Christians, Muslims, and Jesus

by Mona Siddiqui

A groundbreaking examination of the way Muslim thinkers have approached and responded to Jesus through the centuries

Prophet or messiah, the figure of Jesus serves as both the bridge and the barrier between Christianity and Islam. In this accessible and thoughtful book, Muslim scholar and popular commentator Mona Siddiqui takes her reader on a personal, theological journey exploring the centrality of Jesus in Christian-Muslim relations. Christian and Muslim scholars have used Jesus and Christological themes for polemical and dialogical conversations from the earliest days to modern times. The author concludes with her own reflections on the cross and its possible meaning in her Muslim faith.  Through a careful analysis of selected works by major Christian and Muslim theologians during the formative, medieval, and modern periods of both religions, Siddiqui focuses on themes including revelation, prophecy, salvation, redemption, sin, eschatology, law, and love. How did some doctrines become the defining characteristics of one faith and not the other? What is the nature of the theological chasm between Christianity and Islam? With a nuanced and carefully considered analysis of critical doctrines the author provides a refreshingly honest counterpoint to contemporary polemical arguments and makes a compelling contribution to reasoned interfaith conversation.

Genres: Religion, Islam, Nonfiction

285 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Mona Siddiqui is professor of Islamic and interreligious studies at the University of Edinburgh. She lives in Edinburgh.

Reviews

[Julian Douglass · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deep, deep theological book that touches on a lot of topics that someone who has little to no understanding of any religious text would find confusing and hard to understand. I don't want to give it a bad rating off of my lack of knowledge, so I am here to say that Ms. Siddiqui knows her stuff and put aside some time to read this one. This is not a light beach read by any stretch of the imagination.

[Ian Divertie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the last several years, encouraged by my Islamic friends, I have read more and more work in this area. I think many will find this book useful in identifying those areas in which Islam and Christianity are in agreement. Necessary, as we all can identify those areas where they disagree.

[Fred Kohn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I couldn't help but compare this book to Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth. Both authors are spokespeople for Christian/Muslim relations and both books explore both the authors' personal journeys and scholarly perspectives. So in the end I couldn't help but wonder how things would be if Mona were the best known personality in Christian/Muslim dialogue rather than Reza Aslan. Mona seems much sharper and much more dedicated to her religion than Reza. That may not be an advantage; for that very reason she may have a tendency to go over the head of the average person. For my part, I followed the Christian theology in this book very well, but felt a bit short-changed on Islamic theology. This, in part, might be because of my lack of knowledge, but I also felt that it might be because this book was aimed more at Muslims than at Christians. I would not recommend this for somebody who did not have a good working knowledge of both Christianity and Islam.

[John Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are many ways to look at the History of Christian/Muslim engagement throughout the centuries. Scholarship has mostly focussed upon the historical, sociological, theological and political interaction between Christianity and Islam. However, in Christians Muslims and Jesus, Mona Siddiqui primarily seeks to explore the views doctrines and conversations Christians and Muslims have held on the figure of Jesus Christ. The secondary purpose of her book she states, ‘is to offer the reader an adequate sense of what the primary sources are saying about Jesus so that the book functions as a ‘sourcebook’ as much as a personal reflection on Jesus and related themes.’ Her aim is to show more clearly what Christians and Muslims were saying in conciliatory as well as polemical terms in response to each other's beliefs about Jesus.

Book Overview
Chapter 1: The End of Prophecy.
In Chapter 1, The contrasting views of God's revelations are set out. Christians believe Jesus as God in self-revelation, In Islam God’s revelation comes mainly through Scripture. The Chapter seeks to ‘reflect on how prophecy and divinity speak to us in both Christianity and Islam, but also on how the finality of prophecy means different things in both religions.’ Concerning the revelation of God ‘Christians Emphasise the fulfillment of Judaism through Christianity, whereas there is in Islam a sense that through the Qur'ān, Judaism and Christianity are being restored to their primordial truths.’ When it comes to Revelation through Christ the Quran teaches Jesus came with a book which was given to him, the revelation of Christ came in the form of a book, not in human form. Interestingly the Qur’anic description of the Gospels as a revelation given to Jesus is not how Christians or Biblical scholarship has understood the nature and process of the four written Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John which are accounts of the life and teachings of Jesus. If the Gospels point to the event of divine revelation which is Christ, then the Quran, unlike the gospels, is the event, the Quran is a revelation, Muhammad is not the event. Siddiqui demonstrates how in the Gospels Jesus unequivocally though not explicitly identifies himself as Gods son, it is somewhat disheartening then to read of the numerous scholars that deny Jesus thought of himself as God incarnate. Regardless, the very notion of Jesus Divinity is something that Muslims cannot accept, he was Simply described his mission in these words ‘I have come to confirm the truth of the Torah which preceded me, and to make some things lawful to you which used to be forbidden. I have come to you with a sign from your Lord. Be mindful of God, indeed God is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him, that is a straight path (Q3:50).’ Siddiqui acknowledges that there remains a certain mystery around the events of Jesus life (Probably because there is not that much information about what he said) but the significance of his life is not only experienced by Christians. Christ in the Quran is a Unique Prophet in that he is both a Word and a Spirit of God, such language is not used of any other prophets. Siddiqui contends explorations of Jesus Character should therefore be seen as a worthy and necessary exercise in interreligious theology.

Chapter 2: God as one: Early Debates.
Chapter 2 looks at select writings to explore how God’s nature was discussed by Christians and Muslims in the middle ages. Throughout the middle ages the expression of Monotheism became a fundamental point of discussion between scholars of both religions. Unfortunately, there was a lot of misunderstanding and disingenuous attributions of the beliefs of Christians and Muslims from both representatives. An example is given by John of Damascus “The Muslims accuse the Christians of being ‘Associators’ for ascribing a partner to God, by calling Christ ‘son of God’, and ‘God’. The Christians in turn accuse the Muslims of being ‘Mutilators’ by having disassociated God from His word and Spirit.” Much of the misunderstanding and hostile nature of disagreements during the middle ages came about as Muslims and Christians sought to defend God’s oneness. However, Siddique believes that there is much we can learn from these disagreements to enhance our inter-religious dialogue today, again seeking to be understand so as to be understood plays an important theme here.

Chapter 3: Scholastic Medieval and Poetic Debates
Chapter 3 is really an extension of Chapter two whereby the disagreements and Debates become more intensified in the medieval period. Speaking of the polemics of Al-Baquillini Siddiqui says ‘they also reveal a complete reluctance to understand the Christian view of Jesus as Christ and the associated doctrines from a Christian logic and devotion.’ But Equally the Polemics of Christians against the Muslim were ignorant, it was Aquinas’s understanding only those who were brutal and ‘utterly ignorant of all divine teaching’ followed Muhammad’s message. Though in comparison to the Pope Muhammad was spoken of as a pure St by Luther, defined Islam and the Turks as instruments of Satan. Luther accuses the Muslims of inventing ‘a god such as they wish to have, not as God has revealed himself’ The chapter ends with the author acknowledging that both Religions are monotheistic, yet most of the the polemics foccuss on how each other has understood the nature of God through Jesus and Muhammad.

Chapter 4: Reflections on Mary
Both Islam and Christianity Mary is the Virgin Mother of Jesus. Thus, Mary is often regarded as a meeting point, a bridge between Islam and Christianity. It is the author’s hope that further reflection on Mary’s “unique” nature may well open up new questions and lead to continued engagement in discussions around the divine/human nature of Jesus between Muslims and Christians.

Chapter 5: Monotheism and the Dialectics of Love and Law
When it comes to the Person and work of Christ perhaps the key issues and stumbling blocks for Muslims are Christian teachings about his incarnation, his atonement and his Deity. Chapter 5 presents a Muslim reflection on these issues but with a particular focus on the Christian concepts of the love of God. What strikes the Christian reader about this chapter is how genuine, thorough, respectful and meticulous the author is as she engages the theology of some of Christianity’s greatest thinkers on this matter, whilst comparing it with Islam’s teachings. When it comes to talking of a loving God, the Author sees a profound difference in the way love is conceptualized in both Religions:

“love in Christianity is a redemptive act and becomes visible on the cross and its power in the paradox of the weakness of the cross (2 Corinthians 13:4). Salvation does not come about through our best efforts; it is not some happy state to which we can lift ourselves; it is an utterly new creation into which we are brought by our death in Jesus’ death and our resurrection in his. In Islam, however, there is no divine Incarnation, nor is prophecy messianic, nor is Muḥammad the redeemer. God's love is manifest through the risk he takes in humanity by giving man both faith and freedom to work towards a moral life. Humanity has the choice to use both to transform itself to a state of higher consciousness.”

Chapter 6: Conclusion: Reflections on the Cross
Chapter 5 may be the most important part of the book in terms of comparative Theology but Chapter 6 is the is most personal. The author speaks of the her own search for “God” and the integral role that good interfaith dialogue has played in that search. The Chapter centers around the Cross. Describing the deadlock that exists between Muslims and Christians on this issue Lammin Sanneh writes, ‘Muslims are adamant that the weakness and humiliation of the crucifixion are unworthy of God and fatal to the success of God's will and design for the social order. That is the scandal, the affront, of the cross: a scandal to the Muslim religious temper, and a scandal to worldly wisdom.’ Most Muslims do not believe that Jesus died on the cross but even if they did is no atoning significance attached to the the cross event. Siddiqui ponders what the symbol of the cross means to her as a Muslim and confesses that although she is drawn to it she does not desire it. She reasons that this may be due to the fact that she may have confined her understanding of God to something that does not unsettle her. In the last assessment Saddique writes that Christians have been baffled as to why Muslims refuse to accept the Incarnation and salvific role of Christ, while Muslims are baffled at the complex nature of the Christian God’ yet she believes that fundamentally they worship the same God.

Assessment.
Someone once said if you want to be understood you should seek after understanding. That is the spirit of this book. It is not concerned with defending its ideas or attacking Christianity. Its extensive coverage of historical polemics is contained within the rubric of promoting accuracy and clarity of beliefs in order to improve the quality of contemporary interfaith dialogue. To this end, the book achieves its objective well. In an age of social media where everyone talks past each other, takes offense it is refreshing to read a book like this. Its non-combative approach avoids uncharitable argumentation and actually made me more empathetic to the limits of Islamic comprehension. That said I felt more reaffirmed than ever before of just how compelling the Christian message of Salvation is. What is confusing to me is how well the author articulates a Christian understanding of the Person and work of Christ. I did not think reading a work by a Muslim author would help me marvel the way I did. Given such beautiful articulations of Christian belief about the power of the cross the lingering question the book left me with was this. "Why isn’t the author a Christian?"

[Anthony Cleveland · Rating 1 out of 5]

Professor Siddiqui's noble effort to understand Jesus of Nazareth in Christian and Muslim perspectives fails. I was disappointed with this work. Siddiqui's theological interpretations are too complex, disjointed and, at times, illogical. Perhaps it was simply her academic writing style that put me off. However, I think she missed the essential element of Christianity as summed up in the Gospel accounts ... God loves the creation, including we humans, and this love motivated Him to become flesh in order to demonstrate a better way of life based upon altruistic love. Yes, He is merciful as indicated by Professor Siddiqui's interpretation of Muslim teaching. However, as the Apostle John writes, "God is love". That must be the place where any dialogue between Christianity and the world's religions must begin ... love .... the essence of God.

[Bob Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mona Siddiqui provides a balanced view of Jesus, looking at him from both a Christian and a Muslim perspective with the help of significant theolgians through the ages from John of Damascus (675-749), Abd al-Jabbar (935-1025) and Abu Hamid al-Ghazali 1058-111, through Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) and Rumi (1207-1273), to contemporary writers such as Rowan Williams, Joseph Ratzinger , Mahmoud Ayoub, and Tarif Khalidi. (As Sunni Islam is non-hierarchical she appears to be unaware of leadership in the church. She does not mention that at the time of writing Joseph Ratzinger was Pope or that Rowan Williams was Archbishop of Canterbury.)
Other muslim writers on Christianity such as Ahmet Tomor (The Quran and the Bible, 2010) Look at Christiaity and the New Testament from an entirely Islamic perspective and seek to prove that it cannot be the authentic message of God. In Christians, Muslims and Jesus the author seeks to understand Jesus as the eternal word of God from a Christian perspective, together with the purpose of his death and resurrection. She also provides counter arguments from a muslim perspective and explores areas of convergence between the religions (such as the sinless nature of both Jesus and Mary). She concludes by expressing her faith (as a muslim) in God who i transcendent but not distant, who chooses to retain the secrets of himself but makes us aware of his presence.

[Sheridan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard to read - I didn't know what her point was most of the time. The conclusion summed it up very well though. I'd recommend just reading that unless you are well versed with meaning of the scriptures in both the Bible and the Q'uran

[Julian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Generated many thoughts and possibly some writing projects. Read part of it in a mosque.