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Reading Islam
» Ask About Islam
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Last Update: 03:41 GMT, Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009
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| Question and
Answer Details |
| Name of Questioner |
Steve
- United States
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| Title |
The Role of Jesus |
| Date |
09/Jun/2003 |
| Question |
Dear friends,
Someone told me that in the Qur’an, Jesus' virgin birth is mentioned. Is this true? In what reference is this found?
Is Jesus considered a true prophet in your religion? If Jesus is a true prophet, how do you explain the claims that he made about himself, namely that he was the only way to God?
Thank you very much for your answers!
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| Topic |
Islamic Creed, Interfaith Issues
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| Name of Counselor |
Shahul Hameed
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| Answer
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Salaam Steve.
Thank you very much for your mail!
The Holy Qur’an refers to Jesus as al-Masih 'Isa ibn Maryam, that is the Messiah Jesus son of Mary. In fact this is an indirect way of saying that Jesus Christ was not God’s son, but rather Mary’s son. You may know that the Muslim scripture is emphatic in its statement that God is one and one only. In other words, the Muslims do not accept the Christian claim that Jesus was/is God, or one of the three constituents of God.
The Holy Qur’an clearly states that Jesus (peace be upon him) was miraculously born the son of the Virgin Mary. Muhammad (peace be upon him) recited the relevant verses revealed to him by Allah at a time when the Jews of Medina maliciously alleged that Jesus was an illegitimate son of Mary who claimed to be the Messiah. According to them, he deserved crucifixion because he was falsely claiming to be the promised Messiah of the Children of Israel. At the crucial moment, Allah vindicated His beloved Prophet Jesus by revealing that he was in fact the Messiah and a true prophet of God, and that he had been miraculously born to Virgin Mary.
The Holy Qur’an narrates the story as follows in Surah 19, verses 16-35:
*{And mention Mary in the Book when she drew aside from her family to an eastern place; So she took a veil (to screen herself) from them; then We sent to her Our spirit, and there appeared to her a well-made man. She said: Surely I fly for refuge from you to the Beneficent Allah, if you are one guarding (against evil). He said: I am only a messenger of your Lord: That I will give you a pure boy. She said: When shall I have a boy and no mortal has yet touched me, nor have I been unchaste? He said: Even so; your Lord says: It is easy to Me: and that We may make him a sign to men and a mercy from Us, and it is a matter which has been decreed. So she conceived him… And she came to her people with him, carrying him (with her). They said: O Mary! Surely you have done a strange thing. O sister of Aaron! Your father was not a bad man, nor, was your mother an unchaste woman. But she pointed to him. They said: How should we speak to one who was a child in the cradle? He (the baby Jesus) said: Surely I am a servant of Allah; He has given me the Book and made me a prophet; And He has made me blessed wherever I may be, and He has enjoined on me prayer and poor-rate so long as I live; And dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me insolent, unblessed; And peace on me on the day I was born, and on the day I die, and on the day I am raised to life. Such is Jesus, son of Mary; (this is) the saying of truth about which they dispute. It beseems not Allah that He should take to Himself a son, glory to be Him! When He has decreed a matter He only says to it "Be," and it is.}*
With regards to your second question, namely is Jesus considered a true prophet in your religion: Most assuredly, he is a true prophet of Islam. Please understand that Islam was not founded by Muhammad (peace be on him), rather he was the last Prophet in a long line of prophets who all carried the same message of the Oneness of God. All the prophets of God including Abraham, Moses and Jesus (peace be upon them all) were true prophets of Islam, which means the religion of submission to Allah (God).
Allah commands the believers in the Qur’an, in Surah 3, verse 84:
*{Say: We believe in Allah and what has been revealed to us, and what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord; we do not make any distinction between any of them, and to Him do we submit.}*
And of Jesus in particular, Allah says in the Qur’an in Surah 5, verse 75:
*{The Messiah, son of Mary, was no other than a messenger, messengers (the like of whom) had passed away before him. And his mother was a saintly woman. And they both used to eat (earthly) food. See how We make the revelations clear for them, and see how they are turned away!}*
Similarly, Allah says in Surah 4, verse 171:
*{O People of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His word which He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers, and say not "Three" - Cease! (it is) better for you! - Allah is only One Allah. Far is it removed from His Transcendent Majesty that He should have a son. His is all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. And Allah is sufficient as Defender.}*
The above verses clearly state that Jesus was a prophet of Allah and a human of miraculous birth. Islam is unwavering in its stance that Allah alone deserves the worship and obedience of the human race and not Jesus or any other mortal being for that matter.
Finally, in response to you question "if Jesus is a true prophet, how do you explain the claims that he made about himself, namely that he was the only way to God?":
In John 14:6, we find Jesus answering a question of Thomas:
“Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me.'”
Based upon this verse, to hold that Jesus was God is untenable for the following reasons:
1. Jesus here is speaking of himself as the way to the Father. He does not say that he is the Father, or he is God.
2. The expression, “the truth” does not mean God. In the context it can only mean that he is the conveyor of the truth.
3. The expression, “the life” also does not mean God. In the context it means that, by following the way of Jesus (or by accepting the truth that Jesus brought) one can attain eternal life in the hereafter.
Thus the argument that Jesus was claiming to be God is obviously flawed. The words “no one comes to the Father, but by me” need not mean that he is denying the role of all other prophets. It only means that to those people he addressed, he was the only “way.”
In Islam, this concept is knows as the prophetic sunna, or the way taught by a particular prophet to his nation in which the way to God's Pleasure is defined. In this regards, Jesus was correct in his claim that the only way for his people to please God was through the example that he set. However, the "way" of a particular prophet is abrogated and often modified by a subsequent Prophet, as is the case with Jesus (peace be upon him).
With the advent of Muhammad (peace be upon him), the rules of the Sacred Law changed slightly to accompany the times and will remain unchanged and unabrogated until the Day of Judgment, as he is the final Prophet of Allah sent to the entire mankind. Nevertheless, the beliefs (as opposed to the Law) taught by the Prophet Muhammad are the same as the original monotheistic teachings of Jesus. The Trinitarian doctrine of modern Christianity was a later addition to the religion and does not reflect the true message of Christ.
I hope the foregoing answers your questions. I urge you to search our site for more information about Islam and its comparative relationship to Christianity.
Thank you and please stay in touch.
Useful links:
The Seal of Prophets
Was Muhammad a Prophet?
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