"I'm right and you're wrong!" ... "No. You're wrong and I'm right!"

[Mustafa13]

Hello everyone!

Let's get some good discussion going!

There are many interpretations of scriptures out there. Two people can read the same verse and arrive at two completely different understandings of that verse. This is true with the Bible and the Qu'ran. It is true that there is no religion in the world where every follow understands their religion exactly the same. You could say this is similar to the truth that not everyone has the same hair color, or same pitch of voice. So, I'd like to ask you, Brothers and Sisters, a question by telling a story:

A Christian Evangelical and a devout Muslim are sitting together. The Christian says to the Muslim "Christianity is the best way to become closer with God!" The Muslim responds "No. The best way to come closer to God is through Islam!" Both are sincerely convinced of their respective positions. Who is right?

How does an observer arrive at a conclusion here, faced with the same claim from two distinct religions?

I look forward to hearing from you all! Thank you for your time and consideration!

-Brett

[جوري]

deviance is the way of the devil. The Road to paradise is straight & narrow, and the scriptures are already explained in the criterion which is another name for the Quran. & the tafsir of the Quran as far as the nature of religion and matters of worship are a done deal and not open for reinterpretation or amending to suit the tides.


best,

[anisafatima]

If one wants to distinguish between two religions then that person must have complete knowledge about both religions in an unbiased manner.

[Jakub123]

Hello,

The name " Mustafa " he has explained in " Introduce yourself " area.

According to your question Mustafa , there will never be any agreement in which religion - Christianity or Islamic , people will become closer with GOD.
Someone explained me that , It's like fans of football team who always says that theirs club is the best. I've got my own path to become closer with GOD, I grew up in christian world but however I respect other religions. I never had have situation like this where christian and muslim man is argue about that. But I think if it would happen and to be fair there must be an argument by argument saying same meaning of the situation but told in different way or story. That's how I would react for this kind of conversation.


Best Regards,
Jakub

[Ahmad H]

The only way to know who has arrived at the truth is to take a look at the concept of God. The concept of God in Islam is complete, whole, and it is clear. This is the most significant reason why Islam is the only religion which I can believe in. All other religions fail to properly explain Who God is. What we know about Allah is that He has no short-comings, but the presentation given about God in other religions falls short of a Perfect Being.

As for scriptural interpretation, it is agreed by scholars in Islam that the Companions (ra) of the Holy Prophet (saw), while learning the Qur'an, learned the Tafsir for it as well. They did not progress in memorizing any more Qur'an, until they knew the Tafsir of the verses they already memorized. The Holy Prophet (saw) himself taught the Tafsir of the Qur'an. There are definitely multiple meanings to the verses, but he (saw) taught the Muslims these meanings. He was the one who understood the interpretation of it best. Also, Hazrat Ayesha (ra) said in the Ahadith that the Holy Prophet's (saw) character was the Holy Qur'an. This is the most logical conclusion whether she even stated that or not, because the Holy Prophet (saw) is the best example for the Muslims (33:21).

Therefore, there is a firm basis for understanding the Qur'an in Islam. --- So Islam has a safeguard for its problems.

As for Christianity, I chatted about Christians on the interpretations of the Bible, and none of them know of any authority which is looked up to for the basic interpretation of its verses. If I were Christian, this would have been discomforting. It is better to have a rigid basis for interpretation, rather than an open-ended Book which in some cases has literal applications, and in other cases parables, but with no way to know what the actual meaning is. In fact, this is why Atheists keep bashing Christianity in the current times we live in. I don't agree with their poking fun at it, but since there is no solid basis for how to interpret the Book, there is really nothing Christians can do to ward off their insults. So open-ended interpretations, in my view, has caused a lot of problems for Christianity.

This truly is not the case with the Qur'an. The interpretation of the Book is based first and foremost on mutually supporting verses, which explain the meaning for each other, and after that there is the Traditions of our Prophet Muhammad (saw), what he said, what he did, and what the Companions (ra) did after him. To understand the ancient Arabic expressions mentioned in the Holy Qur'an, there is the classical Tafsirs, the dictionaries of Arabic which preserved such explanations and the old Arabic poetry from pre-Islamic times - that highlights different expressions and how they were used in the past. Besides this, there have been countless scholars throughout the ages who preserved these meanings and transmitted them, explaining them for all kinds of people to understand, due to the spreading of Islam to different cultural backgrounds. Thus, the pious people and scholars of Islam did their best to preserve the meanings of the Qur'an, and did their best to spread these to everyone, in speeches and in writing. Great care has been taken for the preservation of the meanings of the Qur'an, so much so that any Muslim who learns Arabic can learn them and find a teacher to help them learn these.

Again, I do not know of any such preservation methods for Christianity throughout the ages. Islam has been safeguarded by Allah, and He has never lifted His Hand from this since He revealed this religion to His Messenger (saw). Finally, the reason why Muslims are so convinced that Islam is the right religion, and legitimately, is that this religion is the final religion to mankind, with the final and complete law, furthermore, the Prophet of Islam (saw) is the final Prophet to mankind, of a religion which is specifically meant to be spread to all of mankind, thus, Islam is the true religion. It confirms the truth of all the past revealed religions by God, such as your religion, Christianity, Judaism, etc. It is the final religion for mankind, and because its law is final and abrogated the laws of Christianity and Judaism, therefore, it is the only religion for mankind. Christianity is correct, as far as what Jesus (as) actually taught in the past, not the version that exists now. However, if the Prophets of the past were alive today, or during the time the Holy Prophet (saw) was alive, they would have followed him (saw). They were Muslims in their times, and for whatever future Prophet was to come after them, all of the Prophets covenanted that they would follow that Prophet when he comes. That refers to the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw), because his religion is the religion of all the past Prophets, he brought nothing new. However, his religion completes all of the past religions. Allah sent down His final Law, and thus it is for every man and woman to follow it. It has nullified all past religions, even though they were true.

[Muhammad]

Greetings Brett,

How does an observer arrive at a conclusion here, faced with the same claim from two distinct religions?

Just as we would if we were in a court, and these two different claims were presented by two people, naturally the next step would be to examine each person's claim and review the evidences.

The Muslim will tell you that the source of his claim is the Qur'an and the Sunnah (teachings of the Prophet Muhammad ). The Christian will say the source of his belief is the Bible and its related teachings.

So now we examine the sources. If we look at textual preservation, the Qur'an is a book unchanged since its revelation to mankind. It was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad , and we know the names of those who memorised it and wrote it from him in multiple chains lasting right up to the present day. Same with the Sunnah. We ask the Christian and he needs to first of all ask which Bible you are referring to. Then we are faced with the issue of unknown authors and alterations happening at various times as well as problems with conflicting texts.

The Judge decides to look at logical consistency. The Muslim explains his creed as being one of pure monotheism, there is One God with attributes of perfection and none like Him. Prophets of exemplary character were sent to guide and teach mankind. Adam was forgiven by God for his mistake. Every person is accountable for his own self and must work for salvation. The Christian says he also believes in One God, but then he says there are three. God is described as being tired, hungry, thirsty and suffering like a human. Terrible sins are attributed to the men described as Prophets. Mankind is said to be in need of atonement for a sin they did not do, and someone else had to suffer as the only way for them to be forgiven.

The Judge now asks about miraculous features. The Muslim explains that the Qur'an is miraculous in many ways, most notably in its language and style which remain inimitable since its revelation. God challenges mankind to produce something like it, yet none have been able to succeed, despite the literary excellence of the society amongst whom the Qur'an was revealed. Millions of people have memorised it across the world without a single discrepancy in their recital.

The Judge is now interested in the story of the Prophet Muhammad . So the Muslim explains that he was known among his people for forty years as a virtuous and honest man, such that he gained the title The Trustworthy. Then his mission as a Prophet began and he faced immense persecution and hardship. His people accused him of being a liar, a poet, a magician, a madman, a soothsayer - accusations that are made even today. Yet each one can be refuted easily if one considers the man he was and the humble life he lived. The unbelievers themselves attested to the fact that the Qur'an he brought was no poetry, nor the words of a magician. There can be no other conclusion than the fact that he was a true Prophet of God.

The Judge now turns to you and asks, so far, who do you think is right?


Btw, here are some useful links:
http://www.islamicboard.com/clarific...ml#post1597576
Evidences For Qur'an's Divine Origin?