A Common Word in Religion - Essay Example

?How Far Does (A Common Word) Mark A New Beginning In Muslim Attitudes Towards Christian Scripture? Introduction In a place called Safawi (situated inside of eastern Jordanian desert), there stands an exclusive, solitary tree. The tree is estimated to be around 1,500 years old and the surrounding area does not have any single tree. The tree is approximately 6 to 8 meters tall and this is regardless of its breadth and age. It is a form of pistachio (butum tree) found only in Jordan and the surrounding nations. It was under this tree that “A Common Word” was initiated. On 13 September 2006, Pope Benedict XVI gave a statement concerning Islam at the University of Regensburg, Germany. His remarks instigated demonstrations by the Muslim community all over the world (Muhammad, Volf, and Yarrington 2010, p3). Arguably, it is because of this speech that “A Common Word” was born, and a letter addressed to Christian leaders across the world titled “A Common Word” written by a group of prominent Muslims. The letter has led to immense debate from both the Muslims and Christians and thus the paper will discuss the extent to which “A Common Word” marks a new beginning in Muslim attitudes towards the Christian scripture. The paper will also discuss the extent to which “A Common Word” makes use of the Biblical texts and the level to which it rejects tahrif (that is, falsification in the Bible). The paper will discuss Muslim scholars’ attitudes toward Christian scripture before the inception of “A Common Word”. Definition of “A Common Word” and its Purpose A month after the speech of Pope Benedict XVI, 38 leading Muslim scholars from different countries wrote an open letter to the Pope. In the letter, Muslims scholars voiced their apprehensions concerning the speech. On 13th October 2007, 138 prominent Muslim leaders, scholars, authors and intellectuals from all over the world delivered an open letter to Pope Benedict XVI and other major Christian leaders. The letter was titled “A Common Word between Us and You.” The phrase “A Common Word between Us and You” was derived from the Holy Quran and it called on all Christians and Jews (as people of the Scripture) to respect and live in peace with Muslims (Muhammad, Volf, and Yarrington 2010, p3). The phrase is drawn from Aal ‘Imran 3:64 which states: Say: O People of the Scripture! Come to a common word between us and you: that we shall worship none but God, and that we shall ascribe no partner unto Him, and that none of us shall take others for lords beside God. And if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we are they who have surrendered (unto Him). Based on the Holy Bible and Holy Quran, the letter proposed that Christianity and Islam share the golden directives of the principal significance of loving one’s neighbour and loving God. Through this common ground, the open letter called for harmony and peace between Muslims and Christians worldwide. A Common Word was and is a comprehensive universal handshake of interreligious fellowship, friendship, and goodwill and subsequently of universal peace. A Common Word (ACW) has generated a considerable debate, numerous conferences, and articles and led to the rise of other initiatives. However, this has not resulted in peace between the Christians and Muslims (the goal of the ACW open letter). Instead, it has resulted in the reduction of tensions between the Christians and Muslims who make up over 55 percent of the global population. It is a document, which utilizes religion as the solution or answer to the issue of interreligious tensions. The document finds its foundation in the scriptures and traditions of Islam, Christianity, and Judaism and is grounded on the commandments to love the neighbour and to love God (The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2012, p9). ACW has established to the Muslims and Christians that they possess a particular common ground notwithstanding their intricate theological differences. It has also shown that both religions need them to possess relations that are not based on hatred (The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2012, p9). As earlier stated, Christians and Muslims comprise of over 50 percent of the global population. Without justice and peace between these two communities, meaningful peace in the universe cannot exist. The future of the universe is entirely dependent on peace between the Christians and Muslims (The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2009, p6). The foundation for this understanding and peace is present. It is a part of the initial principles of both religions: love of the neighbour and the love of God (Muhammad, Volf & Yarrington 2010). These principles are present in the sacred texts used by Christians and Muslims; the bible and the Quran. God’s unity, the requirement of love for Him, and the requirement to love the neighbour is the common foundation between Christianity and Islam. The Holy Quran speaks of God’s unity and it states that “Say: He is God, the One! God, the Self-Sufficient Besought of all! (Al-Ikhlas 112:1-2)”. In regards to the requirement to love God, the Holy Quran states, “So invoke the name of thy Lord and devote thyself to Him with a complete devotion” (Al-Muzzammil 73:8). Of the necessity of love for the neighbour, the Prophet Muhammad said, “None of you has faith until you love for your neighbour what you love for yourself”(The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2009, p7). In the Holy Bible, the same sentiments are echoed by Jesus Christ in the New Statement. He states that, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these (Mark 12:29-31)”. In compliance with the Holy Quran, the Muslims are calling upon the Christians through “A Common Word” to join them in obeying God’s commandments (the twin commandments of love) (The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2009, p8). Corruption in the Bible from the Quran and the Perspective of Earlier Muslim Scholars Tahrif basically is a term used by Muslims to the corruption of the bible by Jews and Christians. An example of tahrif corruption in the bible from the Qur’an according to Muslims appears in the old testament of the Christian bible. According to the Muslims there is an incident in which an angel wrestles with Jacob and loses as stated in the bible: “When the man saw he could not win, he struck Jacob on the hip and threw it out of joint. They kept wrestling until the man said: Let go of me, it’s almost daylight.” (Bible: Genesis 32:25-26). This biblical description does not auger well with the Quran considering that it presents God as a person who sleeps and loses. In the Qur’an God is described as being godlike; he neither eats, drinks nor falls asleep. For this reason many Muslims consider the biblical record to be blasphemous. Traditional Muslim scholars including Ibn Hazm, Ibn Rabban, Al-Baqillani, Ibn Qutayba Rahmatullah Kairanawi al- Maqrizi, and Ibn Taymlyyah note that Christians and Jews have made alterations to the word of Allah (Izhar ul- Haqq section 4). Some of the manuscripts that have been subject to change include Zabur (psalms), Tawrat (Torah), and Injil (the gospel). The theme of tahrif was first presented in the writings of Ibn Hazm in the 10th century. Ibn Hazm argued against the notion that Moses authored some books in the bible and directed accusations against Ezra for writing the Torah (Amin 1986, p. 186). He made several detailed arguments against the authenticity of biblical texts and pointed out what he thought were alterations in the bible. More specifically, Ibn Hazm outlined contradictions, theological impossibilities, geographical inaccuracies, and chronological inaccuracies relating to biblical texts. He went further to point out sins of the prophets, and lack of proper transmission of the text (tawatur) as possible causes of tahrif. Ibn Hazm noted that the falsification of the Torah was actually committed during the time that Aaron served as a priest in Jerusalem. At this time, only one copy of the Torah existed. On his part, Amin Ahsan Islahi noted that there are four types of tahrif (Amin 1986, p. 252). The first type involves the interpretation of something in such a way as to give a meaning that is absolutely opposite to what the author intended it to mean. Secondly, tahrif can be done by adding or deleting a word in such a way that the meaning that a statement loses the meaning that it originally had. Muslims, for example, argue that Jews changed the story of Abraham’s migration to the extent that no proof can be assigned to his relationship with Kaaba. Thirdly, tahrif can exist when a word that has different meanings is translated such out of context. For example, according to Amin, the Hebrew word equivalent of the Arabic word “Ibn” has also means servant or slave. Finally tahrif can exist through the creation of doubt such as by raising certain questions about something. According to Ibn Rabban (810 A.D.), the Torah was deliberately distorted in interpretation as opposed to scriptures (Shamoun n.d.). Rabban, however, did not agree with the idea postulated by some early Muslim scholars that the Torah is a forgery. Rejecting the Torah would deny him the proof of Muhammad’s veracity. Ibn Qutayba on his part used the Torah both as a historical source and to advent the Prophet’s future coming (Shamoun n.d.). Ibn Qutayba questions not the authenticity of Jewish scriptures. He also accuses not the Jews of distorting the scriptures. Another ancient Muslim scholar, Al-Baqillani, noted that the biblical scriptures were authentic although they had been abrogated in some cases (Shamoun n.d.). Al-Baqillani noted that the words of Moses were presented in the bible as they originally were in Hebrew although there possibly were some inadvertent errors that were incorporated into it during translation as opposed to being deliberately made. In general, different early Muslim scholars noted that bible scriptures had been altered in different ways. While some noted that the bible had been deliberately altered, many of the scholars admitted that tahrif in the bible were a result of translation errors and were not deliberate. In as much as early scholars noted the existence of tahrif in its various forms in the Bible, the authors of A Common Word find it necessary to use biblical verses to make certain point and to show that there is indeed a common word between the bible and the Quran. For example, although Ibn Hazem notes that the Torah comprises several alterations from the original word, A common Word does not refrain from using verses from the Book of Genesis. For example, in a bid to compare conceptions about humans being in the best stature as held by Islam and Christianity, Genesis 1:27 is invoked: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them”. While this is the case, it is worth noting that the authors of A Common Word are clear to avoid using certain books in the bible to present their views in a bid to avoid what they perceive to be unacceptable or blasphemous alterations in them. For example, while the books of Mathew, Mark, and Luke are severally cited in the open letter, the book of John is not used at all. Some of the verses from the gospels cited in a Common Word include Mathew 12: 30; Mark 9:40; and Luke 9:50 (The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2012, p. 32). Arguably, the book of John and others that share John’s sentiments regarding Jesus being God and the son of God are avoided in A common Word. A common word is quick to clarify something about the nature of Jesus even as it avoids citing from the book of John in stating that “Muslims recog-niz e Jesus Christ as the Messiah, not in the same way Christians do (The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2012, p. 32). How far A Common Word Presents A new Beginning in the way Muslim view the Bible Since the launch of A Common Word, the Pope, many Muslim and Christian leaders and intellectuals have embraced and commented on the initiative (Ali 2009). The initiative has brought together the most revered scholars from both Islam and Christianity and major events have taken place leading to joint declarations and establishment of institutions. Since its establishment and publication just five years ago, several books focusing solely on A Common Word have been released. Generally, there has been an unprecedented global acceptance of the initiative. A Common Word stresses the devotion to one God as the primary duty of every believer. Believers should serve this God above all things. In the Qur’an, Allah is referred to as the Lord of the worlds, one who abounds in goodness and mercies. The Christian Bible, on the other hand refers to God as love (1st John 4:8). There are deep affinities with the Christian faith when A Common Word insists that love is the pinnacle of duties toward neighbours. In the words of prophet Mohammad, no one has faith until they love their neighbour as they love themselves. Similar sentiments are expressed in the New Testament. In 1st John 4:20, the bible states that “whoever does not love the neighbour does not know God”. In this regard, people of either faith believe that God is love and that humans who are dedicated to a higher calling should imitate the one to whom their give worship. The dual common ground of God and neighbour is the basis of all future interfaith dialogue between Muslims and Christians. In as much as Christianity and Islam are different religions with formal differences, it is beyond argument that the two greatest commandments are an area of commonality between them which effectively shows that there exists a link between the New Testament, the Torah and the Qur’an. This ideally is what A common Word seeks to convince Christians about. A Common Word has gone a long way in achieving its intended objective to contribute to the historical task of reconciliation between Muslims and Christians. It shows how that which is essential to each faith has the influence to join the two together because it encourages that they seek the good of others and not just their own good. If the dual commandment of love binds the two faiths, then the consequences are ground-breaking. People will be able to say the depth of one’s faith is directly related to the harmony with which they live with others in stead of saying that the greater your faith, the more at odds you will be with other people. Although Muslims believe that there is one God, as Christians do, they reject the notion that God consists of three persons. Alternatively stated, Muslims reject the idea of God being three in one. Principally, the Qur’an vehemently denies the Christian fact that Jesus Christ is God. Isa (Jesus) to them was nothing more than human being created by and a slave of God (Qur’an: An-Nisa’ 4:172). Jesus is accorded a lot of honour in the Qur’an. In fact, his status as a miracle worker, prophet and God’s Christ is greatly emphasized in the Qur’an. However, the Qur’an dies that he himself is God. On the other hand, the Bible is insists that apart from being God’s creation, Jesus is God himself in the form of a human being. This notion is expressed in John 1:1-14 which states in part that, ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God…The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.’ Owing to the fact that Jesus was a prophet, Muslims find it unrealistic that he could die a hideous disgraceful death. The Qur’an states that Jesus did not die on the cross (as recorded in the bible) but that Judas took his place at the point of death. According to the Qur’an, God made Judas to look like Isa so that he paid for his act of betraying him. The Quran states that, ‘…in reality he was not killed or crucified, and those who said he was crucified lied.’(An-Nisa’ 4:157). Against the Muslim belief, early Christians were willing to put to stake their honour, accept ridicule, be disgraced and even go through torture by declaring that Jesus was the messiah. They were willing to declare unto death that Jesus was crucified died a shameful painful humiliating death in public. Paul in the New Testament says ‘…we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and folly to Gentiles.’(1 Corinthians 1:23). Muslim scripture teaches that an individual enjoys God’s approval and escapes punishment on by his/her own effort and by positive works (Falah). In other words, by submitting to God and abiding by all of his statutes as recorded in the Qur’an. The judgment day will involve weighing up of what one has done wrong against what he/ she has done right (Hoover 2009). And even then entry into heaven will be based on whether or not Allah grants people mercy on the last day. These ideas totally conflict with what Christians believe. The Bible states that no individual can ever be so good as to deserve God’s favour, and gain entry into heaven by their own effort. This is because from the day a person is born, they are pre-disposed to rejecting God and living against His will. This is the reason it was necessary for God to come to earth in human form and die on a cross - the death humans ought to have died for their sins. According to the Bible, the only way to escape the judgment of God and avoid his wrath is by Himself bearing fully the punishment that humans ought to have borne. This is exactly what Jesus’ humiliating death on the cross did. The bible notes that we do not need ‘falah’ but faith to believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God who was sent on earth to die for our sins. The bible therefore notes that Christians must have faith and trust in Jesus and to rely on his death and resurrection to escape God’s wrath. Christians believe that those who believe in Jesus in this life are assured of God’s welcome of them to heaven just like Jesus himself deserves to be welcomed in heaven with God’s open arms. Clearly, Christianity and Islam present two different gods who share certain similarities but who retain different standards and identities. Professor Johnny Awwad (2009 p.79) airs his views regarding the way A Common Word and Islam present Christianity.  He notes that the love for God and the love for one’s neighbour, for Christians, are fixed in the events of the crucifixion and resurrection.  He further says that believing in a triune God compromises not the unity of God and that it is up to Christians to clarify this point to Muslims (Awwad 2009, p.82).  Awwad invites Muslims to try understanding and engaging with Christianity like Christians engage with it. He gives a word of advice to Muslims stating that if people are committed to dialogue, they would better cast away all the preconceptions they have about other people/religions even if this means developing new interpretations of scriptures (Awwad 2009, p.83). If Muslims were to adopt Awwad’s advice, they would view Christians outside the scope of A Common Word, thus bringing dialogue to a close. Awwad also criticizes how A Common Word focuses on how people should love their neighbours. He argues that neighbours can only co-exist peacefully if the individual can identify who really is their neighbour.  Awwad (2009, p.84) cites the parable of the Good Samaritan to bring into focus the fact that people should love their neighbours even if the neighbours are their enemies. Permeating A Common Word is the language of love which also has precipitated doubts about its biasness toward Islam.  A common Word has been endorsed by several Muslims across the world since its authorship. Among the signatories of the open letter include university professors, Sheikhs, presidents of organizations, political leaders, religious leaders, and business owners and managers. A common word has generally led to a change in the way Muslims perceive the bible. While its has not been uncommon for Muslims to study the bible, the objective for this previously was to critique its concepts and point out what they felt were alterations from the original bible. A Common Word has led to a change of the negative attitudes that many Muslims had against the Bible and Christianity. It has served to bring Muslims and Christians alike to think beyond their differences and focus on the similarities that exist in their religions and holy scriptures. Conclusion A Common Word draws the Christian reader with its linguistic uses, chiefly in its use of the word ‘love’, which one links with Christian writings.    The document also provides Islamic justification of how one is to love God and their neighbour. In this respect, the unity of God, the need to love Him, and the need to love our neighbours is the common ground between Islam and Christianity.   The initiative reinforces this commonality with verses from the bible and Qur’an before settling on the key qur’anic verse (3:64) from which the Common Word gets its name. Although A Common Word cites several biblical texts including Leviticus (19:17-18) and Mathew (22:38-40), many Christians direct a lot of criticism to the approach taken by A Common Word perceiving it as a call to shelve their beliefs and adopt the precepts of the article. They also see it as a call to embrace Islamic traditions. The Common Word, however, draws the attention of the Muslims and Christians by painting a harsh reality of the world we live in. The main difference between A Common Word and its previous calls to engagement is its capacity to use one voice for Muslims against those who speak against Islam. To its acknowledgment, A Common Word has generated a new discourse - one that is more optimistic in its tone where Christians and Muslims strive for mutual partnerships that will help bring peace in the modern world and it is on this end the initiative fails to deliver. Although A Common Word paper is not a turning point in itself, it can become a turning point if concrete steps are taken by Muslim and Christian leaders to further deliberate on the policy it has put, introducing resourceful and realistic initiatives that engage each community. Such initiative will prove the dedication of the religious guidance to work mutually for a more successful future.  In an official Christian response, the article “Loving God and Neighbour Together: A Christian Response to A Common Word Between Us and You” notes that Christians accept the room for discourse and request forgiveness from Muslims across the world. In other words, it gives consideration to the proposals offered by A Common Word. With respect to loving one’s neighbour, the article states that the Christian faith holds that Christians must be with their neighbours. The article further notes that Christians must act in the favour of their neighbours even if they (the neighbours) are their enemies. The article goes ahead to compliment the point by giving reference to Prophet Muhammad’s good behaviour when he was driven out of the city of Ta’if. The Prophet asked Allah to forgive his adversaries. Later, he received consolation from a Christian slave named Addas. Such a highly publicized cross-faith exchange is what the authors of a Common Word had intended.   A Common Word has had a positive impact on religious peace and thus world peace. This is because Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace between the two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world (Ali 2009). If peace can be achieved between these two religious communities, peace in the world will be easier to attain.  References Ali, M. 2009, A Muslim Interfaith Initiative (A Common Word between Us and You) and its Christian Response, Insights vol. 02, no. 1 Autumn, pp.115-154 Amin Ahsan Islahi 1986, Tadabbur-1-Qur’an, Lahore: Faran Foundation.  Awwad, J 2009, Who is My God and Who is My Neighbour? A Response to “A Common Word Between Us and You”, Theological Review XXX. Garry K & Brantley M, 1995, The Dead Sea Scrolls and Biblical Integrity, Apologetics Press.  Hoover, J 2009, A Common Word “More positive and open yet mainstream and orthodox”, Theological Review XXX, pp.50-77. Muhammad, G., Volf, M., & Yarrington, M. 2010, A common word: Muslims and Christians on loving God and neighbour, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, Cambridge. Shamoun n.d, Tahrif and the Torah: Early Muslim Writers and Polemicists on the authenticity of the Hebrew Scriptures, viewed 7 August, 2013 http://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/tahrif.htm The Holy Bible. Contemporary English Version, Bible Societies. The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2009, A common word between us and you, The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Amman. The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought 2012, A common word between us and you, The Royal Aal Al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Amman. Read More