Christianity and Islam: what are the main differences between the two religions?

Christianity and Islam: similarities and differences. Details about religions, their similarities and differences.

Since ancient times, people have been divided into dozens of religions, but nowadays, apart from a small percentage of the world's population, people are divided into Muslims and Christians. Both religions believe in one God and in the creation of the Earth, but this is where the similarities between the beliefs end. In this article, we will provide clear examples of the similarities and differences between the two religions, as well as how religion affects both us and the country as a whole.

How do Muslims and Christians differ in their attitudes toward family, gender equality, and the elderly?

The foundations in the family are a clear echo of religion, strengthened by centuries-old orders in the state. Christians have always been equal with women; according to religion, a man should have only one living wife (in case of death, he is allowed to take a new one), with whom he will live in sorrow and in joy, sharing both glory and troubles together. But Muslims can have several wives, and even several concubines. But before taking a wife, he is obliged to confirm his wealth and the fact that he can adequately support his wife/wives and children who will appear in the marriage.

Christian and Muslim Thinking

It would seem that Christian women are definitely luckier, especially now, where there is complete equality. But now women, looking at the situation again, are increasingly saying that the advantages are not so good, because they are responsible not only for housekeeping and raising children, but often they also become breadwinners in families.

In Muslim countries, as in Christian countries, divorce is acceptable today. But in Islamic countries, children remain with their father, who supports, educates and prepares them for adulthood. But in Christian countries, after a divorce, fathers often become cold towards their children and do not pay them due attention. In most cases, the mother is entirely responsible for maintenance and upbringing.

Christians treat their parents with respect, but having left the parental nest, they set off on their own journey in life, helping their parents more remotely. But Islam, on the contrary, preaches complete reverence and obedience to parents. As long as the parents are alive, men consult with them on all important matters, thereby emphasizing their importance.

Strong man's religion: Christianity or Islam?

Once upon a time, at the dawn of the 7th century after the Nativity of Christ, in the middle of the Arabian deserts, far from the civilized world, a remarkable event happened.
In the darkness of the night, under the low arches of the cave of Mount Hira, someone appeared to a forty-year-old Arab who was spending time here in solitude. Someone strong and scary, who began to choke him, forcing him to read a strange text in the name of a certain master. Fearing for his life, the Arab yielded and repeated the text - and the vision disappeared. Terrified to death, he ran to his home and wrapped himself in a blanket in horror, not daring to show himself outside. For quite a long time after this, he was tormented by doubts, suspecting that on that memorable night he had met with dark forces, the spirits of evil. But later his family managed to convince him that none other than the messenger of God, an Angel, appeared to him, who thereby called him to become a prophet for his people. Believing in this, this Arab soon proclaimed a new teaching in Arabia: to worship God, lonely (Koran 112.1), distant (Koran 12.31) and cruel (Koran 17.58), the source of both good and evil (Koran 10.107; 39.38), to whom everything that happens, is predestined (Quran 33.38). For a person who wanted to please such a god, it was commanded to believe in his loneliness, and also in the fact that the Arab merchant who proclaimed this teaching was his messenger and prophet; perform a certain ritual five times a day, saying prayer formulas and alternating bodily postures; once in your life, visit a sanctuary in an Arab city and slaughter a sheep on a nearby mountain; spend a small part of the profit on their household from time to time, and eat and drink only at night for one month a year. And it was also commanded to wage a holy war with those who do not recognize this teaching until they are subjugated to it (Koran 2.193). Those who observed the above were promised prosperity in this life, and in the future life a beautiful garden with eternal pleasures - mainly of a sexual and gastronomic nature, and also, partly, aesthetic. All this was recorded in a book compiled after the death of the founder, which was declared to be the revelation and creation of this god, and its text was eternal and unchangeable to the letter.

This Arab's name was Muhammad, and his teaching was called Islam - a derivative of the Arabic word for "peace" (salaam), and many of his followers soon swept across the earth and in merciless bloody wars soon captured vast territories - both Christians, Western and Eastern, and Zoroastrians, pagans, Hindus. This “religion of peace” eventually spread to many nations, and its adherents continued to wage continuous wars, even to this day.

Everything can be learned by comparison, therefore let us compare the teachings of Muhammad and the teachings of Christ, and consider which religion is intended for a strong person, and which has the power to make him strong.

Let's start with the fact that the Muslim Holy Scripture itself is three times smaller in volume than the Christian Holy Scripture. Even just reading the Bible requires three times more effort, time and perseverance than reading the Koran. We will see the same proportion when comparing their contents.

Christianity teaches us to curb our own passions - such as hatred, lust, love of money; Islam, on the contrary, indulges all of them: for example, although it admits that mercy is more pleasing to God, it allows revenge, although it says that family unity is more pleasing to God, it recognizes divorce at any whim of the husband, although it encourages alms, it gratifies the passion for hoarding, honoring the rich.

Christianity blesses marriage with only one wife, Islam allows you to have four wives and countless concubines. It is clear to any reasonable person that maintaining marital fidelity in a legal marriage with a single wife is much more difficult than if it is possible, within the limits of what is permitted, to have a relationship with an almost unlimited number of women.

Islam commands us to pray five times a day, but Christians are commanded to pray without ceasing.

(1 Thessalonians 5:17).

Muslims fast for only three weeks, while in the Orthodox Church almost two-thirds of the days of the year are fasted, and the fast lasts a full day, and not just during the day, as in Islam. Of course, fasting for two hundred and forty days and nights requires much more effort than fasting for twenty days.

Some cite the example of the Muslim law prohibiting wine drinking as something lofty. But upon closer examination, even in this respect the religion of the Arabs is inferior to the teachings of the Church. Christianity does not prohibit the consumption of wine as such, but it strictly prohibits drunkenness - drunkards will not inherit the Kingdom of God

(1 Cor 6:10). And it is obvious to anyone that only a strong person can, when drinking alcohol, observe moderation and not fall into drunkenness, while complete abstinence from alcohol is a much easier way to overcome this sin.

Islam also prohibits eating pork and establishes some other restrictions on clothing and behavior, but it is absolutely clear that it is much easier not to eat pork and not wear silk than to observe the commandment to abstain from sin even in thoughts - as every Christian is commanded.

Let's take warfare. Those who try to push Christianity into the Procrustean bed of stupid pacifism are blind. Defensive war is clearly blessed by the Church. Of the holy warriors - from generals to privates - more than one division was formed for the King of Heaven in the guise of saints. But if in Islam the conduct of war is based on hatred of those being killed, then in Christianity the basis of military feat is love for the protected - there is no greater love than if someone lays down his life for his friends

(John 15:13), and these words rightly apply to those who died honorably in battle. This is the teaching of Christ, and only a person strong in spirit and will can bear it.

You can continue the comparisons for a very, very long time. But based on what has already been said, we can quite objectively say that Christianity is the religion of strong people, while Islam is a religion for the weak and frail. Christianity is for the free, Islam is for the slaves. We are talking here about the most important freedom for a person - freedom from sin and one’s own passions, from which the Muslim faith is unable to free its followers.

And this is precisely what explains the spread of Islam in the modern world. It is precisely because Islam is now becoming popular in the West that the era of the weak man is now approaching, secularized humanity is cultivating its weaknesses and wallowing in voluntary relaxation. How nice it is for them to hear: Allah wants to make it easier for you

(life);
After all, man was created weak
(Quran 4.28).

According to Christian teaching, man is created strong and is called to be strong. The fact that over the course of two millennia the Church has not lowered such a high bar for its moral ideal testifies to the fact that it is truly achievable in it. And examples of this are not only hundreds of thousands of saints, but also millions of ordinary Orthodox Christians who embodied it in their lives. himself , but everything is possible for God.

(Matthew 19:26), and the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom all things are possible, gives the power to do both what we have listed and more.

Each of us faces a choice - to remain weak or become strong. Swim with the current towards the rapids or against the current towards the shore. And no one can escape it, and it depends only on the person himself what he will choose in the end.

You just need to know and remember that everyone who should have become strong, but who voluntarily remained weak, will be held accountable to the fullest extent - in due time. The Kingdom of Heaven is taken by force, and those who use force take it away

(Matthew 11:12).

Similarities and differences between the Muslim faith and the Christian faith: comparison

Zoroastrianism

This is an ancient Indo-Iranian movement, named after its founder - the prophet and teacher Zarathustra. In Zoroastrianism, religion and philosophy are closely intertwined. Believers believe that the only creator of the world is Ahura Mazda.

Like other religions, they have their own principles. For example, you need to preserve life and fight evil. Unlike Islam, there are no prohibitions on food, the main thing is the benefits. When children reach the age of 7, a ritual is performed on them in preparation for work. In temples there should always be a fire burning, near which prayers are said.

Zoroastrianism does not belong to the world movements, because it is not widespread today. But it has not disappeared, although it is one of the most ancient religions - traditionally the time of its origin is attributed to the 7th–6th centuries BC. e. It is also worth noting that there are also statements that the analysis of ancient texts suggests that in reality Zarathustra lived much earlier - between the 12th and 10th centuries BC. e.

What faith was there before: Christian or Muslim?

Despite heated debate, historians have proven that Judaism, Christianity and Islam emerged from a single source with a difference of 500-1000 years. Like everything new, what arose in ancient times was not recorded, and given that for the sake of dissemination and popularization, religion was often shrouded in multi-layered legends, mystery, etc. the exact date of creation is not known. But we know the starting points for certain:

• Christianity dates back to the first birthday of Jesus. That is, this year is 2022 years from the beginning of the countdown;
• Muslims began counting from the birth of the Prophet Muhammad 570-632 AD.

But Judaism was at its origins, since those who denied the resurrection of Jesus created their own branch - Judaism.

Judaism

Judaism is an independent religious movement, but at the same time it is considered the basis of other Abrahamic ones. It originated in Judea in the 6th century BC. e. This is a monotheistic direction; followers believe in only one god - the creator of everything. The name is derived from the name of Judas, but not from the one who betrayed Christ, but from the Old Testament - little is known about him.

The books of the Old Testament that are revered in Judaism are the Pentateuch of Moses, or the Torah. The texts regulate the life of devout Jews. According to the rules, a Jew is obliged to observe 613 of them. Among these regulations are the prohibitions “thou shalt not steal”, “thou shalt not kill”, “thou shalt not commit adultery” and others, which have also migrated to Christianity.

The role of the church and religion in the lives of Muslims and Christians: a comparison

Christians go to church on holidays, true believers go to every service on Sunday. Islam does not require this and it is enough to go to the mosque on holidays and when the soul requires it. But a prerequisite is prayer five times a day.

Regarding the influence of religion on a person's daily life:

• It is believed that Christians more often break their commandments because they subsequently hope for forgiveness of sins;
• Muslims carefully observe the commandments, since Allah can become angry and significantly worsen the life of not only a person, but also his descendants.

Confucianism

Faith is based on the teachings of one person. Confucius lived from 551 to 479 BC. e. and was a philosopher, politician, and teacher. This creed is considered the least spiritual, its bias goes towards humanism. But Confucianism is included in this list because it also assumes a supernatural worldview. The Chinese tradition influenced the fact that in religion there are such concepts as fortune telling, heaven, God in heaven.

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The teachings of Confucius were first collected in the Anacletes by people who belonged to the second generation after the teacher. In different historical periods, the tradition experienced ups and downs in popularity. Today, Confucianism is one of the most widespread movements in China - according to statistics, there are 6 million strict followers.

Hinduism

Hinduism is the oldest religion that has survived to this day. It has been widespread in South Asia since time immemorial to this day. Followers call it the “eternal religion.”

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Hinduism merges the cultures and traditions of India, but there is no founder or prophet. The only thing that is considered the root of the current is the ancient Vedas.

There are hundreds of doctrines in Hinduism. They are diverse, but ultimately aimed at maintaining common roots - rituals, pilgrimages to sacred places, cosmology. Religious texts cover topics of yoga, theology, mythology, as well as basic mathematics for the construction of altars and temples.