May Allah have Mercy on the Muslim lands

Islam and Christianity, A Muslim perspective

Islam and Christianity are the two most powerful religious influences in the world today, both claiming billions of followers spread over a major portion of our planet. Let us briefly try to understand the etymology, origins and beliefs of both these religions, how they relate to each other, and where lies the truth.

The word “Islam” originates from the root S-L-M and is derived from the verb ‘Aslama’ which means Submission and obedience to Allah. This word occurs several times in the Quran e.g. Surah 3, Ayah 19. Prophet Muhammad is not the founder of Islam, since all the Prophets before him were also Muslims (submitting to Allah). The word “Christianity” is not a Christ given name nor is it to be found anywhere in the Bible. The word “Christian” was first used by the people of Antioch as a nickname for the followers of Christ [Acts 11:26]. Christianity was born after Jesus Christ and he was not its founder. It is a religion about Jesus and not a religion of Jesus. In fact, Prophet Jesus worshipped only Allah and obeyed Him, hence by definition was a Muslim.

We in Islam believe that Prophet Jesus was born miraculously without a father, that he was the Messiah (The Anointed One) for the Jews. We affirm that he gave life back to the dead, sight to those born blind and healing to the lepers by the permission of Allah. He never claimed to be God. The idea that Jesus was God in human form who should be worshipped evolved over time after him. The Quran calls the message that Prophet Jesus preached from God as The Injeel, which does not exist in its original form today. The present four canonical Gospels of the New Testament are four biographical sketches of Prophet Jesus, written at different dates, containing only a portion of his words. The rest of the New Testament comprises of letters of Saint Paul and others which they sent to different places.

The Quran speaks highly of Prophet Jesus and his mother Maryam and praises the uncorrupted Injeel, which Prophet Jesus received as “containing Guidance and Light”. The Quran is however, critical of those Christians who altered the Book of God for petty gains and formulated the doctrine of the Trinity, which is completely alien to the teachings of Prophet Jesus. The Qur’an denies the Crucifixion of Jesus and explains that Allah saved him from his enemies.

Jesus said to his disciples

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come." [John 16:12-13]

The Quran reveals the flaw in the Christian concept that Jesus died for our sins and teaches us “That no bearer of burden shall bear the burden of another. [Quran 53:38]”.

Prophet Jesus was the forerunner to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon them both). He gave the good news of the coming of Prophet Muhammad after him. Many passages in the present Gospels still retain prophecies about the coming of Prophet Muhammad. Prophet Jesus used many ways to explain the coming of Prophet Muhammad. He talked about the coming of “The Kingdom of God on Earth” and a “Paraclete” to come after him. He gave many details of the coming Prophet which can be read in the Gospel according to Saint John

We are taught in Islam to respect all the Prophets of God and make no distinction between one and another of them [Quran 3:84]. We thank Allah for making us the true inheritors of the message of all these Prophets including Prophet Jesus. When Prophet Jesus greeted people he said, “Peace be with you”. Who greets like that today, Christians or Muslims? He used to fast for more than a month. Who fasts today? He used to pray by putting his forehead on the ground. Who prays like that today? Who is really trying to imitate Jesus? I hope this brief article will educate to look into the truth of Islam.

Source: Mushafiq Sultan

Is Jesus God?

We at AskMuslims.com would like to learn from Christians why you think Jesus (peace be upon him) is the God? We are not looking for your opinion but the facts with the reference from Bible. Also when you give the reference we want to know which sect you belong to and which bible do you read. Once again we are want to invite all Christians to show us the proof.

OH! people who call themselves "Born again" remember Catholics and protestant, Jehovah's Witnesses etc all say they are born again so be more specific.

Thank you,

Peace.

Making the Internet mobile

Okay, I know I can’t be the only one, every time I try to search the Internet on my phone it turns into some sort of scrolling nightmare. A little to the left, a little further up. If only I could see over just a bit more. Rats! I’ll just wait till I get home and check the computer.

If only they could come up with a search engine that was optimized for your mobile device, guess what? Meet www.seego.com, designed specifically for iPhone, Palm Pre and Android. You can simply visit Seego.com on your mobile phone to browse thousands of compatible websites, and the list is growing very quickly.

Seego is seeing new websites launching specifically for the newest generation of smart phones at a rate of around 30-40 per day, and it’s no surprise that the fastest growth is coming from the social networking, image sharing etc.

The company checks and verifies that every site submitted to Seego is fully functional on the mobile web, so your frustrations are over.

Head on over to www.seego.com and send a link to your device, or submit your optimized site to be included in their listing, or if you have an iPhone, find them on iTunes.

Wow, the mobile web, the next logical step.

Source: www.seego.com; Julie