Throughout history it is evident that many religions have been tried, tested, and, for some, radically changed. Many religions have gone through periods of time in which the way they were run or enforced underwent changes in practice and leadership. In many cases disagreements and differing outlooks among members of certain religions were to blame for these changes. Christianity and Islam are two examples of religions that have experienced changes over the course of their existence. While these religions seem to have little in common at first glance, both have strikingly similar pasts that consist of radical splits due to disagreements among members of the Christian and Islamic churches, resulting in new branches within each religion.
In looking at the world, one would not be surprised to find a great variety of people with varying beliefs and cultural traditions according to the culture’s history and geographic location. But what might strike one as odd is a great similarity across most of those people as well: a belief in God. And not just any God, but a single God who has divine knowledge and power over humanity. Yet with these commonalities, the three traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam each have a unique take on what they feel is the correct belief about God. But with so many commonalities, one might think the three traditions would be closer linked than they appear. Could these three faiths all have a common source beyond simply monotheistic beliefs, but rather a common belief in the same deity? For this paper, through the lens of divine revelation, I wish to research the connection between the three monotheistic traditions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism with respect to the identity of the Supreme Being (God, Allah, YHWH) and discover if these three identities are found in the same being.
As of today, the world’s two largest religions Christianity and Islam share an estimated 3.6 billion members, more than half of the world’s population. On the surface, they appear to have almost nothing in common, however, as one goes beyond the surface and examines the other factors such as the rituals, beliefs, ethics, founders, and convictions, the two religions share many similarities. However, in order to truly see and understand these similarities and differences, one must date back to the rise and birth of Christianity and Islam.
Islam and Christianity both come from a common foundation as religions of peace, both of these religious traditions share the foundational element of peace of their beliefs. In both the sacred texts of Islam and Christianity peace is a virtue and is seen more as a sense of wellbeing than just the absence of conflict and violence. Overall peace is found in unity with God, for Christians and Muslims are taught to live a life a life of peace with others, not only in their own communities but the entire of human society. The Qur’an in Islam and the New Testament in Christianity are respectively the principal sacred texts for these religious traditions. The Qur’an and the New Testament both express the importance of peace and peacemaking as evident in Jesus’ Beatitudes “Blessed are the peacemakers”. The search for inner peace is the core message of the Qur’an and the New Testament and the adherents of both traditions are taught that inner peace will come through faithfully devoting yourself to God.
In almost all major religions, there abounds the undertone of the spiritual battle that takes place inside someone regarding the succumbation to sin or earthly desires and the like. Also ever present in the soul's journey through life is the search for a prize; an ultimate Truth, especially in the early Middle Ages when religions where beginning to mature and take power in society. Though the doctrine theoretically differs greatly, Christian and Islamic faith as one body contextually share the same ideals and foci on the issues pertaining to the soul. This is made evident when analyzing the works of Christian mystic, Margery Kempe, and Sufi poet, Jalal al-Din Rumi, who despite the difference in gender and culture, shed light on the meaning of Truth through acts and words of devotion and love for a common God.
Religion is placed throughout many areas of life. It can be used for many different purposes. Historically speaking, religion is something for individuals to believe in for strength and security. While religion plays a large role in an individual’s life, it is to be seen if religion is something that provides individual identification or if it is something that is manipulated during changing times of life. There have been many studies that point toward religion being a thing of centering an individual’s life. According to Lebedev, “These days, religion does not serve to form a person’s basic knowledge about the world, about the social and interpersonal relations out of which his ideas about the meaning and purpose of life organically flow. Religion becomes a part of the individual’s life and world exactly on the level of these latter things, whereas the foundation of his social knowledge in terms of values and worldview turns out not to be correlated with it” (2009: 85).
Islam, a religion of people submitting to one God, seeking peace and a way of life without sin, is always misunderstood throughout the world. What some consider act of bigotry, others believe it to be the lack of education and wrong portrayal of events in media; however, one cannot not justify the so little knowledge that America and Americans have about Islam and Muslims. Historically there are have been myths, many attacks on Islam and much confusion between Islam as a religion and Middle Easter culture that is always associated with it. This paper is meant to dispel, or rather educate about the big issues that plague people’s minds with false ideas and this will only be touching the surface.
History has frequently demonstrated that forces of religion, sometimes involving other factors which include war, economics or technology, all help bring about the ‘social transformation’ of the world we live in today. Religion, in many sense can be referred to as the celebration or even ‘self-worship’ of the human society, this is so the functions of religion can stabilize society and put a powerful effect on many people around the world over numerous generations.
One word in the English language above all others throughout the history has caused more controversy, both in terms of human fatalities and words written about it than religion. Religion has been a subject of major controversy long before there was an English language, long before there was a word for the concept. What follows however, is not a discussion of the controversy, or history for that matter. What follows is a discussion of the word and it’s meaning. “Religion” since it’s first minting has come to be an immensely broad term. So broad in fact that It defies a singular comprehensive definition. The word has come to refer to a loose and chaotically organized system of aspects and ideas, topics of you will. Many philosophers have attempted to define religion but only succeed in identifying a new topic. Overlap is always the case but this continual attempt to define the word has only resulted in the continuation broadening process.
In the past we believed that religion could solve all our problems (physical, mental or spiritual) if we turned up the piety level another notch; now we have swung too far in the other direction. As human beings we h...