Comparing Christianity And Islam Essay

At first glance, the religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam look more different than alike, but this is only scratching the surface. It all begins with the oldest of the three religions, Judaism. From Judaism came the sect of Christianity, which emerged after the death of Jesus and has since become the largest religion in the world today. Nearly six hundred years later Muhammad becomes the founder of Islam, a religion that prays to the same God as Jews and Christians do. The biggest similarities between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are their belief in God, the practices of their religion, and their belief in an afterlife. The biggest differences between these three religions are how they view the role of Jesus in their religion and

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are Abrahamic religions that recognize Abraham as one of the prophets of God. This shows that they share similar roots with each other as their history is intertwined together. Each religion also has a sacred holy book that informs followers how to live their life in accordance to God. Due to this, they are all referred to as ‘People of the Book’ because they were given revelations from God. As stated in the Qur’an from Al- 'Ankabut Chapter twenty-nine verse forty-six, "We [Muslims] believe in that which has been sent down to us and has been sent down to you [Jews and Christians]. And our God and your God is One..." (The Noble Qur’an). This quote says that Muslims (contrary to misconception) should respect Judaism and Christianity because God also revealed their religion to them in their respective holy books. The Tanakh, Bible, and Qur’an more or less have the same message of loving God, helping others, and being a devoted person to your given religion. Another similarity is how closely related the practices are. All of them worship and pray to God in either a synagogue, church, or mosque. The three religions celebrate holidays that are unique to their faith, such as Hanukkah being observed by Jews, Christians performing religious ceremonies on Easter, and Muslims commemorating the end of the Hajj to Mecca through Eid al-Adha. Also,

Christians view Jesus as the son of God and part of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). They believe Jesus to be the incarnation of God in the flesh who was sent to Earth to atone for man’s sins. In fact, because of this belief that Jesus was a divine being, Christianity, the once small sect of Judaism, manifested into its own religion incorporating Christ’s teachings. Specifically, Christians see Jesus as the Messiah that was promised in the Old Testament, whereas Jews don’t and are still awaiting for him to come. Muslims consider Jesus as one of the prophets of God, interestingly he was the last prophet before Muhammad. To Muslims, Jesus is also the messenger of God for the people of Israel, but he is not regarded as the son of God. Judaism, on the other hand, does not recognize Jesus as either the son of God, a divine being, the messenger of God, or even as a prophet of God. Instead, he is viewed as just another ordinary Jew with no special connection to God. The other difference between these three faiths is how they view human nature. To Christians, man is thought to already be born with sin, due to Adam and Eve, who betrayed God’s trust, thus condemning the rest of humanity. As exemplified in Psalms Chapter five verse two, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me” (King James Bible Online). On the other