Christianity vs. Islam....Not really much to fight over after all.

[pr0udm0m_0f_3]

Comparing religions

Comparing Christianity and Islam:
the world's two largest religions

http://www.religioustolerance.org/comp_isl_chr.htm

 

Overview:

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are three closely related religions. Because they all revere Abraham and certain other patriarchs mentioned in the Bible as their spiritual ancestors, they are sometimes called Abrahamic religions. (The Baha'i Faith is sometimes also included in this grouping.) However, their many points of similarity are no guarantee that their followers can get along. Most of the serious religiously motivated conflicts, mass crimes against humanity and genocides in the 20th century have been between Muslims and Christians. This has included genocides in Bosnia Herzegovina, East Timor, and the Sudan, as well as serious conflicts in Cyprus,  Kosovo, Macedonia, and the Philippines. As of mid-2007, two of these conflicts (Sudan and Philippines) are still active, and three others are inert only because of peacekeepers on the ground.

It is difficult to compare Christianity to any other religion, because there is such a wide range of beliefs and practices among various wings of Christianity: Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodox churches, the Anglican communion and the tens of thousands of Protestant faith groups. Some commentators have suggested that Christianity consists of a number of different religions which share little more than the Bible and the name of their religion. Protestant Christianity is obviously divided into a least liberal and conservative wings -- divisions which hold few beliefs in common. Some of the descriptions below will thus necessarily be somewhat simplistic and lacking in precision.

 

 

About the religions themselves:

Name of the religion:	Christianity	Islam
Meaning of the name:	Believer in Christ (a Greek word meaning Messiah).	Submission to the will of God.
Name of a believer:	Christian.	Muslim.
Date of founding:	circa 30 CE. 1	622 CE. 2
Name of founder(s):	Yeshua of Nazareth (aka Jesus Christ, (pbuh) 3 & Paul.	Most religious historians credit Muhammad (pbuh) as the founder. 3 However, Muslims generally regard Islam as dating back to the time of creation
% of world's population as followers:	33%.	20%.
Worldwide growth rate in numbers of members 4	2.3%/year.	2.9%/yr.
Growth rate: % of world's population:	About 0.0%. Numbers have been steady for decades.	Increase of about 0.6%/yr.
Estimated year when Islam will become the most popular world religion:	2023 CE (if above numbers are valid) to beyond 2200 CE (as estimated by some religious futurists)
% of U.S. population as followers:	2001 ARIS study estimates 76%, declining about 0.8% a year.	2001 ARIS study estimates 0.5%; some Muslim groups estimate 6 million (2%).
Internal divisions:	Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Protestant, and others.	Shi'ite, Sunni, Sufi. Sufi is a mystical tradition.

 

 

Beliefs:

Name of the religion:	Christianity	Islam
Concept of deity:	Most believe in the Trinity; three persons in one Godhead: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.	God (Allah) is one and indivisible. They believe in a strict monotheism. "Allah" means God in Arabic.
Status of Yeshua of Nazareth (Jesus Christ):	Generally considered the Son of God, worshiped as God; part of the Trinity.	Very highly respected as the second-last prophet.
Birth of Yeshua:	Conservatives: virgin conception. Liberals: conventional birth.	Virgin conception.
Death of Yeshua:	Executed by Roman Army circa 30 CE.	Was not killed, crucified, or suffered death. Muslims believe that he ascended alive into heaven. 2
Yeshua's location	Ascended into Heaven	Ascended into Heaven
Identity of "another helper" or "comforter" *	Holy Spirit	Muhammad
Second coming of Jesus	Conservatives: expect in near future. Liberals: varied.	Anticipate the second coming in the future.
Status of Adam:	Disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden.	Free from all major sins and faults. Some regard him as a prophet.
Main holy book:	Bible 6	Qur'an 7
Original languages:	Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek.	Arabic.
Status of the holy book:	Conservatives: the inerrant Word of God. Liberals: a historical spiritual document.	God's word and final revelation, dictated by angel Gabriel.
Additional guidance:	Writings of the leaders of the early Church. For Roman Catholics: church tradition.	The Hadith -- sayings of Muhammad (pbuh).
Ethic of reciprocity  (Golden rule):	"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." Matthew 7:12	"Not one of you is a believer until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself." Fourth Hadith of an-Nawawi 13
A baby's status at birth	Various views. One is that a baby is born with a sin nature, separated from God. God needs to grant grace so that he may be saved.	All babies are a born in a pure state of submission to Allah. However, as they mature they are often taught other beliefs by their parents and their culture.
Life after death:	Either Heaven or Hell. Catholics believe in Purgatory as a third state.	Heaven or Hell.
Basis of determining destination after death:	There is no consensus in Christianity. Different faith groups hold Various diverse beliefs: trusting Jesus as Lord and Savior, good works, church sacraments, baptism, avoiding certain actions.	Once they reach puberty, his/her account of deeds is opened in Paradise. To attain paradise, at death, their good deeds (helping others, testifying to the truth of God, leading a virtuous life) must outweigh their evil deeds.
Confessing sins:	Roman Catholic: to God or Jesus, either directly or through a priest; Others: to God or Jesus	To Allah
Probably the most misunderstood term:	Immaculate Conception: Roman Catholics believe that the conception of the Virgin Mary, circa 20 BCE, was without sin. Many incorrectly relate it to Yeshua's' conception.	Jihad: internal, personal struggle towards the attainment of a noble goal. Many incorrectly equate it to "holy war."

* From John 14:16: "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever."

[pr0udm0m_0f_3]

Jun. 18, 2009 at 8:30 AM

Wow! I must have really shocked some people.

(Original Poster)

[kimberleee382]

Jun. 18, 2009 at 3:51 PM

I'm of the belief that ALL religions share A LOT of similarities... it's not worth fighting over the small stuff. 

 

[Aasiyah]

Jun. 20, 2009 at 8:49 AM

hey my friend. .thanks for the post.. i wanted to say two things about the comparison

Muslims believe that adam sinned as did eve. We know because Allah told us. And Allah also told us that Adam and Eve asked for forgiveness.  Adam and Eve were forgiven.  However they were still expelled from paradise.  And told to follow the guidance whenever they came to recieve it. So there was sin.. we just do not believe that any other person can be punished or burdened with that sin.  in that sense there is no original sin.

 

Heaven.. we believe there are 7 heavens that Allah created.  Paradise is said to be as wide as the 7 heavens... which leads me to believe that paradise is different then the heavens Allah knows best.

 

[Aasiyah]

Jun. 20, 2009 at 8:56 AM

I also wanted to speak to the similarities within the 3 major religions and that is because Allah revealed them all.  So therefore many things are the same. The differences come in laws.  But to believe in Allah and to follow his messengers/prophets and obey and do good and be righteious and pious...all of it is the same.  We believe in the torah and the bible... in its original form as Allah revealed it to his last Prophet ( Mohammad). We believe in every prophet and messenger from Adam to Mohammad. We believe in Jesus and we love and revere Jesus but we do not say he is Lord or the son of God or that he is devine. We say that he came from a virgin Mary who was told by Angel Gabriel of Jesus coming and it was done simply by the word of God Be. Jesus is like Adam.. Allah said be and Jesus and Adam were... made differently, adam from dirt/clay without any mother or father and Jesus from a virgin mary without any relations, or father.  We believe that Jesus was not cruicified. We beleive he was risen by God to himself and will be having a second coming  during which time he will fight the antichrists . We believe he is a Prophet and the Messiah that was revealed in the Torah.  We do not reject any prophet as the Jews rejected Jesus and the christians reject Mohammad.  We believe in everyhthing Allah told us a nd we kn ow that it is Allah's words revealed by the angel of revelation, Gabriel as commanded by God.