Flip the Coin onto its Edge
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Flip the Coin onto its Edge
Bridging Beliefs: Jesus and Muhammad's Shared Wisdom
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Flip the Coin On Its Edge
SPEAKER_00Hello and welcome to Flip the Coin onto its edge. I'm your host, Michael Papa Newton. We work, we raise families, we may even engage in marriage. We must have time of having our own fun and excitement. All these pull at us psychologically like four strong horses of responsibility, tethered to our limbs and pulling in four different directions. No wonder we don't have the opportunities to study the classics of philosophy, spirituality, religion, and the holy books of other religions not dominant in our culture and regions. Fortunately, since college, I find these topics, plus science and mythology, fun and entertaining for my mind. For over 20 years I have studied these topics and various holy books of the major religions to make myself a better person, not a better Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, or Taoist. Today we sincerely explore the harmony between the teachings of Jesus and Muhammad. We seek to understand their shared philosophies, like wisdom and charity that both religious leaders offer to their followers. Additionally, we will reflect on the responsibility and efforts followers of both faiths can undertake to foster mutual understanding.
The similarities between Jesus and Muhammad
SPEAKER_00Just a reminder, tap the button to follow this podcast. Now into our show. Muhammad was born approximately five hundred and seventy years after Jesus. He received his first revelation when he was forty years old. For Muslims, commonalities between the teachings of Jesus and Muhammad are hardly news. Muhammad did not claim any originality. The religion of Islam that he preached was not a new religion. He carried on the message that Abraham, Moses, and Jesus had taught before him. Muslims show equal respect to Moses and Jesus. In the Quran, God declares, Verily we sent down the Torah to Moses, wherein is guidance and light, Quran Surah V, Ayah forty-four. And it says, We gave him Jesus, the gospel with its guidance and light, Quran Surah Vaya forty six. It is the religious duty of every Muslim to go to the sayings of Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, and other seers of the past and highlight their common commitment to monotheism and responsible lifestyles, connecting humans with their creator and with one another. The Quran commands Muslims to invite the followers of Moses and Jesus to help them identify common grounds and promote cooperation for doing good and preventing harm. Most Christians learn about Islam through distorted images presented in the media. Although Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all began in the Middle East, only Islam is widely portrayed as a Middle Eastern religion. Although many Westerners associate Islam with terrorism, we must not allow a few fanatics to define Islam. Christians would never permit non-Christians to describe Christianity as a violent religion just because some American leaders, such as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegesith, used Christian nationalistic rhetoric, invoking dosbo, God's will in, and framing the American-Iran War as a divine eschatological battle, permitting outsiders to define Christianity and Islam perpetuates mistrust and ignorance and ultimately fosters a client, a climate that contributes to violence between the practitioners of both faiths. Dialogue between Christians and Muslims is necessary, since it breaks down the barriers of ignorance and prejudice that fuel hostility and violence. The theologian Hans Kang has said that we must first have peace between religions. If we are ever to have peace between nations, because our rapidly emerging global civilization is now, for the first time in history, bringing Muslims and Christians into close contact with one another, it is essential that Christians and Muslims learn how to get along. One way for Christians and Muslims to understand one another is for each to read the scriptural texts of Christianity and Islam and to study the founders of each religious tradition. We must go back to the sources, namely the classical texts and figures of both religions, if Christians and Muslims are to ever truly understand one another. An examination of Jesus and Muhammad and the scriptures that document their teachings can open a dialogue that recognizes the many similarities between both religions. What,
Christianity and Islam
SPEAKER_00you may ask, do Christians and Muslims have in common with one another? Christianity and Islam emerge from the same cultural sphere in the Middle East. Both claim Abraham as their spiritual ancestor, and Christian and Islamic cultural, historical, and religious traditions all emanate from the same geographical and historical source. Christianity and Islam are religions of ethical monotheism. Both claim that there is only one loving God, just who is the source and sustainer of creation, and who expects humans to love one another. Christianity and Islam are historical religions. Both believe that God acts through history. Christianity and Islam are religions of revelation. Christianity and Islam teach that God has communicated or revealed something of God's own self and will in special ways through particular persons for the edification and salvation of humanity. Both traditions teach that revelation comes through two special vehicles, scriptures and prophets. The Christian community considers Jesus to be the of the ancient Israelite succession of prophets. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus discusses the Jewish scriptures and emphasizes their relevance. He stresses that his teachings do not conflict with the earlier Jewish revelation, but are a continuation of the ancient prophetic teachings of the Hebrew Bible. Like Jesus, Muhammad taught that his own ministry was a continuation of what came before. Jesus and Muhammad stressed their connection with previous revelation, which they both considered still valid. Many Christians will be surprised to learn that Muslims view Christianity in much the same way Christians regard Judaism. Christianity considers itself a continuation of the message spoken by the prophets in the Hebrew Bible. Christianity therefore accepts the Hebrew Bible as a book that still speaks to contemporary Christians. Likewise, Muslims consider the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament to be prophetic revelations that speak to contemporary Muslims. Moreover, the Quran teaches that although each prophet has his or her own unique characteristics, they all hold one teaching in common, namely their trust in one gracious and merciful God. Christians and Muslims, however, must first return to the sources, the Bible and the Quran, if they are to ever understand one another. Once Christians and Muslims open these books, they will discover that these texts contain the same message, namely that Christians and Muslims are children of the same spiritual ancestors, that Christians and Muslims believe in the same God, and that Christians and Muslims should seek to live in peace together.
Jesus vs Muhammad
SPEAKER_00Let's look at some topics discussed by both men. First we'll look at wisdom. Muslims believe that God sends prophets and sacred books to teach people their duty to God and humanity. Muhammad, according to Islamic belief, was the last of the prophets. He was preceded by Jesus and the prophets of the Hebrew Bible, including Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David. All these individuals attempted to dispel the darkness of ignorance and enlighten humanity with knowledge of their transcendent reality of the one God. Muhammad said, acquire knowledge. It enables its possessor to distinguish right from wrong. It likes the way to heaven. It is our friend in the desert, our company in solitude, our companion when friendless. It guides us to happiness. It sustains us in misery. It is an ornament among friends and an armor against enemies. Like the Quran, the Bible declares that all wisdom stems from a central tenet. There is only one God, a compassionate and merciful God, who created the heavens and the earth and all its inhabitants, and whose omnipotence and glory can be witnessed in his awe-inspiring creation. Both Jesus and Muhammad would agree with the poetic words of the psalmist. The heavens declare the glory of God. The skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech. Night after night they display knowledge. On wisdom, Jesus said, There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. Muhammad says God brings forth what is hidden in the heaven and the earth, and knows what you hide and what you make manifest. Do not throw your pearls to pigs at Matthew seven six. Muhammad said You truly cannot guide whom you love, but God guides whom He will, and He best knows those who yield to guidance. Quran number twenty eight verse fifty six. Ayah Jesus further on wisdom. Watch out, be on your guard against all kinds of greed. A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possession. Luke twelve, fifteen. Muhammad on wisdom. The present life is nothing but a pastime and a sport, but truly the next abode is life indeed, if only they knew Quran twenty nine sixty four. Jesus exclaims Though seeing they do not see, though hearing they do not hear or understand. Matthew thirteen thirteen. Muhammad exclaims They have hearts, hearts with which they do not understand. They have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Now we consider charity. Like Jesus, Muhammad advocated honoring parents, protecting orphans and widows, and giving charity to the needy. Charity, both leaders taught, helps alleviate the suffering of others, bringing about a more just society. In Islam, charity is called zakat, an Arabic word that literally means purity, because giving charity helps us surrender some of our greed, purifying our souls. Paying zakat is compulsory, just like the tithe commanded in the Bible. Charitable contributions made beyond the obligatory zakat are called sadaka, like the Hebrew word zedaka, meaning justice or righteousness, since giving charity helps correct any injustice in the world. What we do with money in this life is a true test of our worth as human beings. God bestows wealth upon us as a trust, both leaders taught, to see whether we disperse it to help the needy and oppressed, contributing to the good of all humanity. As Muhammad recited, those who are saved from their own greed will prosper. Quran 59 9. Like Muhammad, Jesus urged people to give up their love of material possessions to focus all their energies on helping others. If you want to be perfect, Jesus exclaimed, go sell your possession and give to the poor, and you will have treasures in heaven. Matthew nineteen twenty one. Muhammad concurred, you will never attain righteousness until you give of what you love, and whatever you give, God truly knows it. Jesus says I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. Thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you invited me in. I needed clothes and you clothed me. I was sick and you looked after me. I was in prison and you came to visit. Matthew twenty five thirty five thirty six. Muhammad says Whoever alleviates the lot of a needy person, God will alleviate his lot in this world and the next the fortieth Hadi of Anawi thirty six. Jesus expressed a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So to a Levite when he came to the place and saw him pass by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was, and when he saw him he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. Look after him, he said, and when I return I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have. Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers? Luke ten thirty thirty seven. Muhammad expressed, a man travelling along a road felt extremely thirsty, and went down to a well and drank. When he came up, he saw a dog panting with thirst and licking the moist earth. This animal, the man said, is suffering from thirst just as much as I was. So he went down to the well again, filled his shoe with water, and taking it in his teeth, climbed out of the well and gave the water to the dog. God was pleased with his act and granted him pardon for his sins. There will be a reward for anyone who gives water to a being that has a tender heart. Hadith A Burka Book forty number eleven. Jesus exclaims Freely you receive, freely give Matthew ten eight. Muhammad exclaims Let not those who are stingy in giving away things that God has granted them from his bounty think that this will be good for them. No, it will be bad for them, for what they hoarded will be hung around their necks on the day of resurrection. Jesus said How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God Mark ten twenty three. Muhammad said Renounce the world and God will love you. Renounce what people possess and people will love you.
Wisdom and Charity in Christianity and Islam
SPEAKER_00Fourtieth Hadith of Anawi Number thirty one. That's all we have time for today, my friend. I appreciate you tuning in to this week's episode. Today we sincerely started exploring the perspectives of Jesus and Muhammad on wisdom and charity. We also took time to understand some of the commonalities between Christians and Muslims. Next time we look forward to delving deeper into their lives and some beliefs about them. Remember, I advise you to Not to accept everything you hear in this podcast without testing it yourself. It has to resonate with you personally. Believing often carries doubt. The real secret to success is to know the laws of life, not just believe in them. When you take the time to test these laws and principles, you'll truly come to understand. For your own good, keep an open mind for new ideas. This will help you better understand and evaluate what you're learning. And don't forget, if you found value here, click the button to follow this podcast. Remember, God woke you up this morning for a reason. Now go out and find out why.