Why are some Christians so insensitive, and yet get offended easily, when talking about Christianity and Islam? I asked a dear friend of mine, "How do you feel about Allah?" In my opinion, this friend is a devoted Christian that has been involved in church all of his life. As a response, he said he felt that Allah was a "part-time deity." From his understanding, Allah is an Islamic false God that you could not pray to all of the time; and in the event you were you going to pray to Allah it had to be for a very serious matter. I was very disturbed by this response. Not so much because these were my friend's thoughts (trust me I've heard worse....from him), but because this is how some Christians view Allah and the Islamic faith. When misinformed, uneducated Christians don't understand the history and faith of Islam, nor know the history of their own faith, disrespectful opinions like this are formed, accepted, and continued.
Christianity and Islam are religious juggernauts around the world today. With more than half of the world's population within their grasp, a union of respect and understanding would and could change the world as we know it for the better. Believe it or not, the Islamic faith teaches its followers to respect Christianity and Christians alike. No where in the Holy Qur'an are Muslims taught that Jesus Chris is a deity or that anyone who does not honor the Prophet Muhammad is the Anti-Christ. There is a reason for that! Islam actually looks up to Christianity because Christianity came before Islam and they share a connection through Abraham. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam were all born in what we now call the Middle East. With all of the cultural influences in Christianity over the centuries, there have been discrepancies and misunderstandings of Islam on behalf of Christians. Allah is the biggest misconception of them all.
When some people view Islam, some very disturbing things come to mind. Some people assume most Muslims are Arab and are from the Middle East. Others assume that Islam is a religion that breeds terrorism and hatred for Western Civilization. A few believe that Allah is a mythical deity or Idol that only Muslims pray to. These and other negative thoughts of Islam are evil and uneducated. Islam did not take part any of the progressive changes in the early centuries that Christianity did. Most Muslims are taught Islam in the original language and fashion that it was taught in the beginning of Islam. The Holy Qur'an (Islamic bible) is in Arabic. When Muslims pray, they pray in Arabic. Islam in English translates to "submission to Allah" and to be a Muslim literally means to be "one who submits to Allah". Abraham is held as a founding father of the Jewish, Christian, and Islamic religions. In Islam, Muslims believe they serve same God that Abraham, Jews, and Christians worshiped to in the bible. What do you suppose Arabs would call God in the language they speak? Allah is God in English! Not a separate God for Middle Eastern, Arab, Muslims. The same God the Prophet Muhammad worshiped is the same Allah that Jesus Christ worshipped.
Cultural and theological differences between Christianity and Islam have led some Christians to believe Islam is the opposite of Christianity. Realistically, Islam and Christianity share more in common than they differ. The early followers of Christianity did not speak English; they spoke Hebrew, Greek, and Arabic. A number of the early Christians were of Arab descent. Christianity and Islam were both derived from the faith of Judaism. The Hebrew bible (Torah) laid the foundation for the Holy Bible and Holy Qur'an. Both believe that God created people and the Earth and has a unique relationship with humanity. Both believe people have Free Will and that you will be held accountable for your sins at death. Both believe Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary and like Adam (of the Garden of Eden) did not have a human father. Both believe in all of Jesus Christ's miracles and noble morality. Both Islam and Christianity believe at the End of the World, Jesus Christ will return and save humanity. So it is safe to say that even Muslims honor and love Jesus Christ.
To be continued........How do you feel about Allah? Pt 2
The misconceptions about islam isnt from beig uneducated its from a government machine that portrays islam in that way. But the reality is islam is no diffrent from christianity and no religion is diffrent from the others on the inside. Its on the outside where peopl try to make a distinction from other religions so on the outside its percieved diffrent they all preach the same thing pulling from the same values and emphasizing the ones that religions founder wanted. Really what is needed is to focus on those values to get the actual lesson. From the story of adam and eve to abstaining from eating swine. Its not about the act its about what the story teahes u. But to answer the question plain and simple allah is god same as GOD same as Jahovah same as yaweh.
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