I’m reading this little booklet, it is 67 pages long, called “The Muslim’s Guide to Faith and Purification”. It is written by Sheikh Abd-Allah Al-Khayyat (Former Friday preacher at the Holy Mosque of Mecca) and is “only a first handy guide given to the new convert to help him start correctly on the path of Islam.” So to sum this small writing up in one sentence; the author is a very large, well learned man of high position in Islam, teaching us the very basic beliefs of following Allah.
I was expecting the Sheikh to start his book off with maybe a list of “to do’s” that are central to Islam, but he did quite the opposite. Only a paragraph into the book, the Sheikh states that the first thing the new convert is taught is “the pronouncement of the fundamental formula of belief, namely ‘La Ilaha Illallah, Muhammad-un-Rasul-ullah.’” This phrase translates to “I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah, and that Muhammad is His Apostle.” To be honest, I knew that this was the first requirement of a new convert to Islam (to profess belief in Allah and Muhammad), but I wasn’t expecting the Sheikh to go in the direction that he goes with this confession.
The Sheikh would take the next two and a half pages to explain in detail how Jesus is not Allah’s son, but rather only a apostle and servant of Allah sent to humankind to direct them to Allah – the one and only god. In the Qur’an Jesus is described as
“The similitude of Jesus before Allah is as that of Adam;
He (Allah) created him from dust, then said to him:
‘Be’: and he was.”
and…
“He was no more than a servant: We granted our favour to him,
and we made him an example to the children of Israel.”
Again, I knew beforehand of the basic Islamic view of Jesus, but what struck me was that I was only three pages into the book, and all Sheikh Abd-Allah Al-Khayyat was talking about was how Jesus is not God or not even a son or relative of God (Allah). This is huge! If I was a new convert to Islam, according to this Sheikh (who is very learned and of high position in Islamic realms) the main thing I need to grasp in order to start my journey with Allah, is that Jesus Christ is created and accountable to Allah. As I thought about it, the Sheikh made perfect sense. If we get the new convert past the “christian” belief in Jesus’ nature (but where He – Christ – is still relevant and part of Allah’s story) then the rest of Islam will follow with relative ease.
Maybe I’m making too big a deal how the first problem the Sheikh deals with is any previous belief in Jesus Christ. But, as history would show, Islam has never been tolerant or accepting of Christian belief. It would be a little quick and rude of me to generalize and say that every Muslim hates Jesus Christ and is out to rid the world of Christianity, but much of their doctrine teaches that. What I see here are people who have been taken captive by Satan and one of his most cunning religious lies yet (that is, most cunning lies against Yahweh and Christ Jesus). These Muslims must hear and believe the salvation gospel of Jesus Christ, and yet how do I go about that with their confused view of Jesus Christ’s nature?
1 response so far ↓
Wilky // November 11, 2007 at 8:13 am
I’ve been surprised to learn of the enormous respect that Muslims have for Jesus. True, they will not call him the son of God, a concept which to them implies God having sex with Mary. However, they do believe in the virgin birth, that Jesus lived a sinless life, that he ascended to heaven (but never died) and is coming back to judge the world and to tell all the Christians to become Muslims. I would go as far to say there is not one Muslim who would claim to hate Jesus. I believe that is the masterpiece. So much truth, yet the most crucial parts, Christ’s death and resurrection, his deity, are denied. If this book were written with a Western audience in mind, then it makes perfect sense that the author deal with Jesus first. Jesus’ deity is absolutely incompatible with the Koran’s concept of the simple unity of God.
While Islam right away states its case about Jesus deity, at the same time it affirms his life and teachings. Therein is the opportunity because Islam’s theology and it’s affirmation of Jesus contradict eachother. Muslims affirm that there is something different about Jesus’ life. He never sinned, Mohammad did. He never killed anyone, Mohammad slaughtered thousands. He never married, Mohammad had many wives. Jesus healed the masses, Mohammad conquered them. The Koran calls Jesus both the Messiah and the Spirit of God, but doesn’t go into the meaning of either. Jesus’ words, affirmed by Islam and backed by his deeds, don’t leave any room for him to just be a good prophet.
So that is the place to start- Jesus’ life and words. Arguing over the abstract theology when they’ve defined your terms for you won’t get you anywhere.