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Casey
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Just like many opposing religions, Islam does not correlate well with the Bible. Matter of fact it brings in biblical characters and witnesses yet, does not believe that Jesus was the Son of God and died on the Cross. Such characters are Moses, Jonah, and even Noah yet claims Muhammad to be the last and greatest prophet by God. Biblical translations have played a significant part in how the Quran and the Holy Bible have been interpreted over the years, especially to religious scholars.[1] While the Bible took roughly nine centuries to be translated, which is nine whole centuries with a lack of information and Christian-based truth.
In regard to the class assigned articles, it states that Islam tolerates Christian ideology and gospel, but do not go verbatim. Further, it has been argued that Jesus was incorrect in his teachings and has been embellished over the centuries. This is due to the alleged material loss and how it has been destroyed like many religious and historical artifacts. [2] Such allegations come from the parables from Jesus and how stories can be altered over time. For Islam, they are a matter of fact in their teachings and take a rigid approach while Christian go off the Bible and use it applicably, hence why some create the correlation of falsehood.
Further in the articles, it is brought up how Muslims and Islam is one of the top, dominant religions of the world and the Quran is to be equally respected like the Bible. Why then would the Bible remain the top published book in history? Because it is the book of truth, regardless of the argument. While Muslims do believe Jesus was a man, its his combined truth to todays climate that is in question, even though the Christian perspective says otherwise. What this shows is the lack of understanding and worldview outlook on Christianity on the Islam side. If there was such an understanding, we would not have had the historic Crusades or Eastern tension as we do today.
In closing, the Christian manuscripts were always being edited and altered due to them being in scroll format. From this came alterations in sentence structure and grammar.[3] Yes, minuscule alterations were made, but the subject matter remains the same. In terms of Islam, it is rigid to the point of bowing down without having an intimate connection, hence why many seem to feel unfilled with the Spirit.
Citations:
[1]Hans Wijngaards. Can We Trust the Gospels?Catholic Trust Society (1985).Accessed from
https://answering-islam/org
.
[2] Phillip Parshall.Bridges to Islam: A Christian Perspective on Folk Islam.(Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, 2006
[3] Ibid.
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Gabe
COLLAPSE
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One of the most misunderstood Christian doctrines is that of the Trinity. While embracing God as three in one is obviously a core part of our faith, it can be difficult to know how to articulate this truth to an unbeliever, especially a Muslim. Consequently, I found Hartmans article explaining not just the centrality, but also the logic of the Trinity to be very helpful. One of the many false dichotomies in our society today is the idea that faith and reason are opposed to each other.[1]The Muslim view of God as undifferentiated unity is therefore assumed to be logical, while the Christian view of God as three in one is seen as irrational polytheism.[2]In reality however, there are important reasons why the Trinity is both logical and essential in understanding the nature of God.
One reason is that God cannot be loving if he is in complete isolation. The Islamictawhidprovides an inadequate basis for the human longing of fellowship and unity.[3]When God says, Let Us make man in our own image, (Genesis 1:26), and Jesus prays for the unity of his followers to mirror the unity of the Trinity (John 17:22-23), fundamental traits about the nature of God are being revealed.[4]Unity must possess a degree of plurality, and undifferentiated unity negates the truth of a loving, personal God.[5]
A second reason is the truth of the incarnation necessitates all three persons of the Trinity. The Father sends, the Son is sent, and the Spirit empowers.[6]As Jesus makes clear in John 14:7, knowing God means knowing Jesus Christ. Christ shows the sacrificial nature of God by giving him a face, so to speak, and making the anthropomorphic language of Scripture concerning God meaningful. If Allah is indescribable and in isolation, as Islam asserts, then to be logically consistent Muslims must exchange the Qurans anthropomorphic descriptions of him for theological agnosticism.[7]A further strengthening dimension to this argument is that Gods primary manifestation of power in the New Testament is his chosen weakness in embracing the cross (1 Cor. 1:25).[8]
The logical and theological basis for the Trinity is clearly strong. The other-centeredness of the Godhead is seen in the functional subordination the Son and Spirit choose, but this humility does not negate full equality.[9]As a result, the interaction of the Trinity provides the framework for all human relationships. The more we understand this beautiful truth, the more we can grow in confidence and joy in explaining the Trinity to Muslims.
[1]Kelly Kapic,A Little Book for New Theologians: Why and How to Study Theology(Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2012), 9.
[2]K. Dayton Hartman II, Answering Muslim Objections to the Trinity, Answering Islam, accessed August 5, 2020, https://www.answering-islam.org/authors/hartman/trinity_objections.html.
[3]Ibid.
[4]Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in theNew American Standard Version
(Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002).
[5]Timothy Tennent,Theology in the Context of World Christianity(Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007), 40.
[6]K. Dayton Hartman II, Answering Muslim Objections to the Trinity, Answering Islam, accessed August 5, 2020, https://www.answering-islam.org/authors/hartman/trinity_objections.html.
[7]Ibid.
[8]Tennent,Theology in the Context of World Christianity, 41.
[9]K. Dayton Hartman II, Answering Muslim Objections to the Trinity, Answering Islam, accessed August 5, 2020, https://www.answering-islam.org/authors/hartman/trinity_objections.html.
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