Islam vs. Christianity Essay

Christianity and Islam have many similarities and can easily be compared to one another. Both trace their roots to Abraham. Both believe in prophecy, God’s messengers (apostles), revelation, scripture, the resurrection of dead, and the centrality of religious community. This last element is especially important. Both Christianity and Islam have a communitarian dimension: what the church is to Christianity the â€Å"umma† is to Islam. Despite these significant similarities, however, these two world religions have a number of significant differences as well. I will discuss 3 topics and go into detail about their moral teachings, roles and responsibilities (duties) and social justice issues, I will also be discussing their similarities and differences. The prophet Muhammad said: â€Å"I have been sent to perfect the morals†. The Quran is the criterion (furqan). Anything that contradicts the Quran is not from Islam. When it comes something like divorce in the Islam r eligion the bible says {2:231} And when you divorce women and they reach their prescribed time, then either retain them in good fellowship or set them free with liberality, and do not retain them for injury, so that you exceed the limits, and whoever does this, he indeed is unjust to his own soul;†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ this means that God encourages the husband and wife to appoint arbitrators as the first step to aid in reconciliation in the process of divorce. If the reconciliation step fails, both men and women are guaranteed their right to divorce as established in the Qur’an, but the question lies in what is the procedure for each. When the man initiates a divorce, it is known as talaq. However it is different in the Christianity religion; it says that the ending of the legal union between two married people is called divorce. Throughout most ages and societies forms of divorce have existed. Divorce is an unnatural act. It states in Matthew 19:8-9 ~ 8 Jesus replied, â€Å"Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning.   I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.† Also Christians believe in the concept of â€Å"Original Sin† which means that human beings are born as sinners, bearing the burden of the â€Å"Original Sin† of Adam and Eve. Muslims do not believe in the † Original Sin† for 2 main reasons; In the Quran, God forgave Adam for what he has done, and according to the Quran, no  one should be made to bear the burden of someone else’s sin or mistake because it is unfair. A similarity that the Islam religion and Christianity religion have is People should follow the Ten Commandments and the moral teachings of the prophets. Islam, being religion of nature, understands that human beings are born with varying gifts. As they differ in their bodies and their features so they differ in their mental and other capabilities. Islam ensures just and equitable distribution of wealth among the people and, on the other hand, provides social security to the poor and the destitute in the form of basic necessities of life. Besides that, Islam also protects the weak from the economic exploitation by the strong. All there are various aspects and manifestations of what is called Islamic social justice. In Christianity, what then, is social justice in Biblical terms? â€Å"Justice† and â€Å"righteousness† are part of a way of life, which God expects of us as His people (see e.g. Micah 6:8; Ps. 11:7; 1John 3:7). This stems from the kind of character, which we possess, and is in turn the reflection of what God Himself is and how He acts (1John 3:7). Social justice is essentially the outworking of this way of life in our relationships with others. It is not an option that we may accept or avoid at our choice; it is a necessary part of our practical Christian living. Peace is central to these 2 faiths. This is reflected historically in their use of similar greetings meaning â€Å"peace be upon you†: pax vobiscum in Christianity, and salaam alaikum in Islam. Often, however, the greeting of peace has been meant primarily for members of one’s own faith community. Each religion has its own roles and responsibilities, the Islam religion have there responsibilities for husbands and rights of the wife; there are four main rolls for wife’s in marriage, the first is Obeys husband on matters not against Islam, the second is Ensures the conjugal rights of the husbands; this means that With respect to intimacy, a wife may not deny herself to her husband. As this is one of the reasons why Islam legalizes marriage, because in Islam sexual intimacy is only applicable strictly to husband and wife. The third is Protects husband’s honor and property this includes to not receive anyone in his home whom he does not like. In case, she’s entrusted with any funds, she must discharge her duty wisely and thriftily. The fourth is to manage the household and upbringing of children’s welfare. The husband’s roles and responsibility is to provide  mahr (dowry), Serves as protector and the guardian of the wife, and Treats wife with kindness and fairness, which means to never throw vulgarity at the wife. In Christianity besides of the mans role of providing for the family and the women’s role says the ability to properly manage the household it says God created for husband and wife to share in the same goals but have different roles. Together they compliment one another and work together in harmony. A similarity is that Christianity and Islam believe that people should follow the Ten Commandments and the moral teachings of the prophets. When discussing differences between Christian and Islam worship, we should also note that Muslims are very attentive not just to the interior aspects of worship but to the external aspects as well. In this Muslims have much more in common with Eastern Christianity than with Western Christianity, especially Protestantism. Like E astern Christians, Muslims use their whole body in prayer. Both groups, for instance, make prostrations before God in their worship. This research project has helped/shape and strengthens my own views on another faith and my own faith, which is Christianity, I have earned a lot about Islam and I never knew that it could have some similarities to the Christian faith. When it comes to the principals, values and traditions of Christianity that I will pass on to my children and hopefully they can pass it on to theirs to keep the Christian faith going on for more generations.