Download Session 4 – The Trinity and more

Session 4 – The Trinity and More
In this session we will look at the difference
between the God of Islam, and the
God of the Bible
We will see that the Qur’an does not
accurately represent and understand the
historical belief of the Christian church, and
therefore, cannot have been inspired by an
all knowing God
If you ask a Muslim to define what Islam is,
sum it up in one word or expression, the
odds are they will say Tawhid
Tawhid is the glorious (in their words)
monotheism that the Islamic faith has
given to the world
Tawhid is as important to a Muslim as the
Trinity should be to a Christian
Without the idea of Tawhid, and all that it
encompasses, you have no Islam
The first pillar of the Muslim faith confirms
this belief when it says:
“I profess that there is only one God Allah”
ā ʾilāha ʾillā-llāh, muhammadun rasūlu-llāh
‫سو ُل هللا‬
ُ ‫اَل ِإ ٰلها ِإ اَل هللا ُم اح امدٌ ار‬
The Jews likewise had there confession that
encompassed their monotheistic beliefs
The Shema: ““Hear, O Israel: The LORD our
God, the LORD is one!” (Deuteronomy 6:4)
The Christian faith does not contradict the
Shema, but instead shows it fulfillment
as seen in the trinity revealed in the
New Testament
Christians are monotheists as well
The New Testament confirms the
monotheism of Christianity in many places
1 Timothy 2:5: “For there is one God and
one Mediator between God and
men, the Man Christ Jesus,”
1 Corinthians 8:6: “yet for us there is one
God, the Father, of whom are all things, and
we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom are all things, and through
whom we live.”
The great monotheistic religions of our world
include Judaism, Islam, and Christianity
All of these religions proclaim there is one
God, maker of heaven and earth
Trinitarianism is not different
from monotheism
We are all monotheists, Islam is Unitarian
monotheist, Christians are Trinitarian
monotheists (there could also be binitarian)
When we address Tawhid, we are not just
talking about monotheism, we are talking
about Unitarian monotheism
Tawhid and Worship
One of the most important values of Tawhid
is the purity it brings to worship. You cannot
truly worship without believing in Tawhid
Tawhid is the Muslims salvation
Allamah Al-Sadi comments saying:
“There is nothing that produces such good
results nor holds such a variety of virtues like
tawhid, for tawhid with its virtues is the best
produce in the world and the Hereafter…
And among its virtues is that it is the
greatest means of removing the sorrows of
this world and the Hereafter, and warding off
punishment in both worlds. It is because of
its virtues that one is forbidden from
eternity in the Fire…
provided that his heart contains a mustard
seed’s equivalent amount of it – and if it is
complete in his heart, then it will prevent
him from ever entering the Fire at all…
Another of its virtues is that it is the
exclusive reason for being granted Allah’s
pleasure and rewards, and the luckiest of
people – who are granted Muhammad’s
intercession –are those who said La ilaha
illa Allah with sincerity in their hearts.”
Let’s look at what the Qur’an says:
Surah 15:56: “I created the jinn and
humankind only that they might
worship Me”
According to the Qur’an, your purpose for
existences it to worship Allah, and you
cannot do that without Tawhid
In order to fulfill your existence, you must
have Tawhid as a core belief
As we’ve mentioned, the Qur’an says Allah
has sent many prophets before Muhammad,
and it said they all proclaimed this message:
Surah 21:25: “We sent no messenger before
you, but that We revealed to him, that
“there is no god but I, so worship Me!”
Orthodox Islamic theology divides Tawhid
into three categories: Tawhid of lordship,
Tawhid of worship, and tawhid of Allah’s
names and attributes
There is some irony in how important
tawhid has become, when the word itself is
never used in the Qur’an, but that’s not an
argument against them
The strongest affirmation of Unitarian
monotheism (Tawhid) comes from the
Qur’an denouncing the beliefs of Christians
Here is one example where
the Qur’an does this
Surah 4:171: “O people of the Book! Commit
no excess in your religion, not say anything
but the truth about Allah. The Messiah, Jesus
son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah,
and His word which He conveyed to Mary,
and spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and
His Messengers, and say not “three.” Cease,
[it is] better for you! Allah is only one God.”
We will look at more passages
like this soon
The unforgivable sin of Shirk
Shirk is a very serious matter in the Islamic
faith, it is associating anything or anyone
with Allah
The Qur’an is clear that Shirk is not forgivable
“Surely, Allah will not forgive those who
assign partners to Him. He forgives all but
that to whom He pleases. Whosoever
ascribes partners to Allah is guilty of a
monstrous sin.” (Surah 4:48)
A person who has committed Shirk in their
lifetime is able to convert to Islam and be
forgiven, but dying in Shirk is the
unforgivable sin
In Islam, Allah can forgive any other sin
(even if your not a Muslim) but the sin of
Shirk he cannot, and will not forgive
“O my son! Associate [nothing[ with Allah,
for association is a formidable injustice”
(Surah 31:13)
While some liberal western Muslims do not,
most Muslims believe that Christians who
believe in the trinity, and worship Jesus, are
committing the sin of Shirk
Do Muslims and Christians believe and
worship the same God?
Remember, according to the Qur’an and the
Hadith, Islam is the fulfillment of
Christianity and Judaism
While we would say we serve very different
Gods, the Qur’an says otherwise
O Muslims! Do not argue with the People of
the Book except in the best of ways, save
with such of them who are unjust; and say:
“We believe in that which has been sent
down to us and that which has been sent
down to you; our God and your God is One,
and to Him we surrender.” (Surah 29:46)
Notice the phrase “Our God and your God is
One, and to Him we surrender”
Muslims believe that we do worship the
same God, but because Christians also
worship Jesus (committing Tawhid) and
because the Jews rejected the prophet
Muhammad, we have left the true path of
worship and cannot please God in our
current state.
Does the Qur’an accurately portray the
doctrine of the trinity?
Whether or not it agrees with the doctrine,
if Allah (all knowing) is the author of the
Qur’an, he would surely understand what
the Christians actually believed
But when we look at the Qur’an in many
places, it completely misunderstands the
Christian view of God
We will examine four area in the Qur’an that
misunderstand the Christian faith
Surah 4:166-172 “Say Not Three”
The background for this section of the
Qur’an is often connected to a discussion
Muhammad had with Christians from Najran
One early source that makes this connect
comes from Tanwir Al-Miqbas min
Tafsir Ibn Abbas
“Allah then revealed about the Nestorian
Christians of Najran who claimed that Jesus
was the son of Allah and that Jesus and the
Lord are partners, saying: (O People of the
Scripture! Do not exaggerate) do not be
extreme (in your religion) for this is not the
right course (nor utter aught concerning
Allah save the Truth. The Messiah, Jesus son
of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and
His word which He conveyed unto Mary)…
and through His word he became a created
being, (and a spirit from Him) and through
His command, Jesus became a son without a
father. (So believe in Allah and His
messengers) all the messengers including
Jesus, (and say not “Three”) a son, father
and wife. (Cease!) from making such a claim
and repent ((it is) better for you!) than such
a claim. (Allah is only One God) without a
son or partner…
(Far is it removed from His Transcendent
Majesty that he should have a son. His is all
that is in the heavens and all that is in the
earth) are His servants. (And Allah is
sufficient as Defender) as Lord of all created
beings and He is witness of what He says
about Jesus.”
It’s clear early Islamic sources understood the
Trinity to be Father, Son, and Mother
(something Christians never taught) but does
the Qur’an make that mistake itself?
“166. But Allah [Himself] bears witness
concerning that which He has sent down to you;
with His knowledge has He sent it down; and
the angels also testify. And Allah is sufficient
witness. 167. Those who disbelieve and obstruct
[others] from the path of Allah, they have surely
strayed far away.168. Those who disbelieve, and
do wront, Allah will never forgive them, neither
will He guide them to a road.169. Except the
road to Hell, to abide therein perpetually. And
that is easy for Allah…”
170. O mankind! The messenger has come to
you with the truth from your Lord. Therefore
believe, [it is] better for you. But if you
disbelieve, still, surely to Allah belongs
whatsoever is in the heavens and earth. Allah is
Knowing. Wise. 171. O people of the Book!
Commit no excess in your religion, not say
anything but the truth about Allah. The
Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a
messenger of Allah, and His word which He
conveyed to Mary, and spirit from Him.
So believe in Allah and His Messengers, and
say not “three.” Cease, [it is] better for you!
Allah is only one God. Far is it removed from
His transcendence that He should have a son,
when His is all that the heavens and all the
earth contain. And Allah is sufficient as [their]
custodian. 172. The Messiah will never to be
too proud a slave to Allah, nor will the nearest
angels. Those who are too proud to worship
Him and are arrogant, all such will He
assemble to Him.”
We know this section is talking specifically
to Christians (because it says those
people identify Jesus as the Messiah,
Jews would not)
The text seems to talk quite a bit about
Jesus and Mary, which lead many Muslims
to think that the Christians had a trinity of
God, Jesus, and Mary
Other places are more obvious though
“[He is] Originator of the heavens and the
earth. How could He have a son when He
does not have a companion and He created
all things? And He is, of all things, Knowing.”
(Surah 6:101)
When dealing with the Christians, why does
it come up that Allah does not have a
companion to produce a son with?
That is what the Qur’an thinks the
Christians believe about Jesus
Tafsir Al-Jalalayn also understood what the
Qur’an was saying (even though it’s wrong)
“So believe in Allah and His Messengers. Do
not say, Three gods: Allah, Isa, and his
mother.” It is better than you stop saying
these things. Affirming the Divine Unity [is]
better. Allah is only One God. He is too
Glorious to have a son!”
Many other Muslim early on said the same
thing, Ibn Ishaq in the earliest biography of
the life of Muhammad said:
“The argue that he is the third of three in that
God says: We have done, We have
commanded, We have created and We have
decreed, and they say, If He were one he
would have said I have done, I have created,
and so on, but He is He and Jesus and Mary.
Concerning all these assertions the Quran
came down.”
Notice the important part of “Concerning all
these assertions the Quran came down”
According to Ibn Ishaq, which represents the
belief of early Muslims, the Quran came
down to correct an idea (Mary and Jesus
being God) that was not even being made by
the Christians at the time
We know with 100% certainty that no
Christians in that area taught Mary was the
third in the trinity
Surah 5:17 shows further than the Qur’an
did not understand Christian beliefs
“They have certainly disbelieved who say that
Allah is Christ, the son of Mary. Say, "Then who
could prevent Allah at all if He had intended to
destroy Christ, the son of Mary, or his mother or
everyone on the earth?" And to Allah belongs
the dominion of the heavens and the earth and
whatever is between them. He creates what He
wills, and Allah is over all things competent.”
Again the author of the Qur’an seems to
indicate that Mary is looked at (by Christians)
on the same level as Jesus is (God)
The passage wants to make clear that Jesus
and Mary are both created beings who can
be destroyed by Allah, why is Mary being
talked about in this passage?
But this is not the last time the
Qur’an seems to indicate this,
it gets even more obvious
Surah 5:116 (the obvious statement)
“And when Allah said: “O Jesus son of Mary!
Did you say to mankind: ‘Take me and my
mother for two gods other than Allah?” He
said: “Transcendent are You! It was not
mine to say that of which I had no right. In
saying it, then You knew it. You know what
is in my self, but I know not what is in You
self. It is You, only You, Who know well all
hidden things.”
It’s hard to get around this problem as a
Muslim, your Qur’an, the inspired words of
God written by an all knowing deity, did not
understand what the Christians actually
believed (and had believed for hundreds of
years) on the topic of the Trinity
Even if the modern Roman Catholic views of
Mary existed at the time (they didn’t) it
would still misrepresent the belief, no one
says Mary is God.
Close our conversation with Jeremiah 10:6-12
“Inasmuch as there is none like You, O LORD
(You are great, and Your name is great in
might), 7 Who would not fear You, O King of
the nations? For this is Your rightful due. For
among all the wise men of the nations, And in
all their kingdoms, There is none like You.
8 But they are altogether dull-hearted and
foolish; A wooden idol is a worthless
doctrine. 9 Silver is beaten into plates;…
…It is brought from Tarshish, And gold from
Uphaz, The work of the craftsman And of the
hands of the metalsmith; Blue and
purple are their clothing; They are all the
work of skillful men. 10 But the LORD is the
true God; He is the living God and the
everlasting King. At His wrath the earth will
tremble, And the nations will not be able to
endure His indignation. 11 Thus you shall say
to them:
…The gods that have not made the heavens
and the earth shall perish from the earth and
from under these heavens.” 12 He has made
the earth by His power, He has established
the world by His wisdom, And has stretched
out the heavens at His discretion.”
Realize the important of the issue we’ve
discussed, it is the primary difference
between us and the Muslim
When witnessing to them, don’t go off on
Muhammad marrying nine year old Aisha
Stick to who God is, is Jesus Christ God,
does the Qur’an accurate represent the
Christian beliefs (as it should
be able to do)
Memory Verse
The Shema: ““Hear, O Israel:
The LORD our God, the LORD is one!”
(Deuteronomy 6:4)