ByRabbi
Allen S. Maller
I am a Rabbi
who has had an appreciation for Islam since the age of ten, when I learned in
my synagogue's Hebrew school about the Golden Age of Medieval Judaism in Muslim
Spain. A decade later I studied Islam when I was a student at UCLA 60 years
ago, and then I studied Islam again while I was in Rabbinical school studying
to become a Reform Rabbi. Over the years as I continued to read the Qur’an,
Ahadith and other Islamic books, I came to think of myself as both a Reform
Rabbi and a Muslim Jew. I am a Muslim Jew because I am faithful to my
commitment to submit to the One God who liberated the Jewish People from
oppression in the land
of Egypt
I am a
Reform Jew because I belong to the People of Israel, and I am loyal to the
teachings of the Torah, the Jewish community and its traditions liberally
interpreted. When I read Islamic books, I do so as the Prophet taught his
followers to do in a Hadith “not as a believer, and not as a disbeliever”. What
does that mean? The Qur’an, of course, is sacred scripture for Muslims.
A disciple
of Muhammad named Abu Huraira relates, “The people of the Book used to read the
Torah in Hebrew and then explain it in Arabic to the Muslims. Allah’s Apostle
said (to the Muslims). 'Do not believe the people of the Book, nor disbelieve
them, but say, We believe in Allah, and whatever is revealed to us, and
whatever is revealed to you.’
“Following
Muhammad’s teaching, I too neither believe nor disbelieve in the Qur’an. If I
believed in the Qur’an I would be a member of the Muslim Ummah (community). And
I cannot disbelieve in the Qur’an because I believe that Muhammad is a prophet;
and I respect the Qur’an as a kindred revelation, first given to a kindred
people, in a kindred language.
In fact,
the Arab people, the Arab language and Muslim theology are closer to my own
people, language and theology than that of any other religious community on
earth. So I offer to all readers who believe in the One God; my answers to the
Quran's statements:
1. MANKIND
A SINGLE COMMUNITY [Quran - 2:213]
“ALL
MANKIND were once one single community; [then they began to differ -] whereupon
God raised up the prophets as heralds of glad tidings and as warners, and
through them bestowed revelation from on high, setting forth the truth.”
Judaism
teaches that all present day humans are descendent from Adam [the Hebrew word
for All Mankind/Homo Sapiens] and Eve [the Hebrew word for life-giver i.e.
motherhood]. As their names indicate these two figures are archetypes for all
humans who are created in the image of God and whose creation is blessed by
God, and thus we, like Muslims, deny the doctrine of original sin. [Genesis
1:26-28, Al-Hedger 26&28]
Both the
Qur'an and the Torah are in fundamental agreement on the uniquely exalted
status of our species, Homo Sapiens. Each sacred scripture gives us some unique
additional details suitable for our own religious community. Thus, the Qur'an
reveals details about the creation and nature of Jinn [Al- Hijr 27 and in more
than two dozen other Ayahs] and the Torah reveals details about the human need
to marry and bond into a loving relationship. [Genesis 2:18-24]
Judaism
also teaches that God does occasionally inspire either a human male or female,
[like Prophet Miriam, the sister of Prophet Moses and Prophet Aaron, Exodus
15:20 or Prophet Hulda 2 Kings 20:14-22] who is either a Jew or a non-Jew.
[like Balaam Al-A'raf 175-76 & Numbers 22: 7--14] Since the Qur'an is a
much more recently revealed scripture; it gives many explicit examples of God's
inspired prophets.
2. CONTINUATION
OF THE REVELATION [Divine Guidance Quran – 35:32]
“Then
(after every Messenger), We have made those of Our servants whom We chose heirs
to the Book (to preserve and teach it, and secure its practice in daily life)”
Judaism also teaches that God still inspires those who study their revealed
scriptures to find new insights and understandings to guide each new
generation. This is the role of the rabbis in Judaism and the ulema in Islam.
One of the wonderful aspects of the Qur'an is that it is the only book of
revelation that includes within itself a theory of prophethood which includes
other religions. Of course, there have always been (since the days of Adam)
people inspired by Allah who urged their community to avoid destruction by
turning away from their corrupt and unjust ways, and turning to the One God who
created all humans. But prior to Abraham none of the communities they
established lasted more than a few generations.
 |
| Photo Courtesy: wikiHow |
The Qur'an
mentions 25 prophets by name (most of them known also to non-Muslims) and
Muslims believe there were one hundred twenty four thousand others, whose names
are now unknown. Of the 25 mentioned by name in the Qur'an, only four (Moses,
David, Jesus, and Muhammad) revealed books of sacred scripture that are the
bases for three major religions that still flourish today.
According
to the Qur'an, every nation in the world receives at least one prophet who
speaks to it in its own language. However, one nation, the Children of Israel,
has received a great many prophets. The Qur'an doesn't tell us why so many
prophets arose within the Children of Israel, except to refer several times to
many prophets who were of the descendants of the family of Abraham.
Perhaps the
fact that the Jewish People preserved a very long recorded history of their
religious development enables us to know of more of their prophets than any
other people. Many people would say that people like Joseph Smith, prophet of
the Mormons, and Bahá'u'lláh, prophet of the Bahais, are modern prophets; but
they have not been recognized as such by the leaders of the Jewish, Christian
or Muslim community.
Most Jews
think of Jesus as a Rabbi; who was a mixture of a “believe in the power of
prayer” Hassidic Rabbi, and a “don't make religion hard” Reform Rabbi. Many
other Jews also think of Jesus as a prophet, and some Jews even think of Jesus
as a Messianic figure, who tried to liberate and redeem the Jewish People, but
unfortunately was unsuccessful. Judaism however, totally rejects the idea that
Jesus was a Divine Messiah, the son of God, and a part of a Divine trinity.
This is also the view of Islam.
3. ALLAH
Informed mankind about some of the recipients of HIS Books: [Quran - 2:136]
“Say:
"We believe in God, and in that which has been bestowed from on high upon
us, and that which has been bestowed upon Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and
Jacob and, their descendants, and that which has been vouchsafed to Moses and
Jesus; and that which has been vouchsafed to all the [other] prophets by their
Sustainer: we make no distinction between any of them. And it is unto Him that
we surrender ourselves." Judaism agrees with this ayah, although we [like
Muslims] do not accept the “son of God” trinitarian Christian view expressed
throughout the New Testament.
Jesus
refers to himself dozens of times as the “son of man” a messianic figure term.
Paul, the creator of Christianity, who never met Jesus, never uses this term.
Most of the non-Jews who convert to Judaism [about 5,000 a year] do so because,
while they believe in God, they cannot believe that God has a son. Jews also do
not believe the New Testament claim that the Jewish People were responsible for
the crucifixion of Jesus.
Jews think
the Roman government crucified Jesus, as the Roman rulers crucified Paul and
Peter in Rome
If more
Jews knew these verses in the Qur'an they would understand why arguing with
Christians over who killed Jesus is a waste of time. If Jesus were to come back
today, most Jews think he would not join a Trinitarian church. He would join a
reform or conservative synagogue, and occasionally worship in a Hassidic [very
pious] congregation or a Mosque.