments God Almighty confers on it. This, however, results in the abjection, wretchedness and unhappiness of man. This branch of humanity has so far yielded the fruits of Pharaohs, Nimrods, Neros and other tyrants and those who, having given in to their carnal desires, have themselves gone astray and misled others. Opposite to this branch is the branch on which the Prophets, saints, and other examples of virtuousness have grown. This branch lies in one’s being conscious of one’s servanthood, whose power lies in acknowledgement of one’s inherent weakness before God Almighty’ absolute Power, and whose wealth lies in admission of one’s inherent poverty before His riches. It also requires deep devotion and worship in absolute thankfulness, together with continous reflection on His signs in the universe, and a never-ending enthusiasm in preaching His religion. The Risale-i Nur is no less than a guided tour of the cosmos, as well as of man’s inner world, and the traveller is one who is seeking answers to the questions above, and indeed finds them.

Dr Turner continues:

The secular, self-aborted society of the West is designed on all levels to blind and stupefy

. To mask the fact that the religion of the self has failed to live up to its promises; that the secular trinity of “unlimited progress, absolute freedom and unrestricted happiness” is as meaningless as Trinity discarded centuries ago. To cover up the fact that economic and scientific progress which has secular humanism as its underlying ethos, has turned the West into a spiritual wasteland and ravaged generation after generation. Yet there are those who are beginning to awake, to realize the illusion under which they have been living. It is to these that the disease of ego must he pointed out. One suffering from cancer cannot be cured by giving him a new coat. Yet it is not only modern Western man suffering from this disease, it is common to almost all in the world. What is needed is a correct diagnosis, radical surgery and constant back-up treatment. The Risale-i Nur provides all of these. The Risale-i Nur envisages a revolution, a revolution of the mind, of the heart, of the soul and the spirit. It is designed to lead Muslims from belief by imitation to belief through investigation, study of nature and man’s inner self and reflection on them, and worship, and through further intellectual enlightenment. It also aims to lead unbelievers from worship of the self to worship of God Almighty.

The Risale-i Nur is according to Dr Turner, the only self- contained, comprehensive Islamic work that sees the cosmos as it actually is presents the reality of belief as it truly is interpretes the Qur’an as the Prophet upon him he peace and blessings, intended, diagnoses the real and very dangerous disesases that afflict modern man, and offers a cure. The Risale-i Nur also covers almost everything related to the essentials of belief, worship and morality, and it provides all the necessary criteria for understanding Islam and the Qur’an in the world we live in. A work such as the Risale-i Nur, which reflects the light of the Qur’an and illuminates the cosmos and man’s inner world, cannot be ignored.

The language of the Risale-i Nur

Before discussing the unique language of the Risale-i Nur, we had better have a look at the style of the Qur’an.

Although there is no problem of any theological value, theoretical or practical, which the Qur’an has not dealt with, and it surpasses all scriptual records of pre and post Islamic ages in the abundant variety of its contents, its method of approach, presentation is exclusive and unique to itself. It never deals with a topic in the way ordinarily used by any author of a theological treatise or even in any (as was once conjectured) apostolic writings. On the contrary it expressly says that it has adopted a special manifold method of its own which may be termed as tasrifi. i.e. display of varieties or changing the topics and shifting from one subject to another or reverting to the previous one and repeating deliberately and purposefully one and the same subject in unique and peculiar rythmic and recitative forms to facilitate the understanding, learning and remembering of it.

The display of varities linked together with a rythm of peculiar pitch is to show forth the signs of the Unity of God. The Qur’an aims to stir up the depth of human intellect to reflect on the unity in variety and harmony in diversity. Through this unique style of its, the Qur’an also shows the interrelatedness, interdependence and interconnectedness of things in the universe. As three ‘books’ of God Almighty, the universe, the Qur’an and man are regarded as the three expressions of the same truth. For this reason, the universe is called macrocosm, while man, microcosm. However, we also call the universe macro-human being and man, micro-universe.

It is a fact that the holy Qur’an deals in its different chapters, each of which has it own rythmic patterns, with different topics in different ways, and this variety adds to its unique beauty and matchless eloquence. An attentive reciter or an intelligent audience of the holy Qur’an while experiencing these varieties of rythmical pattern, enjoy it to the extent that ‘the skins of those who fear their Lord shiver with the recitatio of it and their hearts soften to the remembrance of God’.

In order to judge the language and style of the Risale-i Nur, we should consider the style of the Qur’an and the mission of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi. Bediuzzaman was not a writer in the usual sense of the word. He wrote because he had a mission: he struggled against the materialistic and atheistic trends of thought fed by science and philosophy and tried to present the truths of Islam to modem minds and hearts of every level of understanding. Bediuzzaman was a preacher and therefore, rather than writing, he spoke and dictated. It is because of this that some parts of the Risale-i Nur were written in quite a short time. For example, the Nineteenth Letter, called the Miracles of Muhammad, which covers about more than one hundred pages as written in ten hours. He poured out his inspirations coming like welcome rain, without missing a single word.

Second. the Risale-i Nur, like the Qur’an, mainly concentrated on the existence and Unity of God, the Resurrection, Prophethood, the Qur’an, the invisible realms of existence. Divine Destiny and man’s free will, and worship and man’s place and duty among the creation. Everything in the universe, all natural phenomena and events in human history provide signs and arguments for the truth of all these Islamic essentials. In fact, all things and events in the universe and man’s individual and social life originate in God’s Names. These Names manifest themselves in two ways: almost all of them are manifested on a single thing or being hut in degrees. For example, we can observe on man the manifestations of nearly all of such of the Names as the All-Merciful, the Provider, the Protector. the All- Powerful, the All-Willing, the All-Wise, the All-Knowing, the All-Seeing, the All-Hearing, etc. However, on each human being one or a few of these Names excel others in manifestation with the others dependent on them. If for example, the Name the All-Wise is prominently manifested on a man, that man will distinguish himself with wisdom. If the Name the All-Knowing has prominence in manifestation on another one, then that one will have reputation for being knowledgeable. This kind of manifestation is called the manifestation of Oneness. The other kind of manifestation is that a Name manifests itself on all things or beings, which we call the manifestation of Unity. So, while studying different beings and entities to show how they point to the Existence and Unity of God Almighty, you will have to make some repetitions. This is also what the Qur’an does.

Thirdly, in order to remove from peoples’ minds and hearts the accumulated ‘sediment’ of false beliefs and conceptions to purify them both intellectually and spiritually, and also in order to strengthen and reinforce Muslims in belief. Bediuzzaman writes forcefully and makes reiterations. He writes in neither an academic nor a didactic way; rather he addresses both minds and hearts at the same time and frequently appeals to feelings and thus aims to pour out his thoughts and ideas into peoples’ hearts and minds in order to awaken them to belief and conviction and rouse them to wise action in the way of God Almighty. Also, white judging the language and style of the Risale-i Nur, we should also consider why Muslims have to recite surah al-Fatiha in each rak’ah of daily prescribed prayers, in which they pray to God Almighty: Guide us to the Straight Path. They do that because it is probable for man to go astray at any moment of his life and therefore he needs God’s uninterrupted protection of him against deviations throughout his life. It is due to this human reality, namely man’s susceptibility to going astray, that the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, declared: ‘Renew and refresh your faith with La ilaha illa Allah.’ So, it is vital for man’s preserving his faith that he should always be reminded of the truths of Islamic faith and his mind and heart should be continuously fed with new arguments for them.

Fourthly, like the Qur’an, the Risale-i Nur addresses all levels of understanding. Since the majority of people are, by definition, of average ability in their power to understand the truths of belief, both the Qur’an and the Risale-i Nur seem at first sight to be simple. They usually speak in parables and comparisons and take into consideration even the weakest understanding. However, they are like an ocean, the deeper you go in them, the more you come to understand that they are too deep to fathom in their entirety. Everyone from the least clever individual to the most learned scholars and scientists have their share in them.

The style and language of the Risale-i Nur are unique. Most of the arguments which Bediuzzaman used are wholly original, and he is also unique and original in many of his approaches. If readers, of whatever intellectual level, study the Risale-i Nur attentively, they will find themselves rewarded and satisfied both intellectually and spiritually. The more you devote your attention to it, the more you will be attracted to it.