Jesus and Muhammad: Two of Religions Most Recognized Men

Written by: Kelly L. Hunter

The religions of our world seem to be connected in many ways; whether it is through similar belief systems or through similar rituals and practices. So why does religion seem to be what divides us all instead of uniting us as people? Take for instance the Christian and Islamic faiths; these two religions share similar beliefs and yet for centuries these religions have been battling over who is right and who is wrong through war and other various forms of genocide.
Islam originated in Saudi Arabia while Christianity originated in Israel. It has been said that Christianity as well as Judaism was derived from that of the Islamic faith (Fisher, 2005). While Islam acknowledges the life of Jesus, Muslims believe that Muhammad was God’s messenger. Muhammad was born in 570 CE and was considered to be the last prophet sent by Allah (God) to restore the true meaning of Islam as a religion (Fisher, 2005). The one factor or belief that these two religions do seem to share for certain is the belief that we are all ancestors of Abraham.
Although Allah is the center focusing point in Islam, the life and journeys of the Prophet Muhammad are also very important to the faith (Fisher, 2005). According to Fisher, “Muhammad’s life story is important to Muslims, for his character is considered a model of the teachings in the Qur’an” (Fisher, 2005). These stories of his life can be found in the Hadith; a book that was created to spread the word of his teachings (Fisher, 2005). Sadly, Muhammad lost both of his parents at an early age and was later raised by his uncle (Fisher, 2005).
At the age of twenty-five, Muhammad married a much older woman in which he was employed, her name was Khadijah; she was fifteen years his senior. It has been said that Khadijah was Muhammad’s biggest supporter in his faith and teachings during the earliest times of his mission (Fisher, 2005). These were very difficult times for Muhammad and with his wife’s supportive nature and understanding of his spiritual conquest; Muhammad would spend long periods of time alone. This time alone gave Muhammad the chance to open his mind and think clearly about his mission and spirituality (Fisher, 2005).
According to Fisher, at the age of forty, Muhammad was visited by an angle named Gabriel while on a spiritual retreat during Ramadan (Fisher, 2005). It has been said that Gabriel forcibly requested that Muhammad recite what later became known as the first words of the Qur’an (Fisher, 2005). Muhammad was quite disturbed by these events and went home to seek comfort from his wife. The revelations continued over a period of time and he would discuss them with only his wife and closest friends who believed in him. A period of three years past and Muhammad was instructed by these revelations to spread these messages to the public (Fisher, 2005).
Muhammad did as he was instructed and found that not everyone believed in his message as his wife and friends did. He experienced tremendous amounts of ridicule and was even stoned by the people of his tribe; and although he was somewhat protected by his uncle, his followers were not (Fisher, 2005).
Many people were imprisoned and forced to discredit Muhammad’s teachings. It has also been said that Muhammad and his followers were cast out of their tribe and forced to live in the wilderness where they struggled to survive, eating whatever they could find and even eating things like tree leaves (Fisher, 2005). Muhammad and his followers were later permitted to return to their homeland; however, with the death of his wife and influential and protective uncle, Muhammad experienced even more hatred. This time period was known as the “Year of Sorrows” (Fisher, 2005).
There were later accounts that Muhammad experienced what is called the “Night of Ascension”. According to Fisher, Muhammad transcended through the seven heavens and far into the cosmos where he encountered all the prophets including Jesus (Fisher, 2005). Jesus is said to be the son of God or the only incarnate of God by the followers of Christianity. Jesus was born approximately two-thousand years ago in Palestine (Fisher, 2005). His life has been said to have taken place during 4-30 CE. According to Fisher, “There is very little historical proof of the life of Jesus outside of the Bible, but extensive scholarly research has turned up some shreds of evidence” (Fisher, 2005). Fisher goes on to discuss the writings of Jewish historian, Josephus, who was born in approximately 37 CE. Apparently Josephus wrote about two different instances involving Jesus, thus giving proof that Jesus did in fact exist (Fisher, 2005).
The main source of information provided to Christians regarding the life of Jesus has been the Bible; particularly the first four books of the New Testament (Fisher, 2005). These books are referred to as the “Gospels”, which means good news. According to some studies, these books were not written until approximately forty to sixty years after the death of Jesus. The original books were said to be written in two different languages; Greek, and Aramaic, which were the two languages said to have been spoken by Jesus himself. These books were later translated and rewritten many times over for centuries (Fisher, 2005).
As stated by Fisher, “Three of the gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, are so similar that they are called the synoptic gospels” (Fisher, 2005). Fisher goes on to say that “It is now thought that the author of Mark put together many fragments of oral tradition in order to develop a connective narrative about Jesus’ life and ministry, for the sake of propagating the faith” (Fisher, 2005). Much like the Bible and biblical texts, the Christian religion itself has been revised over the centuries and has even divided itself into many different branches of the religion.
There are various versions of the Bible that are used in the many different Christian churches today. You have the Hebrew Bible which is also called the Old Testament by some, the Apocrypha (a non-canonical Jewish text) also known as the Deuterocanonical books by Orthodox Christians, and the twenty-seven books of the New Testament which were said to have been written after the early missions of Jesus (Fisher, 2005).
It has been said that Jesus went with his parents Mary and Joseph on a trip to Jerusalem during Passover when he was only twelve years old. His parents left him behind by mistake and later found him in a temple. It has also been said that Jesus was discussing the teachings of the Torah with the temple’s rabbi. People were so impressed by his knowledge and understanding at such a young age. He has been reported as saying that he was in his father’s house (Fisher, 2005).
More is known about the life of Muhammad than the life of Jesus. What we do know is that both Jesus and Muhammad are held very sacred in their religions and close to the hearts of their followers. Both Christianity and Islam project themselves as loving and peaceful religions. Christians believe that Jesus died on the cross for all of mankind’s sins; while Muslims believe that Muhammad was chosen by God and dedicated his life to restore the faith and teachings of Islam.
In today’s society, both religions while trying to maintain the original beliefs and teachings of each religion have also contorted the religions to better serve societal change. Most of our world’s religions have been altered in this way in order to rightly serve contemporary lifestyles. It is important to remember that even though most of us believe in God; God means many different things to the people that inhabit this Earth. It is also important to remember that even though we may call our God by different names; the message that we believe in is a message of love and acceptance of diversity. Unfortunately religion is like everything else in a world were domination means power. There will always be someone or group of people who want to rule the land and who feel that their beliefs are more superior to others.


References

Fisher, M. Living Religions Sixth Edition. Pretence-Hall. (2005). P285-361.