Judeo-Christian Tradition and Islam Similarities
Introduction
Islam and Christianity are known to share a lot of common ground. Both religions trace their ancestry to Abraham. Christianity and Islam both believe in prophecy and the prophets who were sent by Allah (Islam) and Jehovah (Christian) as God is referred to in both religions. Islam and Christianity both believe in God’s messengers, commonly referred known as the apostles. They also share a common belief regarding revelations of the Almighty Lord. They share the same beliefs and doctrines regarding the resurrection of the dead. They also share common beliefs in the significance of the religious society. Both religions exhibit communitarian aspects. Christians refer to their religious gathering as a church while, in Islam, the same is referred to as umma (Kester, 2008).
World Values and Cultures
There are three main religious convictions in the world. They include Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. All three religions originated from the Middle East region. In general, Christianity and Islam are founded upon the principles of Judaism. Judaism was the first of the religions to come into existence. All three religions are monotheistic in that they all believe in one Supreme Being. They all embrace, believe, and worship the same Lord, although in their own different ways. Monotheism was a doctrine that was passed down over the years from Abraham’s community of migrant herders known as Bedouin herders. Judaism originated from Abraham himself. On the other hand, Christianity and Islam attribute their origin to the sons of Abraham, namely Ishmael and Isaac (Cliteur, 2010).
The three doctrines believe in the presence of only one God, although the Christians believe in the concept of the Holy Trinity. The three religions share a common belief that God is the sole creator of the universe and everything that exists beneath it. They believe that God cares for everything that He created. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism strongly believe in the ideology of eternal life and the concept of life after death. In this doctrine, there is a general belief that irrespective of the past or present, there exists life after death. They all believe that, in all circumstances, good will always prevail over evil. Despite the lack of agreement on the description of the future, all three religions uphold that the end of the world will mark the beginning of the unchallenged reign of God. It will also bring unconditional bliss for all those who have faith and believe in the Lord. Both religions are united in the ideology of doomsday. However, the irony is that man has no clue as to when the world will end. They believe that when the world finally ends, God will reveal Himself to man. He shall come and conquer the earth and rescue humanity from the shackles of the devil. They also subscribe to the general belief that those who die believing in the Lord will be resurrected and ascend to HeavenHeaven. Similarly, those who do not believe will be punished and eventually perish in hell (Kester, 2008).
Both Christianity and Islam acknowledge the existence of Jesus. Both religions believe that Jesus was born free of sin and that He was born of a Virgin Mary. It is accepted in both faiths that Jesus had the ability to perform miracles. He was persecuted, crucified, and subsequently resurrected and ascended up to HeavenHeaven. Nonetheless, there exists a slight difference in that Islam regards Jesus as a prophet while Christianity regards Him as the son of God, or as God Himself. In all these three religions, prayer is a critical part of belief and conduct. All three religions believe that a prayer is a form of communication through which their subscribers can communicate with their creator. All religions prescribe special times for conducting communal and individual prayers whereby individuals are highly encouraged to follow. In Christianity and Islam, they make use of praying aids, which come in the form of beads commonly referred to as rosary and tasbih in Christianity and Islam, respectively (Quran reading.com, 2009).
All three religions share common beliefs about the creation of the universe. This is evident in the description provided in the Bible and the Quran. Notably, the three religions also share common moral codes of faith and always strive to enforce them in the daily conduct of their followers. In this regard, they believe that having faith without using it in practice is void. In addition, they prohibit their followers from engaging in inhuman activities such as murder and violence. The three religions call for abstinence from adultery and fornication and oppose marriages of the same sex (Quran reading.com, 2009; Kester, 2008).
Conclusion
Islam, Christianity, and Judaism are the oldest religions in the universe. Despite sharing a lot of similarities, they have been characterized by a lot of conflict in ancient and recent times. Thus, the clergy from the three religions should embrace each other and preach peaceful coexistence to their followers. There is a conflict because of generalized false information about the other religious groups. A lot of effort should be established to ensure that followers of the three religions get the appropriate knowledge about the other faiths. All religions need to appreciate and respect each other for peaceful coexistence.
References
Cliteur, P.B. (2010). The secular outlook: In defense of moral and political secularism. Malden, Mass: Wiley-Blackwell.
Kester, W. (2008). Comparing the three monotheistic religions in the Middle East. Helium. Web.
Quran reading.com. (2009). Similarities Between The Religion Islam And Christianity. Web.