NEW VERSION OF:

The Fundamentals of Christianity and Islam


After reading many postings on Christian newsgroups and Muslim
newsgroups I have noticed there are many posts which are aimed at
converting people from one faith to their own faith but very little
effort being made to understand the differences between the
Monotheistic faiths of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Above all
there is a mass of postings made by Christians attempting to teach
Muslims the message of Jesus and Christianity. I myself am a Muslim
(Islam) and find it very disturbing that so many Christians seem to
have little to no understanding of just what it is that Muslims
believe.

Perhaps as a Christian you have no wish to understand either since you
have found a set of teachings that you believe are the truth and have
therefore dismissed all other religions as being false religions. As a
Muslim my religion is Islam and the scripture that I try to live my
life by is the Koran. In the Koran it is written that humans should
question all things and that God expects and encourages this as the way
to find truth. Like Christians we also believe that when you here the
truth (be it gods will) you will know it and recognize it if you use
reason. I am sure that as Christians you will believe the same thing
since to encourage blind belief in something is simply to encourage
mental suicide. The aim of writing this post is not to attempt to
convert Christians to Islam but to point out a difference in beliefs
that will hopefully bring about greater understanding and tolerance
between the two faiths...As a Christian you can only benefit by knowing
the mindset of someone of a different faith...who knows you may even
end up converting someone.

I know that I have benefited by reading bible text to understand
where Christian beliefs and mentality is coming from. I am about to
attempt to give a crash course on the central Muslim belief without
boring you with pages and pages of detail...I am going to try to
explain why I choose Islam and not Christianity as my religion. If you
wish you can reply to my post to correct me if I have miss understood
something about Christianity. Before I put my case I would like to
repeat that both Christians and Muslims believe that when you here
truth you know it and cannot find fault in it nor deny it. As a Muslim
I believe that gods people do not live in one grouping of people on the
planet...ie.....come judgment day it is not going to be all those who
called themselves Muslims, or Christians, or Jews that are going to
ascend to heaven but it will be a very mixed composition of people that
does not take into account such superficial things as religious label
be it Jew Christian or Muslim, country of residence, color of skin,
Everyone's fate will be decided by their actions and the words that
flow from their lips. I believe this is what the prophets were teaching
in scripture...one such example being Jesus when he implied: not all
who come with my message are of Gods people (or something to that
effect). Everyone's fate will be determined by Gods judgment and not
human judgment since God is the knower of all things both seen and
unseen in the heart. To suggest such a theory as come judgment day all
the Muslims/Christians/Jews living in such and such a country will be
"the righteous" and all the rest will face the punishment of God
for their sins is a very simplistic view and is far away from a
rational mind and the teachings of religious texts. It is also a very
dangerous fanatical way of thinking. Life would be a lot easier if
everyone's labels matched the way they behaved and what was in their
hearts but sadly this is far from reality. I think the following quote
sums up this belief:

"Religion is not a club you can join. Your religion is something you
will drift in and out of throughout your life dependant on your
behavior. Your fate salvation and guidance in this life and the next
are not decided by the label you go by. be it agnostic Christian, Jew,
or Muslim, but by your actions, the words that flow from your lips, and
what you truly believe in your heart. This is my religion, your
religion, and everybody's religion......the name of this religion and
teaching is XXXXX"

Of course this viewpoint is not unique to Islam, which is why I put
XXXXX instead of Islam, I'm sure many Christians reading this can
relate to this wisdom when they read it, and I'm sure you would tell
me this is Christianity too.

Many Christians would be surprised at reading the Koran.......the
scripture is very much the same as the bible and tells the same stories
of the profits and has the same moral messages...sometimes with slight
variation in events but mostly the same. Muslims Claim that Mohamed was
the last profit and was given the message of God so that he can correct
the human Corruption of the original message of the prophets before
him, much the same as Christians believe Jesus was given the message of
God to confirm what the Jews had already received.........The question
begs to be asked What was this message that god wants us to understand?
you can only look at the scripture of the Jews, Christians, and Muslims
to decide....what were the prophets teaching? What is the common theme
found in all the prophets' teachings?

Here is the Muslim Version and the crash course in Koran!

Muslims believe that gods message was that humans should not make
partners with god. And that there is only one god and all praise
belongs to Him alone. As Christians I am sure this is not a new concept
to you either and that you have read this many times in your own
scripture. But what exactly is meant by "do not make partners with
God"?. Muslims believe that by making "intercession" between a
human and god is the one thing that defines being a believer or someone
who is astray. In other words by assigning authority/power to anything
other than god is in direct contradiction of gods will and message of
unity. When humans assign symbols, statues, create hierarchies in
society with saints and kings, and create semi gods like the golden
calf the Jews created when Moses went up the mountain or are tempted by
other values such as Abraham was we are at the same time creating
division among people and causing people to see others as different due
to the limitations of our senses. If you take away Christian
crucifixes, saints (holy men), statues of Jesus,  (holy buildings and
shrines), semi gods, nationalism, pictures of idol worship and all
forms of idol worship what differences are remaining between
mankind???......... NONE! All religions seem to be preaching the same
fundamental beliefs of right over wrong, good leads to good and bad
leads to bad (karma), love concors hate, generosity, charity, and
abandonment of the things of this world that corrupt us.  There are
countless expressions of the same feelings mankind experiences to be
found in a huge variety of separate religious groups. Does any one
religion claim to have a monopoly on believing in such things as peace,
love, forgiveness, patience, perseverance, etc..........How many wars
have been fought and how many lives have been lost because of power
being assigned to the things of this life and people assuming they must
be different because they have different titles but are in fact feeling
the same universal thoughts? .....When you look around you will find
that this is the root cause of all segregation and evil...People kill
to protect (so called) holy buildings and shrines, they will kill to
protect their fellow man and community because they have the same
religious label as him with no regard for what someone's true
religion is based on his behavior actions and attitude. Even the
instincts of atheists will say that this is what turns them away from
religion. One such example was when the French government recently gave
an order to ban all religious symbols in schools because they said it
was the root cause of all conflict between the different faiths....
They even went to the extreme of banning Muslim women from wearing head
scalfs because they said it made them stand out as being different from
others.....The very reason Muslims dress as they do is because
scripture teaches them to dress with plain modest clothing that will
guard against being seen as a sexual object and so that people will
more easily judge you for your character over superficial beauty. Dress
must also not draw attention with fancy clothing!...So who is to decide
what dress should be the standard and is the most modest and the norm?
If you go so Saudi Arabia all people ware the same modest Muslim
clothing and there is no one person standing out from the rest!.
...Muslims believe that in order to find guidance to the truth you must
first give up all forms of "shirk" (partner worship) and connect
with Gods guidance directly without any intercession. Gods message was
the concept of unity and that this can only be achieved by giving up
"shirk" in all its forms. It is the defining line between devotion
to God and those who have gone astray with temptation. To become a
Muslim, Muslims must say in the company of other Muslim witnesses,
"There is no God but God and Mohamed was the last messenger of God"
and also carry out this creed in practice by avoiding all forms of
shirk

Here are some other examples of "shirk

1. Listening to the directions of another person including religious
directions before listening to your own instincts and conscience
2. Nationalism...since this involves following orders given by another
person's beliefs before listening to your own conscience given by God
3. Promoting someone above the level of ordinary man (the opposite of
modesty)
4. Promoting anything above its natural level
5. Debating with another suggesting that you both believe in different
Gods....hence the saying: "Your God is my God, and My God is your
God" which is to be said when another person tries to engage you in
religious debate.

Muslims believe that Jesus was a Prophet of God and that he taught the
above message of unity and love to mankind. Muslims believe that Jesus
was not the "son of god" but was just an ordinary man like the rest
of us who had weaknesses as we all do and was a "messenger for
God". The same goes for the last prophet Mohamed who warned his
followers not to worship him or his grave when he died. Muslims believe
Mohamed was born so that mankind was given gods message of unity one
last time and a warning for those who go against this way (shirk).
Muslims believe that when a Christian says "Jesus the son of God"
or "Jesus is God" this is assigning special power to an object of
this life (shirk/ Making Partners with God). Muslims believe that man
with human invention has corrupted these parts of scripture in the
bible. It is written in the Koran Muslims do NOT believe that they know
what God is , he is unlike anything to which you will hear, smell, see,
or think of...Muslims believe God is above the level of human
comprehension,.  Praying to a prophet/assigning special
significance/setting up above what is natural is also considered shirk
too since it is a deviation of the true goal in life which is to
channel all worship to God alone and conform to the example of unity in
your practices as well as word and have faith in nothing other than God
since nothing can hurt you accept by Gods will. Jesus was indeed one of
the righteous and a Profit of God as stated in the Koran but Muslims
don't believe he claimed to be "a son of God" or God Himself as
some Christians believe. Muslims believe that this part of the bible is
mans own invention and has been inserted by man not God. I have
included at the bottom of this article some examples from the bible,
which in my opinion confirm the scripture has been altered to
contradict other parts which have remained authentic.  Muslims believe
that Mohamed was the last prophet of God sent to conclude the message
of unity that Jesus and the prophets before him taught and to put right
those that had strayed once again into partner worshipping in all its
forms but he was rejected by many without the chance of explaining that
he was not teaching anything new but simply confirming once again the
original message given to the Jews and to warn those who had corrupted
scripture and unity with idol worship and following the directions of
other men instead of God. You can even find the Christian Ten
Commandments in the Koran. As a Muslim I see a lot of idol worship in
Christianity as well as other religions...i.e. superstition in crosses,
and all worship being channeled in the direction of messengers or
something other than God. This to a Muslim is a direct contradiction to
Gods message since God expects his followers to set the example of
unity in their actions and teaching and all power and Prayer belongs to
God alone and God is not in need of any intercession between mankind
and God since it is said God is closer to mankind than his jugular
vein.

Ask yourself this question.... If I was a Christian preaching this
truth, would you not recognize it as the truth?............When making
judgments we all sometimes make the mistake of "shirk and include it
in our calculations.... Another example of what shirk is the way we way
up the question above. When we attempt to see the truth and way
something up we often unconsciously assign power to something above its
natural level. The very word Christian to you no doubt on a
subconscious level influences your decision making process since you
associate what is good and righteous with the word Christian and your
decision will be influenced by this thought process. It is the
fundamental teaching of marketing anything. In order to be a good judge
and see the truth for how it actually is rather than how it appears to
be we must remove what influences us on a subconscious level and assign
no power to anything based on our own viewpoint. This is how all
scientists are taught to conduct experiments so that the outcomes will
not be corrupted and distorted by their own desires. So once again I
ask you to consider if what is written above is the truth regardless of
who wrote it and what religion it came from. Please read the Bible
quotations I have included below before coming to your conclusions.

Was Jesus the "Son of God" or "God Himself" or "a messenger
prophet of God"?

The bible:


WORDS
Joh 7:16 Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but
His
who sent Me.
Joh 14:24 "He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word

which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.
Joh 12:49 "For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father
who
sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.
WILL
Joh 4:34 Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent

me, and to accomplish his work.
Joh 6:38 "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but
the will of Him who sent Me.
Lu 22:42 saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from
Me;
nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."
POWER
Joh 5:30 "I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My
judgment
is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the
Father who sent Me.
Joh 8:42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love
me,
for I proceeded and came forth from God; I came not of my own accord,
but he sent me.
KNOWLEDGE
Mr 13:32 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in

heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
Mt 24:36 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of

heaven, but My Father only.
Joh 7:16 So Jesus answered them, "My teaching is not mine, but his who
sent me;
STATUS
Mt 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the
kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Mr 10:18 And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is
good
but God alone.
8:50 "And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and
judges.

And So you have understood the fundamental message of Islam and the
Koran.


The Ten Comandments in the Koran

1. Thou shall not take any god except one God.

"There is no other god beside GOD,"(47:19)
He is the one God; there is no other god beside Him. ......(28:70)
2. Thou shall make no image of God

There is nothing that equals (like) Him. (42:11)
No visions can encompass Him, but He
encompasses all visions. He is the Compassionate, the Cognizant.[6:103]

"My Lord, make this a peaceful land, and protect me and my children
from worshiping idols. (14:35)
3. Thou shall not use God's name in vain.

Do not subject GOD's name to your casual swearing, that you may appear
righteous, pious,
or to attain credibility among the people. (2:224)

4. Thou shall honor thy mother and father.

. ....and your parents shall be
honored. As long as one or
both of them live, you shall
never say to them, "Uff"
(the slightest gesture of annoyance),
nor shall you shout at them; you
shall treat them amicably. (17:23)

5. Thou shall not steal.

The thief, male or female, you shall mark their hands as a punishment
for their crime, and
to serve as an example from GOD.  GOD is Almighty, Most Wise. (5:38 -
39)

6. ..... incur GOD's condemnation upon him, if he was lying. (24:7)
Do not withhold any testimony by concealing what you had witnessed.
Anyone who withholds
a testimony is sinful at heart. (2:283)
O you who believe, you shall be absolutely
equitable, and observe GOD, when you serve as witnesses, even against
yourselves, or your parents, or your relatives. Whether the accused is
rich or poor, GOD takes care of both. Therefore, do not be biased by
your personal wishes. If you deviate or disregard (this commandment),
then GOD is fully Cognizant of
everything you do.[4:135]
7. Thou shall not kill.

....anyone who murders any person who had not committed murder or
horrendous crimes, it shall be as if he murdered all the people. (5:32)

"You shall not kill any person - for God has made life sacred - except
in the course of justice. If one is killed unjustly, then we give his
heir authority to enforce justice. Thus, he shall not exceed the limits
in avenging the murder, he will be helped."(17:33)
8. Thou shall not commit adultery

You shall not commit adultery;
it is a gross sin, and an evil behavior.
(17:32)

9. You shall regard the parents, the relatives, the orphans, the poor,
the related neighbor, the unrelated neighbor, the close associate, the
traveling alien, and your servants. (4:36)
And do not covet what we bestowed
upon any other people. Such are temporary
ornaments of this life, whereby we put them to
the test. What your Lord provides for you is far
better, and everlasting.[20:131]
10. Thou shall keep the Sabbath holy.

*the Sabbath was relinquished with the
revelation of the Quran. We are told in
the Quran that the Sabbath was only
decreed for the Jews. (16:124)
God, however ,ordered us to make every
effort and drop all businesses to attend the
equivalent congregational  (Friday) prayer. This difference in day is
to distinguish Muslim belief from other beliefs.
O you who believe, when the
Congregational Prayer (Salat
Al-Jumu`ah) is announced on Friday,
you shall hasten to the commemoration
of GOD, and drop all business. . (62:9)
If you wish to find out more about Islam, I would suggest posting your
questions to "mainstream" Islamic websites (sunni) to avoid
dangerous sects and miss information.
Placing questions in Google newsgroups is not always the best idea
since the various faiths in the world go to great lengths to spread
miss information about each other in the replies you will
receive....much of which will be koranic quotes taken completely out of
context and twisted to give different meaning from people of other
faiths. If you come across such quotations that seem to imply evil I
would urge you to consider the following question: Is it likely that a
prophet teaching love, peace, forgiveness, etc would be at the same
time be teaching people to act in a unethical way?....or is it more
likely that such quotations are speaking of lawful tactics of warfare
or law system to be used in only a last resort situation in the
protection of Gods message?....If you study the Koran you will notice
that Koran does talk about law and punishment which to a Muslim are a
necessary way of bringing about a just society...It must be noted that
such laws have a strict legal framework for deciding when enforcement
becomes the last option available much as people understand the concept
of self defense in Christianity.  Such chapters in Koran are easily
miss understood if taken out of context and missing the relevant
information that accompanies them. Much of the information, which is
taken as being harsh, is in actual fact describing historical events
rather than describing legal rulings which apply to modern times. Islam
is a religion of peace and not a religion of hate as many try to
promote. If Muslims were to Judge Christianity's message by the
standards of a few people called the Klu Klux Klan we would be fools
and unjust to do so, much the same as those who associate Islam with
the actions of Al Qaeda are fools and unjust. I think it is much
smarter to judge a religion through its text rather than through those
who show the worst example...(another perfect example of shirk). I
would suggest avoiding all teachings that contradict the above
principles if you want to learn more about mainstream Islamic beliefs.

PS. A FINAL NOTE: If this article has offended you in any way I would
like to point out this was not my intention to cause offence. I have
received a number of scathing attacks from those following various
Christian theologies accusing me of posting miss information about
Christianity. If my opinion does not conform to the same ideas you have
yourself about how to interpret scripture then this is because each
individual has his own mind and capability to understand concepts in
different ways.... Only God knows which translation of scripture is
true and so I suggest we leave it up to him to put things right when we
all reach the big upstairs instead of attempting to insult and attack.
I have no interest to engage in religious debate with other faiths
since I don't believe this is Gods will and the only reply you are
likely to get is "Your God is my God, And My God is Your God"...The
intention of this article was to point out the many things Christianity
and Islam have in common as well as highlight that much of the dispute
between the different faiths is due to the limitations of understanding
which can be found in the communities of all world faiths. I invite you
all to do the same as I have done and publish your own opinions on what
faith means to you in the newsgroups of your choice.

Kind Regards...and hope my article inspired you with new
ideas.........Alan

In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
[3:64]
Say, "O followers of the scripture, let us come to a
logical agreement between us and you: that we shall not
worship except GOD; that we never set up any idols
besides Him, nor set up any human beings as lords beside
GOD." If they turn away, say, "Bear witness that we are 
submitters."