I chose "other."
What convinced me was actually the verses in John about the Paraclete and listening to a Shi'ite Ayatullah from India explain them... I'm not Shi'a myself but his explanation was one of the first things that opened my eyes to the possibility that there could be a truth beyond the Bible that the Bible itself pointed to.
Interesting, I agree.
Were you already drawn to Islam in anyway prior to that?
I ask, because I've seen many attempts by Muslim's to reinterpret those passages as you now understand them, but I've never seen them use a good hermenuetic of the scriptures when doing so. I can actually understand how and why a person might be drawn toward Islam, but I just can't imagine the mis-identification of Muhammad as the reference for the Biblical term
parakletos being the reason -- there are so many reasons that it doesn't fit, not the least of which has already been referred to that the
parakletos is said to dwell within those who believe in Jesus, convicts people of their sin, and leads into relationship with Jesus.
Indeed, did you know that the term
parakletos is not only used in the Gospel of John, but also in one of John's letters? There he writes: "My dear children, I write this [letter] to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one [the
parakletos] who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One" (1 John 2:1).
In other words, the
parakletos has the role of being one who stands between the individual and God as an intermediary, something that Muslims don't believe in, who serves as our advocate, intercessor, counselor, and guide. Muhammad (pbuh) does indeed do some of those things, but Muhammad (p) could hardly be the same as the
parakletos "Jesus Christ, the Righteous One". Nor does Muhammad (p) have the capacity to fulfill the work of the
parakletos of John 14:16 who is to be with Jesus' disciples "forever"; nor does he testify about Jesus as the
paracletos does in John 15:26; nor does Muhammad (p) bring glory to Jesus as is also the work of the
parakletos (John 16:12-14). Did the Shi'ite Ayatullah tell you that these things: bringing glory to Jesus, testifying about Jesus, being with the disciples forever, and serving as an intercessor are all part of Muhammad's work as one sent by (according to the scriptures that describe the
parakletos) the Father in Jesus' name?
When, if ever, did Muhammad (p) announce himself as one sent by, not Allah, but sepcifically by the Father?
When, if ever, did Muhammad (p) reveal himself to be one sent in Jesus' name?
Is Muhammad (p) understood in Islam to be with Jesus' disciples forever?
Does Muhammad (p) bring glory to Jesus, glory of the nature that is to be offered to God alone?
These are all things that are testified to as the work of the
parakletos right along with those things such as teaching and being a messenger of truth. I understand how you might identify these latter things with Muhammad (p), but unless you are prepared to say that he also did these other things I've already shown are equally the work of the
parakletos, then the title just doesn't fit Muhammad (p) after all.
BTW, I'm not by this suggesting that you should therefore give up Islam and become a Christian, for I'm guessing that there were before and still are now, other things that you found to be more attractive in Islam than in Christianity. But I will suggest that if this was the primary reason that caused you to convert, that you may want to do some more soul searching to satisfy yourself with regard to the reasons you choose to stay a Muslim, as a more correct understanding of the role and function of the
parakeltos of the Bible would definitely point you back toward Jesus and not away from him.