Explanations of the Qur'an for Christians (1)

Explanations of the Qur'an for Christians (1)

There are huge misunderstandings by Christians about the Qur'an (Koran.) I'm going to give a series of brief lessons in order to promote understanding and also show how the belief in God/Allah are the same. Christians will be amazed at the beauty and wisdom of the Qur'an and how much of it is entirely consistent with not only the Christian belief in God the Father and God in the form of the Holy Spirit, but also their belief in Mary (Maryam) and Jesus (Isa). Also, I'm going to surprise those of you who have "crossed the tiber" and prots who have not, with the following passage from the Qur'an with comments about the early Church.

Surah 2:35 We have made some of these apostles to excel the others; among them are they to whom Allah spoke, and some of them He exalted by (many degrees of) rank; and We gave clear miracles to Isa son of Marium, and strengthened him with the holy spirit. And if Allah had pleased, those after them would not have fought one another after clear arguments had come to them, but they disagreed; so there were some of them who believed and others who denied; and if Allah had pleased they would not have fought one with another, but Allah brings about what He intends.

This is an amazing observation and one that is very true. The Prophet (Peace be upon him) starts with the observation that Allah (God the Father) has spoken directly to some Prophets, and gave them gifts of his wisdom and prophecy to different degrees. This is all true, as any Christian who reads the Old Testament can observe and confirm. The Prophet then goes further and writes that Isa (Jesus) son of Marium (Mary) was given the clear ability to perform miracles. This is all true, as any Christian who reads the New Testament can observe and confirm. The Prophet is also observing that Isa was strengthened with the Holy Spirit, which is not only true, but I have just written about that in my reviews of Pope Benedict's book "Jesus of Nazareth" chapters one and two, where the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus at baptism, fills him, and leads him to the desert for the fasting and temptations. So the Prophet is being very respectful and accurate in his observations. He next comments on what happened after Jesus passed, where they "have fought one another after clear arguments had come to them" and "they disagreed" and "there were some of them who believed" and "others who denied" and they have "fought with one another." The Prophet is referring both to the Jewish and pagan populations who did not believe in the "clear miracles" and "clear arguments" of Isa (Jesus) but also about the heresies that constantly arose and had to be fought in the early Catholic Church. Reading any of the writings of the early Church Fathers certainly confirms that they had to spend an enormous amount of time, and at the risk of their lives, fighting the various heresies.

The Prophet emphasizes that all that occurs is Allah's (God the Father's) will by writing "And if Allah had pleased" and "Allah brings about what He intends." Again, this is consist with teachings throughout the Old and the New Testament that God the Father is above all, and that nothing takes place without his allowing it. By allowing it I mean that humankind, since original sin, has been free to act according to their freedom of will, and God allows that, though God makes clear the consequences. In future passages I will illuminate and discuss from the Qur'an, you will see that the Qur'an also discusses the concept of God allowing "hardness of heart" to occur in those who are the most unrepentant, a concept very familiar to Christians.

I hope this brief but extremely important introduction and analysis is helpful in promoting understanding that Christians and Muslims are speaking about the same God the Father, as Allah, that they speak of the same Holy Spirit, that Muslims are eminently respectful of Isa (Jesus) and Marium (Mary) to the point where they are astonished at those who "fought" and "disbelieved" after Isa (Jesus) had provided through the holy Spirit and God (Allah) "clear arguments." Muslims are not anti-Christian or anti-Jesus, and in fact, are more pro-Mary than some Christians I could mention. You can see that the early disunity of the Church (by this I mean the huge numbers of Jews and pagans who did not believe, and who in fact persecuted for much of the first 500 years, and the split off heresies) is a key reason why the Prophet (Peace be upon him) felt that Allah (God) had more to say even after Jesus Christ. This is also why, judicious comments or not aside, Pope Benedict is not uncomfortable with kissing the Qur'an and praying in a mosque, because the Holy Father does understand that both faiths are speaking of the same God the Father, Allah, and recognize the brotherhood of their faith under Abraham. I'll write more on these points in future postings.

As an aside, I enjoy reading the Qur'an. It has been many, many years since I last did so, and so I bought a translation today to assist me in these writings. The Qur'an is very beautiful with much holiness, and needs only to be understood with an open mind and in the right context. The edition I am using is translated by M. H. Shakir and published by Tahrike Tarsile Qur'an, Inc. of Elmhurst, NY, 15th Edition, 2005 and is a paperback edition.