Download Christianity vs. Islam By: Kelsey Jones Works Cited Adams, Cecil

Christianity vs. Islam
By: Kelsey Jones
Works Cited
Adams, Cecil. "The Straight Dope: Why did Christianity become so popular?." The Straight
Dope - Fighting Ignorance Since 1973. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1167/why-did-christianity-become-sopopular>.
"Comparison Chart: Christianity vs. Islam - ReligionFacts." Religion, World Religions,
Comparative Religion - Just the facts on the world's religions.. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec.
2012. <http://www.religionfacts.com/christianity/charts/christianity_islam.htm>.
Hallam, Gregory, and Iain Emberson. "Comparison between Orthodoxy, Protestantism & Roman
Catholicism." Christianity in View: Emmanuel, God is with us!. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec.
2012. <http://christianityinview.com/comparison.html>.
"Major Religions Ranked by Size." World Religions Religion Statistics Geography Church
Statistics. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html>.
Matthews, Alfred Warren. World religions. St. Paul, MN: West Pub. Co., 1991. Print.
"SABBATH, What Is It's meaning?." Biblical Adventist Truths. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://dedication.www3.50megs.com/sabbathmeaning.html>.
"Sharia Law › What is it?." Sharia Law › What is it?. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://sharia-law.info/>.
Smith, Terrell. "What Christians Believe." Answering Islam, A Christian-Muslim Dialog and
Apologetic. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012. <http://www.answeringislam.org/Basics/god.html>.
Vu, Michelle A., and Jim Denison. "Why Do Radical Muslims Hate America So Much?."
Christian News, The Christian Post. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://www.christianpost.com/news/why-do-radical-muslims-hate-americans-so-much56043/>.
"What is Islam? A short history of Islam and its beliefs." Truthnet.org, What is your purpose
and meaning?. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://www.truthnet.org/islam/whatisislam.html>.
"Why do Muslims pray toward Mecca." The Q&A wiki. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_do_Muslims_pray_toward_Mecca>.
Wikipedia. "Israeli–Palestinian conflict - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the
free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2012.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian_conflict>.
MLA formatting by BibMe.org.
Christianity and Islam are two of the world’s largest religions, combining to make up
“54% of the world’s population, which by numbers is 3.6 billion people in 2007 (Major
Religions of the World, Adherents).” Christianity is primarily in “Europe, South America,
Africa, North America, and Oceania (Matthews, 289).” Islam is concentrated in “Asia, Africa,
Europe, North America, Latin America, and Oceania (Matthews, 335).” I want to know the
history of each, their beliefs, practices, similarities between them, and their differences.
The history of Christianity begins with Jesus of Nazareth. According to the Gospel of
Luke he was related to John the Baptist who was the son of a Jewish priest, Zechariah. In the
book World Religions by Warren Matthews he states:
John announced that the kingdom of God was at hand. He challenged hearers to
repent and believe the good news. Then he used water as a symbol of washing
away the sins of those who repented and accepted the message. When Jesus was
about thirty years old, he participated in one of the gatherings and received
baptism from John. The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus as he came from the
water, and a voice came from heaven saying, “Thou are my beloved Son, with
thee I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11). (Matthews, 291)
After this occasion, Jesus spent some time alone, spoke with Satan, and came out of hiding to tell
everyone to believe in the gospel. Jesus then proceeded to choose disciples to help him preach
the word of God. Jesus would tell people their sins were forgiven and would heal people.
Because of this ability there were people who felt bitter towards him. This takes us to Jesus’
Teachings that which Matthews gives a description:
The general theme of Jesus’ teachings was the kingdom of God. He announced
standards of human conduct that would prevail in the lives of people who lived
according to the will of God. Jesus established God’s perfection as the only
standard by which personal conduct could be measured. The generous mercy of
God set the pattern for the kind of generosity with which people were to treat one
another, Jesus taught that the kingdom of God had come and is coming when God
chooses. Jesus emphasized the personal side of religion, referring to God as “our
Father.” He challenged men and women to fulfill their roles as children of the
Most High. (Matthews, 291)
Jesus as a person was against divorce, lust, murder, and adultery. He wanted everyone to get
along and for people to treat others as they themselves want to be treated. He preached the word
of God by telling stories or parables. Later, an event known to Christians as the Last Supper
occurred. In this event, one of Jesus’ disciples, Judas, betrayed Jesus. An army of few came to
arrest Jesus, Judas told them who Jesus was, and he was taken to a hearing where members of the
council decided whether he should live or die. Jesus was chosen to be crucified. Soon after, Jesus
was resurrected by God. From this day forward, Jesus was seen as human and of divine origin.
The church allowed speaking the language of the angels as a way to pray because that
was what you did when you did not know how to pray. However, not everyone accepted this
practice. Jews for instance, were enraged by this. They reacted to this by dragging “Stephen, a
deacon of the Greek-speaking congregation in Jerusalem, into the street and stoned him to death
(Matthews, 298).” This act by the Jews sent many Christians away from Jerusalem. Paul, a Jew
at the time, had plans to eliminate the Christian community, but on his way to Damascus to
execute this plan, was struck blind and told by Jesus to enter the city. Christians helped him
escape from other Jews who were after him for betraying them. At that moment, Paul became a
Christian. Paul becoming a Christian was major because this created more and more converts.
Judaizers believed “that Christians first become Jews (Matthews, 300).” Paul was fighting
against that, he did not think there needed to be a conversion of that sort.
The final act for acceptance for Christians came with the Roman Empire. “Jews informed
the Romans that Christianity was not Judaism and not legally included within Judaism. After
Rome burned, Nero accused Christians of starting the fire and labeled them enemies of the state.
Romans thus began a history of persecuting Christians that lasted until Constantine came to
power.” Persecution was seen as an “inevitable testing (Matthews, 302)” by God. They assumed
that when the time came, God would rescue them. Matthews states:
Emperor Constantine, ended Roman persecution of Christians. Under his
leadership, Christianity became a legal religion, although not the only one.
Constantine eventually became a catechumen, a student of Christianity, and
helped it gain a measure of unity in the first ecumenical council held in Nicaea.
His policy was a dramatic shift from the practices of Nero, Diocletian, Domitian,
and others who had had Christians killed for refusing to worship the Roman
emperor as divine. Christianity increased in acceptability and respectability until
it had, by the end of the fourth century, gained a place as the official religion of
the Roman Empire. (Matthews, 303)
There is one more thing left to be mentioned about the history of Christianity, namely the
Crusades which will be brought up later.
In the modern era, there are many denominations of Christianity. The larger of these
denominations include Protestants, Eastern Orthodox, and Roman Catholicism. Each of these
forms differ in their own viewpoint of Christianity. This chart from Christianity in View shows
most of their differences:
Topic
Orthodox
Protestant
Roman Catholic
Bible Composition of
Accept the 39 Old
Testament and 27 New
Testament books, but
also a collection of
books not found in the
original Hebrew Bible.
These are known
asDeuterocanonicals i.e.
a second canon of
scripture.
Protestants reject the
deuterocanonicals as
not being inspired
scripture and term
them Apocrypha(Greek:
'Hidden Things').
Agrees with
Orthodoxy as to the
validity of these
books.
Eucharist Significance of
Commonly termed the
'Mystic Supper' or
'Divine Liturgy' - This
makes present Christ's
sacrifice and therefore
forgiveness of sins is
obtained through it. It is
also an encounter with
the Risen Christ.
The Eucharist, like
Baptism is only a
symbol of grace. The
sacrificial nature of the
Eucharist is also
rejected.
The position is
similar to the
Orthodox. The
Eucharist is also
known as the 'Holy
sacrifice of the
Mass'.
Eucharist Presence of
Christ in
During the Eucharist,
the Priest calls down the
Holy Spirit (in
Greek: epiklesis) upon
the gifts (the bread and
the wine). They then
change into the actual
body and blood of
Christ. The precise way
in which this happens is
a divine mystery.
The bread and wine,
being symbols, do not
change substance.
There are however, a
wide variety of views
held within
Protestantism on this
subject (e.g. some
Anglicans accept the
Catholic view, whereas
Baptists deny it).
As in Orthodoxy, the
Priest invokes the
Holy Spirit during
the Mass. However,
the consecration
becomes effective
through the Priest,
who acts in the
person of Christ.
The gifts change
completely into
Christ's body and
blood and this
change is termed
'Transubstantiation'
i.e. the outward
appearance remains
the same, but the
substance changes.
Eucharist Distribution of
The consecrated
elements can only be
received by members.
Orthodox policy is to
have communion in both
kinds (i.e. both the
bread and wine are
given to those present).
The elements are
usually offered to all
Christians who feel able
to partake of them. The
vast majority of
Protestant churches
have communion in
both kinds.
As with Orthodoxy,
only members of the
church may receive.
The bread only is
given to the
congregation, the
Priest receiving the
wine. However, it is
becoming common
for churches to have
communion in both
kinds.
Holy Spirit
The third person of the
Trinity, proceeding from
the Father alone as in
the original Nicene
Creed. The Father sends
the Spirit at the
intercession of the Son.
The Son is therefore an
agent only in the
procession of the Spirit.
The Holy Spirit
proceeds from both the
Father and the Son.
The Nicene creed
includes
the filioque(Latin: 'and
the son').
Agrees with the
Protestant view.
Ambrose of Milan
(340-397) wrote:
'When the Holy
Spirit proceeds from
the Father and the
Son, He is not
separated from the
Father, He is not
separated from the
Son'.
Marriage and
Divorce
Marriage is a mystical
union between a man
and a woman. Divorce is
generally only allowed in
cases of adultery,
though there are
exceptions.
Marriage is a contract,
but is not unbreakable.
Divorce is discouraged,
but permitted as
evidence of human
weakness. Some
denominations permit
remarriage in church.
An unbreakable
contract and a type
of Christ and the
church. Divorce is
not permitted unless
there is some
canonical
impediment to the
marriage. In this
situation, an
annulment may be
granted.
Mary Assumption and
Immaculate
conception of
The Assumption is
accepted and it is
agreed that Mary
experienced physical
death, but the
Immaculate conception
is rejected. Orthodox
belief is that the guilt of
original sin is not
transmitted from one
generation to the next,
thus obviating the need
Both are denied. The
claim that Mary was
sinless is rejected only Christ was sinless.
Both are dogmas of
the church. The
church has not as
yet decided whether
Mary actually
experienced Physical
death. The dogma
of the Immaculate
Conception states
that Mary, was at
conception
'preserved
for Mary to be sinless.
immaculate from all
stain of original sin'
and should not be
confused with the
virgin birth.
Pope - Authority
of
As the Bishop of Rome,
he has a primacy of
honour when Orthodox,
not of jurisdiction. At
present, his primacy is
not effective as the
papacy needs to be
reformed in accordance
with Orthodoxy. His
authority is thus no
greater or lesser than
any of his fellow Bishops
in the church.
The Pope is the leader
of the Catholic church,
having no authority to
speak for the church as
a whole.
The Pope is the
'Vicar of Christ' i.e.
the visible head of
the church on earth
and spiritual
successor of St.
Peter. He has
supreme authority
(including that over
church councils)
within Christendom
(ThePower of the
keys).
Purgatory
An intermediate state
between earth and
heaven is recognised,
but cleansing and
purification occur in this
life, not the next.
Purgatory is rejected Christ's death on the
cross is sufficient to
remove the penalty for
all our sins.
A place of cleansing
and preparation for
heaven. Also a place
where the
punishment due to
unremitted venial
sins may be
expiated.
Sacraments
There are at least seven
Sacraments (known as
'Mysteries' in
Orthodoxy): Baptism,
Chrismation, Eucharist,
Holy Orders, Holy
Unction, Marriage (Holy
Matrimony) and Penance
(Confession). The list is
not fixed.
Generally, only two
sacraments (also
known as Ordinances)
are recognised:
Baptism and the
Eucharist (often called
'Holy Communion' or
the 'Lord's Supper').
The number of
Sacraments is fixed
at seven and is the
same list as that in
Orthodoxy, with the
exception of
Chrismation, which
is generally known
as 'Confirmation'.
Saints
A special group of holy
people, who are
venerated. They may act
as intercessors between
God and Man and may
be invoked in prayer.
All Christians are saints,
called to imitate Christ.
Only Christ may
mediate between God
and Man.
The position is very
similar to
Orthodoxy. For
sainthood, it is also
required that at
least two verifiable
miracles have
occured as a result
of the intercession
of that person.
Salvation
Salvation is "faith
working through love"
and should be seen as a
life long process. The
Ultimate aim of every
Orthodox Christian is to
obtainTheosis or union
with God. This is done
through living a holy life
and seeking to draw
closer to God.
Salvation is the free
and unmerited gift of
God to man. It is
obtained by grace
through faith in Christ
alone. Through Christ's
atoning sacrifice, we
are rendered
acceptable to God and
judged righteous
(justified) in his sight.
We are saved by
grace, specifically
sanctifying grace,
which is given
initially through
Baptismal
regeneration and
then maintained
through the
Sacraments, which
are 'channels of
grace'.
Worship and
Liturgy
The 'Divine Liturgy' is
the centre of Orthodox
spirituality. Worship is
usually in the
vernacular, though
Greek is also used.
There are a wide
variety of worship
styles. Examples
include the spontaneity
of the Pentecostal
churches, and the more
traditional worship of
the Anglican churches
in the Catholic
tradition.
Worship is centred
around the Mass.
Following the
Vatican II council
(1962-5), greater
emphasis was
placed on worship in
the vernacular,
though the
traditional Latin
('Tridentine') Mass is
also used.
Protestant
Roman Catholic
Topic
Orthodox
(Hallam, Comparison Orthodox, Protestant, Roman Catholic)
The problem for humans is sin and the solution is salvation. Christianity is a monotheistic
religion. Christians believe in heaven and hell along with a belief in the devil. To become a
Christian you must be baptized. Which is to be cleansed spiritually by a sprinkling of water;
Christians are all about giving back to the community and donating money to charity. Marriage
and celibacy are of high value to Christians. They worship on Sunday because Jesus was
resurrected on a Sunday. Holidays celebrated by Christians include Palm Sunday which is the
day Jesus entered Jerusalem, Maundy Thursday which is celebrated for the Last Supper, Good
Friday, the day of Jesus’ crucifixion, Christmas- Jesus’ birthday, and the most important day for
Christians is Easter, on this day God raised Jesus from the dead.
When I attended a Mormon service at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints I
had many unanswered questions. These questions were why do they believe in God, why do they
believe what they believe, why is Christianity so popular, what religion means to Christians, and
what is the taking of the Sabbath and what does it mean? The answer I basically received for
why they believe in God and why do they believe what they believe is “it is written (Smith, What
do Christians believe).” For why Christianity is so popular, I found out there are many reasons
according to Cecil Adams from the site The Straight Dope:
(1) The centuries-long Pax Romana that began around the time of Christ made it
possible to spread ideas throughout the Mediterranean basin in a short time,
(2) the old Greek and Roman pagan religions were by then completely out of
gas, (3) the imperial court was run by such a collection of cutthroats and
lunatics that people were desperate for a religion promising a moral order, it
was the West’s first modern religion, coupling a coherent and attractive
picture of how the world worked with a commonsensical moral code, and the
idea of salvation. (Adams, The Straight Dope)
That answered my next question in a way, what religion means to Christians? It means a chance
to be forgiven for all of your sins. The Sabbath is a day of rest given by God to everyone. What it
means is God created the world in six days and rested the seventh day, therefore, we are allowed
to rest after six days of work (What meaning Does The Sabbath Have Today).
The history of Islam starts with the prophet Muhammad in “his life he interacted with
Arabs known as the Hanefites. Hanefites were Arabs who rejected idol worship and were
searching for the true religion. They looked to the religion of the Jews and Christians as being
close to the goal. The Hanefites abandoned their idols and would retreat to the caves of Mecca in
meditation and prayer (What is Islam?).” When Muhammad was forty he had his first revelation
on Mt. Hera and thought he was possessed by a demon. “Mohammad proclaimed Allah as the
one true god and rejected the idol worship of Mecca (What is Islam?).” Muhammad had little
success acquiring converts with the exception of his wife Khadija. Instead, people sought his life
and he sought refuge for a little while. Arab tribes from Yathrob met Muhammad during the Hajj
and believed he was the prophet. The next year the Hejira occurred. Muslims again were after
Muhammad because they heard about his escape from Mecca to Medina. In Medina, Jewish
tribes rejected Muhammad’s authority but he gained converts from Arab tribes. From this the
“Muslim doctrine of Jihad was created (What is Islam?).” The war was still not over. Muslims
gained reinforcements from other Arab tribes in the area and won the war and took control of
Mecca. Muhammad destroyed idols in the Kaba and the Muslims accepted Islam as their new
religion. Muhammad died sometime after that.
The successors following Muhammad caused conflict between two sides, the Sunnis and
the Shi’as. The Shi’as believe that Ali should have been the next leader after Uthman. The
Sunnis accepted Mu’awiyah as the next leader after Uthman. The Shi’as are the more extremist
group whereas the Sunnis are the more traditional group.
Muslims live by Shari’a law which according to this site about Shari’a law it is defined
as:
For Muslims who are devout, living life according to the divine will is the basis
for existence. Shari’a law is the anchor for society for devout Muslims and it is
based on several factors in a complex web of history, religious texts,
interpretation, modern influence, scholars, community, custom, public interest,
regionalism and the conduct of the Prophet Muhammad. Shari’a law is more of a
methodology. It is basically a way of arriving at decisions on how to live life by
studying religious texts to determine divine will. It is a moral system. (Shari’a
Law)
The Crusades involving the Muslims and the Christians occurred over religious land.
Muslims took control over Jerusalem and other holy land and the Christians were basically
forced out. “A pope took leadership in calling for crusades of Christian soldiers to journey to the
Holy Land and free the Christian places of worship from the so-called Muslim infidels
(Matthews, 353).” Christians believe that the Muslim leader, Saladin waited past an agreed upon
deadline and beheaded all his Christian prisoners. Muslims believe that “Saladin had arranged a
payment in three parts over a month’s time to redeem Muslim hostages (Matthews, 353-354).”
The problem for humans is refusal to submit to the will of God. The solution for humans
is salvation. The ideal way for Muslims would be for everyone to unite no matter the
circumstances. However, this is not the case they have been at war with surrounding cities. The
Israeli-Palestinian struggle is one of the wars they have been involved in. Their unsettled issues
consist of “mutual recognition, borders, security, water rights, control of Jerusalem, Israeli
settlements, Palestinian freedom movement, and finding a resolution to the refugee question
(Wikipedia).” According to Wikipedia sources:
Many attempts have been made to broker a two-state solution, involving the
creation of an independent Jewish state or next to the state of Israel. In 2007, a
majority of both Israelis and Palestinians, according to a number of polls,
preferred the two-state solution over any other solution as a means of resolving
the conflict. A majority of Palestinian and Israelis view the West Bank and Gaza
Strip as an acceptable location of the hypothetical Palestinian state. (Wikipedia)
Every Muslim follows the five pillars of Islam. “They must declare in the Shahada, that
there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is his rasul, or messenger. They must participate
in salat, five periods of prayer each day. They must pay an obligatory tax called zakat, to the
needy. They must fast during the daylight hours in the month of Ramadan, known as sawm. If
able, they should make a pilgrimage to Mecca, a Hajj, once during their lifetime (Matthews,
344).” Their holy book is the Qur’an. Group prayer for Muslims is on Friday. Marriage between
a man and a woman is accepted along with polygamy but the husband has to treat all of his wives
equally. They are against gambling, drinking alcohol, lying, and stealing. They are also not
allowed to eat pork. Women have to dress modestly, they have to cover their hair. During prayer
women and men are to be separated. Before prayer there has to be a ritual cleansing; Charity is
of high value to Muslims.
When I attended the Friday service at the Khadeeja Mosque, I had a couple of questions.
For instance, what do they have against America and why do they face in the direction of Mecca
during prayer? I learned that not every Muslim hates America, only the Islam extremists. And
they are against America because these Muslims “claim that the West has been attacking Islam
since the crusades (Denison, Why do Radical Muslims hate the U.S.).” “The second major
reason is based on their understanding of democracy. Because the American people elect the
U.S. government and our taxes support the military, Muslim extremists hold American civilians
accountable for the war on Islam (Denison, Why do Radical Muslims hate the U.S.).” For why
they face in the direction of Mecca during prayer, I learned is because they cannot go physically
before God, so it is used as a means of praying to God (wikiAnswers).
Similarities between Christianity and Islam include they are both monotheistic and are
westernized religions. They both believe in angels and demons. The birth of Jesus being born of
a virgin is also a similarity. The second coming of Jesus, predestination of salvation, and eternal
hell in the afterlife are the other similarities (Religious Facts).
Differences between Christianity and Islam include the day of prayer. Muslims have
communal prayer on a Friday, whereas Christians have it on a Sunday. Muslims have their head
covered during prayer, Christians do not. Christians pray in a church, chapel, cathedral, etc and
Muslims pray in a mosque. Resurrection of Jesus, Christians believe it, Muslims deny it. Jesus’
death, Christians believe it was by crucifixion, Muslims believe he did not die but ascended
bodily into heaven and a disciple died in his place. The nature of god, Christians believe he is
one substance but three persons (trinity), Muslims believe in unity, one person, one substance.
The holy book is also different for both, it is the holy bible for Christians and the Qur’an for
Muslims (Religious Facts).
Before researching these two major religions, I believed there would be a lot more
similarities between the two rather than the differences. Learning about each of these religions
and attending their services has taught me more than I would have known otherwise.