also<\/em> has no body and no \u201cpartners,\u201d no spouse, parents, or offspring. If that \u201cpretty well describes Lucifer\u201d in the case of Islam, it must consistently also pretty well describe Lucifer in the case of Judaism.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now, I realize that the concept of \u201cworshiping the same God\u201d is just a bit ambiguous. \u00a0In a real sense, each of us \u2014 based upon differences in background, personality, psychology, upbringing, personal history, education, and so forth \u2014 worships a \u201cdifferent\u201d God. \u00a0And each denomination and each theistic tradition worships a \u201cdifferent\u201d God. \u00a0Christians believe in a God who is, in some manner, trinitarian. \u00a0Jews and Muslims don\u2019t. \u00a0And the list goes on and on and on.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
But different perceptions of a person don\u2019t create distinct persons. \u00a0I may think that Vanessa is Frank\u2019s daughter, whereas she\u2019s actually Bob\u2019s. \u00a0I may think that Jim is kind while, unbeknownst to me, he\u2019s actually very cruel to his wife and his children. \u00a0But the individual in question remains the same Bob.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
The God worshiped by Muslims created the world in six days, just like the God worshiped by Jews and Christians. \u00a0He placed Adam and Eve in the Garden, expelled them from it after they yielded to Satan\u2019s tempting, sent the Flood, spoke to Moses and Abraham, and inspired the psalms of David. \u00a0(He also called and sent sinless Jesus, in agreement with Christian claims and in disagreement with Judaism.) \u00a0He will resurrect the dead for judgment.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
That sounds, to me, like the same God that the Christians worship.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Are the theologies somewhat different? \u00a0Yes. \u00a0Of course. \u00a0But consider an analogy: \u00a0We\u2019re talking about our old acquaintance Liam O\u2019Sullivan. \u00a0I remember him as chunky and short, with longish hair and no sense of humor. \u00a0You\u2019re certain that he was relatively tall, with short<\/em> hair. \u00a0And, you insist, he had a very sharp but dry wit. \u00a0Are we talking about the same guy? \u00a0Well, when we agree that the Liam we\u2019re talking about graduated from Smallville High School, where he was head cheerleader and student body president, that he went on to study forensic entomology at Gotham City College and then worked for twenty years as the director of humanitarian assistance for the Vito and Carmela Corleone Foundation before accepting appointment as ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Duchy of Grand Fenwick, we understand that, beyond a reasonable doubt, we\u2019re talking about one and only one Liam O\u2019Sullivan.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI note,\u201d says the commenter on my blog, \u201cthat we don\u2019t see very many Muslims in our temples. Perhaps that is a powerful clue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not quite sure what to make of that remark. \u00a0I\u2019m pretty sure that I\u2019ve never seen a Buddhist\u00a0in any dedicated Latter-day Saint temple, either. \u00a0Or a Methodist, or a Jew, or a Hindu, or a Catholic, or a Zoroastrian, or a Presbyterian, or a Mennonite, or a Quaker.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
But my interlocutor argues that the moral<\/em> differences between Islam and Christianity, between Muslims and Christians, and especially between Islam and the faith of the Latter-day Saints, are so profound as to demonstrate that they worship different deities.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Qu\u2019ran,\u201d he says, \u201cis the only \u2018holy\u2019 book which calls for the eradication of non-Muslims. How can that irrefutable fact lead one to conclude that they worship the same God you and I do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, the Qur\u2019an doesn\u2019t<\/em> call for the eradication of non-Muslims.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
Speaking of the God worshipped by Muslims, my commenter says that \u201cHe calls for the deaths, mutilation, subjugation and taxation of non-Muslims.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a rather crude oversimplification, at best, but I\u2019ll let it pass for the moment. \u00a0(It\u2019s a subject that I\u2019ll need to address later.)<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThink,\u201d he urges me, \u201cabout all the Muslim-related wars and strife in Muslim and non-Muslim countries alike in the past half century: Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Sudan, Libya, Nigeria, Bosnia, Lebanon, Egypt, Afghanistan, Niger, Chad, Kenya, Jordan, Lebanon, Tanzania, Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, China, Argentina, France, Germany, England, Sweden, and the United States. If I missed any, does it really matter? Islam is truly the Religion of Pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Well, I can hardly deny the dysfunctionality of the modern Middle East and much of the Islamic world. \u00a0But is that the direct result of Islam, as such? \u00a0That would require some evidence and argument. \u00a0It\u2019s not self-evident.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, my commenter also calls upon a particular understanding of the future<\/em> as evidence for his point of view. \u00a0Speaking of Islam, he writes that\u00a0\u201cIt will constitute a major portion of the forces fighting against Israel af Megiddo.\u201d<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
This may someday be true. \u00a0It may not. \u00a0But, as of now, hypothetical future events and peculiar private understandings of prophecy constitute no actual evidence at all.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
To be continued.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u00a0 \u00a0 In response to my blog entry of a few days ago on the question \u201cDo Christians and Muslims worship the same God?\u201d\u00a0one reader responds \u201cDefinitely not!\u201d \u00a0 He elaborates: \u00a0\u201cIn no way can Allah be equated with Elohim and Jehovah. That dog simply does not hunt.\u201d \u00a0 Actually, though, it\u2019s a pretty good […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2761,437,2601,1414],"class_list":["post-69277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-allah","tag-christianity-and-islam","tag-god","tag-mormonism-and-islam"],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/a>