seiyaku

Differences between Christianity and Islam

There are significant differences between Islam and Christianity, both historical and contemporary, which this page points out. (See also similarities.)

Variety is the spice of life.

Life would be very drab if everyone was the same; we need variety. Unfortunately, when people differ from us, we can naturally feel superior or threatened.

Here, we look at the two largest religions in the world, and see just how they differ. (Of course, there are wild variations within each of the two religions; we are making very broad generalisations here.)

  • Christians believe in the Trinity; Muslims believe God is indivisible.
  • Christians believe that as a member of the Trinity, Jesus is the Son of God. Muslims regard Jesus as a highly honoured prophet, but not divine or the Son of God.
  • Christians believe Adam is guilty of disobeying God and that we all bear this Original Sin when we are born. We can be saved from this, and other sins, through accepting Jesus Christ's atonement. Christians believe that Jesus was crucified on a cross to atone for man's sins. Muslims believe that each person is born sin-less and must take personal responsibility for maintaining that state throughout life.
  • Many Bible stories are repeated in the Qur'an but some of the details differ. Not all of these differences can be explained by translation errors.
  • Secular law and morality are separate issues in Christian countries and they have secular governments. Islam considers law and morality are synonymous; the law is based on their moral code and politics are governed by the religion. 
  • Christians have a more relaxed view about what foods may be eaten. Islamic dietary law prohibits certain foods and drinks, including pork and alcohol.
  • It is mandatory for Muslims to face Mecca and recite a prescribed liturgy (salat) at five specific times every day. Christians have no such obligation. 
  • Increasingly, the Christian Church is tolerating people who are sexually attracted to the same sex; this is still largely forbidden in Islam. Christian men and women worship together; Muslims segregate the sexes. Polygamy is forbidden in the Christian Church; Muslim men may have more than one wife. Christian males and females may wear silk and gold, but in Islam only females are permitted to wear silk and gold.

These differences are significant and it's easy to see a real conflict of ideas. It's also easy to see how one person's belief can cause offence. And if one person offends another then it's natural for the other to take action. That action may be to walk away or ignore the offence, or retaliate. Retaliation is only expected if the offence is strong.

So for example, if you're a non-smoker and somebody smokes in your presence, you can either:

  1. ignore it or move away, or
  2. grumble at the smoker,
  3. shout at him,
  4. hit him,
  5. kill him,
  6. kill him, his family and randomly bomb anyone else who you might associate with him.

Now let's put those numbered reactions in the context of the Christian and Islamic differences. From a religious adherent's point of view, what number is appropriate? Number 1? Number 2?

Then why in Heaven's name do we, through electing our country's leaders, select the highest number?

Why?

Answer: Because some of us haven't yet grown up.

Early Christians leant strongly toward pacifism, but all that changed around the time Constantine merged religion with state governance, and with that, the use of violence.

At about this time, many religious holy texts were compiled and it's notable that they promote violence as well as love. The violence gave leaders the comfortable excuse of "just wars", "holy war", persecution, etc. Hence the violence of the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Church control of slavery, etc.

Leaders learned that they could promote their strongly-held moral beliefs through violence. Indeed, not so much "could", but they believed it was a Divine requirement. They all did it, or are still doing it. The Christian crusaders, Islamist jihadists, radical Zionists and even Buddhists, normally considered ultra-pacifists, who are currently attacking Muslims in Sri Lanka and Myanmar.

We are now in the 21st century, and most of us have grown up to realise what Jesus meant when he told Peter to put away his sword and commanded us to love our neighbours. 

But some of us haven't yet grown up.

If you would kill in the name of your religion, harm or even just hate somebody through following your beliefs, then sadly you aren't cut out to be religious and should quit. Take up something harmless instead, such as gardening or jogging.

Believe this: God doesn't want us to harm things He has created. 

Are we civilized, or are we thugs? As Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) wrote through Salvor Hardin in Foundation: "Violence, the last refuge of the incompetent."

Answer: For money and power, of course.

Lev. 19:33-34

Some Christian groups also practise segregation in certain contexts; for example, various Orthodox Jewish-style Christian sects, monasteries, conservative churches.

Islam doesn't universally require complete segregation in all settings; some communities have mixed prayer spaces or less strict arrangements.

Some groups identifying as Christian reject the Trinity, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses and Unitarians.

Eastern Orthodox Christianity does not frame inherited sin exactly the same way as Catholicism/Protestantism.

Historically, many Christian-majority countries had state churches and religious legal influence. Modern Western secularism developed partly in Christian societies, but not because Christianity universally requires secular government.

Classical Islamic thought generally integrates religion, law and ethics more closely than modern Western secularism does. But Muslim-majority countries vary enormously; some are highly secular, some apply Islamic law extensively, others are mixed systems.

Some Christia monastic or liturgical traditions do have fixed prayer hours.

privacy policy © seiyaku