Islam vs Christianity — Differences between Islam and Christianity
It should be noted that Islam and Christianity are two monotheistic religions, that is, they believe in one God who is the creator of all things. In this way, in both religions, Jesus is a very important figure and is worshiped although in different ways. In addition to this, conceptions of man, original sin, resurrection, and God are different.
That is why, it is evident that there are fundamental differences that appear when we do Islam vs Christianity, these religions, which will be exposed in this article after defining them in a particular way.
Islam
First of all, Islam is synonymous with Islamism, this being the religion of the Muslims, which was formed in 622 in Mecca, the Arabian Peninsula, where Muhammad was visited by the angel Gabriel and told him to start writing the word of the only and true God, Allah. Additionally, Islamism, in addition to religion, is also considered an ideology, since its followers consider that Islam should encompass the religious and political life of believers.
Among some of the most important beliefs of Islam we have:
- There is only one God called Allah.
- Jesus is a prophet born of a virgin, but he is not the Son of God.
- Sin is disobedience to the established law, which does not afflict Allah.
- Man is created by Allah and has no original sin but becomes a sinner when he rebels against Allah.
- They accept the Christian Bible in accordance with the Qur’an (their holy book), which is the final revelation of Allah to all mankind given through the Archangel Gabriel to Muhammad.
- Muhammad is the last in the line of the prophets and therefore, he is the final authority in spiritual matters.
- All Muslims go to heaven, although some must purge their sins first.
- All non-Muslims are destined to go to hell.
Finally, the Islamists do not believe in the crucifixion, since, according to their beliefs, Jesus was not crucified but someone was put in the place of Jesus and he hid until he could meet the disciples. Therefore, the fact of not believing in the crucifixion determines the fact of not believing in the resurrection, just as Jesus did for Christianity.
Christianity
Mainly, Christianity represents the religion of Christians, that is, of believers in Christ. It is a monotheistic religion that indicates the existence of a single god based on the life and teachings attributed to Jesus of Nazareth. This had its beginnings in the first half of the 1st century with the arrival of the Messiah (Jesus), specifically, in the Anno Domini (the year of the Lord).
Christianity was originally considered a sectarian doctrine of the Orthodox Jews but later became the official religion of the Roman Empire. Some of the most important beliefs in Christianity are:
- There is only one God formed by three people (trinity): father, son, and the holy spirit.
- Jesus is the son of God and messiah, born of the virgin Mary who came into the world for the redemption of the sins of humanity.
- All human beings are born with original sin, which is transmitted from father to son due to the disobedience of Adam and Eve (the first settlers on earth).
- The bible is the inspired and infallible word of God, which is complete and requires no additions.
- Christians consider heaven to be the final home of Christians who are saved by the grace of God.
- They believe that Jesus died on the cross, therefore, the cross is the tree of salvation and symbol of Christianity.
Finally, Christians believe in the resurrection of Jesus on the third day, as the Bible refers to. In this way, all Christians will rise from the dead and enjoy divine grace for all eternity.