Can Christianity and Islam coexist?

the short answer is yes. Both faiths are off-shoots of Judaism, and have alot of common ground. I know several couples who make it work, even one who is Catholic and one who is Muslim. I think it depends more on which branch of each religion they belong to: If it is a radical christian into white supremacy and a radical muslim on a jihad..it is not gonna work, but with just everyday folks, who believe deeply in the golden rule (which is part of every major religion), it works well. We have even formed a kind of "triangle" of faith to help those who are suffering. Afriend of mine had a baby suffering from menengitis and I called my friends...one went to mosque and prayed...one lit candles at St. Patricks Cathedral, and I meditated and sent light (I am Buddhist). The baby got well with no long lasting side effects...was it coincidence? Maybe. However, I believed we helped in some way.

Hope this helps
alice

(Quick note: every Muslim is "on jihad". My personal jihad is da'wah, or outreach based--in order to practice my faith, I have to teach my friends and family who may not be accepting of it. Jihad is not so much "holy war" as "holy struggle". It's the struggle to practice Islam as a part of everyday life. You can think of it like NaNoWriMo, only religious.)

Yes! It really depends on the denominations involved, though. My mom is a Christian Scientist, my dad is Episcopalian, and I'm an as-yet-undeclared Muslim. The two faiths are hugely different externally, but only differ on a few points as far as theology is concerned.

NOTE: In my experience (American, of course), it's Christians who have a harder time accepting the philosophy of Islam because they do not believe that Muhammad, peace be upon him, was a prophet of God. Islam accepts everyone from Abraham to Muhammad as prophets, so there isn't as much of a challenge based on "extras".

DECLARATIONS OF FAITH:

Islam: Shahaadah (la illaha il Allah, Muhammad u'rusul Allah) -- [I testify that] there is no God but God, and Muhammad is God's final prophet.

Christianity: Nicene creed, Apostle's creed -- (condensed) I believe in one God the almighty, and his son Jesus Christ, born of the Virgin Mary for the forgiveness of sins.

WHO IS GOD?

Islam: God is unknowable, but is in all things. Does not have any human characteristics or emotions beyond the "superhuman" characteristics of love, compassion, and forgiveness. Cannot be divided into any subcategories, genders, political affiliations. God creates; humans are encouraged to explore their world to learn about God's creation. (Many Muslims use the "he" pronoun when referring to God, out of ease. In the Qur'an, pronouns range from "we" to "they" to "I" and so forth, because of the strange pronouns used in Arabic that refer only to God.)

Christianity: (Anglican) There is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, all facets of the same being. God is usually male, but some Anglicans refer to God as a "she". Study and debate centering around the scriptures are needed to get a closer sense of God. Science is generally unhindered.

Christianity: (Fundamentalist) There is God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, all separate but equal beings. There is also Satan, who is equal and opposite. God is prone to being angry and spiteful to those who sin, but can also be loving and full of grace.

WHO IS JESUS?

Islam: Prophet Isa, peace be upon him, was a Jewish prophet renowned for his powers of healing and his message of social justice. Isa (pbuh) could not be the son of God because God does not die. Associating partners or avatars of God is major shirk--a big sin.

Christianity: (Anglican) Jesus was God in human form, sent to Earth to relish in human life from a purely human perspective. Jesus was human, but without sin. He had human emotions--anger, fear, joy, sorrow, etc. He had to be the son of God because of the nature of his message and source of inspiration.

Christianity: (Fundamentalist) Jesus was the son of God, send to Earth to save mankind. Jesus was human, but without sin or human emotion. He had to be the son of God because otherwise he would be a liar (the Bible as the infallible word of God). Knowing Jesus leads you to God.

WHAT IS THE BIBLE?

Islam: A source of inspiration for Muslims, as Christianity is one of the founding faiths of Islam (Christianity, Judaism, and by association, Zoroastrianism). The stories are not to be taken literally.

Christianity: (Anglican) The morals and values of the Bible are paramount to Christian life, but words should be taken as words and not absolute truth.

Christianity: (Fundamentalist) The morals and values and individual words of the Bible, particularly the KJV, are all-important. The Bible is the word of God without error. Some groups consider any translation other than the KJV to be irrelevant.

WHAT IS THE QUR'AN?

Islam: the word of God as dictated to Muhammad (pbuh)--a set of laws and philosophy for Muslims to follow in their everyday lives. It should ideally be read in Arabic to avoid discrepancies in meaning based on unwieldy translations. The book itself is an object deserving of high respect. When reading in intense study, women and men should both cover their bodies out of respect. According to many Muslims, proof of its divinity stems from the many scientific "miracles" described with in it, particularly a detailed description of the process of fertilization more than a millennium before Western scientists described the process in depth.

Christianity: (Anglican) Not the word of God, but important to understand the Islamic faith.

Christianity: (Fundamentalist) Good for toilet paper. (I have had people actually say this to my face. ><)

OTHER RELIGIONS...

Islam: Are generally a source of inspiration, as Islam is a young faith. They are not to be taken seriously, but they are to be respected and learned about. However, Islam is the perfection of Christianity and Judaism.

Christianity: (Anglican) Are a source of inspiration and learning about God. Christianity is not the only path to God, but it is considered by many the easiest.

Christianity: (Fundamentalist) May contain wisdom, but generally are incorrect. Christianity is the only path to God.

SOME ISLAMIC PRACTICES THAT ARE UNHEARD OF IN CHRISTIANITY:

- Wud'hu, or ritual cleansing--washing the hands and feet before prayer
- Rules about menstruation--special purification after you're done. Women are ritually unclean during this time, mainly because it's unhealthful for them to carry on religious practices (particularly heavy fasting) when they're menstruating. Doing so would disrupt the cycle and isn't recommended.
- Eating halal food--non-pork/gelatin products, animals that have been slaughtered either under kosher laws or with "bismillah" said at the time of death
- Marriage laws--Muslim men can marry anyone, but Muslim women marry Muslim men.
- Women and men: in Islam, women and men are separate, but equal. In Christianity, women were created from men, so are men, version 2.0. According to the Bible, they are not equal spiritually before God.

PRACTICES THAT ARE THE SAME THAT YOU PROBABLY DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT:

- Veiling of women: But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a woman is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. ... Any woman who prays with her head unveiled dishonors her head--it is the same as if her head were shaven. For if a woman will not veil herself, she should cut off her hair. For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. (NRSV 1 Cor: 3-7) The difference between the veiling of Christian and Muslim women is the why behind it--Christian women to honor their husbands, and Muslim women so that they feel comfortable and are judged by their iman, not their looks.

- Call to prayer: church bells and sanctus bells are used for the same reason as azaan, or the call to prayer in Islam.

- Reverence to Musa (Moses), Ibrahim (Abraham), and Isa (Jesus)

If you have any questions, just ask! I'm definitely not a scholar, and I'm just learning, but I love talking about this stuff. :)

Thanks to both of you, that is absolutely brilliant, both on a personal level and a factual level too. This is excellent- if I do have a few more questions about it, I'll certainly bump this up again.

Thanks again! =)

You might find this article of interest (on the rise of Muslim students in French Catholic schools -- the two religious groups finding common ground in a secular society):
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/world/europe/30schools.html

Of course they can!

I have had many Muslim friends, have even been invited to sit in on prayer meetings and have been invited for Ramadan suppers (after sunset, of course) and naming parties. Every Muslim friend I have ever had has been respectful and polite about my beliefs. In fact, several have commented that they admired the fact that I respected their beliefs while holding to my own faith instead of being swayed to Islam simply because my convictions in my own faith were weak. They don't want religious tourists any more than anybody else. They want people who convert to Islam because they believe in Islam, not because they don't believe in anything else.

As Ghandi once put it, "All roads lead to the same city." I don't think I would ever convert to Islam, myself (I feel no need to abandon my own faith), but that doesn't mean I think others, including Muslims, need to believe and worship as I do, either. I believe that God is greater than a single religion just as God is greater than a single species or planet.

I'd also like to point out that - though I know only a little about Islam and a moderate amount about Christianity - the two religions have co-existed in America for at least 25 years - maybe more - depending on when Muslims began immigrating to the States in large numbers. The events of recent years have certainly shaken this co-existence, but I do not believe such events have completely undermined the relationship.

Well, there are a couple of differences that are kind of hard to ignore (you see, I get irked when people say they are the same, because they aren't). At the very essence, God is triune, while Allah is.... not. Christians put Jesus on the same level as God, while that is a very heretical idea to Muslims. But for a Christian, salvation kind of hinges on the conviction that Jesus is divine.

To answer your question, they can agree on numerous points, yes, but certainly not all of them. Pretending that the two faiths don't have major points of departure in them is silly, but you don't have to do that to still respect each others' beliefs and have meaningful dialogue.... and remain good friends.

Good luck on your novel. (:

I think they can coexist, but both of them have to get over the "my religion is the only correct religion" issue. Contrary to popular opinion, it IS possible to have a healthy religion which is not on a mission to convert the entire earth.

To point out though, the Catholic religion promotes coexisting with both Islam and Judaism in its doctrines (I think that's the right word; I'm not Catholic but have a friend who is). With Islam in particular, the Catholic faith sees it as a 'brother' religion since it comes from the same source and considers Allah and God to be the same being, so both faiths are worshipping the same being. They note that there are differences, but not enough that the two religions can't get along.

I'm going to disagree with some specific points raised by dear_hoopoe. Or maybe clarify, since I am one of those crazy, fundamentalist, conservative Christians that the media warns you about. :)

Under "Who is God?" you said "Christianity: (Fundamentalist) There is God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, all separate but equal beings. There is also Satan, who is equal and opposite. God is prone to being angry and spiteful to those who sin, but can also be loving and full of grace."

I know you probably weren't intending to be, but you've got this wrong from start to finish. The three persons of God in Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are facets of the same being, rather than three separate beings. If they were separate, conservative Christians would be polytheists rather than monotheists as we are. Each person of the Trinity fulfills a different function, but it's not three separate gods. Furthermore, the Trinity does have a heirarchy. God the Father is at the top, then God the Son, and then the Holy Spirit.

(There are those who do think that the Trinity is actually three separate gods, but they are generally regarded as either misunderstanding the doctrine or outright heretics.)

Satan, is not equal to God. Not ever. Not even close. Satan, as a fallen angel, may have more power than humans, but he does not come close to equalling God. He has set himself in opposition to God, but because of Christ's work of salvation, he has already failed in that task. His only power now is to try and take as many people with him to damnation as possible.

And to say that we believe God is spiteful to those who sin is not true at all. Fred Phelps is not a good example of fundamental Christianity. Sin is something everyone is prone to, and while God can and does punish sin (especially the sins that harm others), if He were spiteful, there would be no forgiveness possible. Instead there's redemption available for everyone, no matter what sin they've committed, because of Christ. God is holy, which can come across as frightening, but that is not the same as spiteful, and the two should never be mixed up.

Under "Who Is Jesus?" you've said "Christianity: (Fundamentalist) Jesus was the son of God, send to Earth to save mankind. Jesus was human, but without sin or human emotion. He had to be the son of God because otherwise he would be a liar (the Bible as the infallible word of God). Knowing Jesus leads you to God."

This one is not quite so far off. Jesus was without sin, but not without human emotion. There are instances in the Gospels that show Him experiencing anger, compassion, frustration, sorrow, happiness, and weariness. Furthermore, He was tempted, and by Satan himself. One cannot be tempted without being truly human*. Furthermore, He said He was the Son of God because He is, rather than being the Son of God so He could say so without lying. And to know Jesus is to know God ("Before Abraham was, I AM." John 8:58, "I and my Father are one." John 10:30, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father." John 14:9).

Last, under "What Is The Bible?" you wrote this: "Christianity: (Fundamentalist) The morals and values and individual words of the Bible, particularly the KJV, are all-important. The Bible is the word of God without error. Some groups consider any translation other than the KJV to be irrelevant. "

Strike everything to do with the KJV, and you've got it exactly. Those folks who are KJV-only are out there, but they aren't that common. The Lutheran and Presbyterian Church of America denominations are both very conservative and neither really sets that much store by the KJV in particular. Not too many folks are going to say, "That's a bad translation." which you do hear about other translations/versions, but it isn't the be-all/end-all, either.

My last quibble is with this: "- Women and men: in Islam, women and men are separate, but equal. In Christianity, women were created from men, so are men, version 2.0. According to the Bible, they are not equal spiritually before God."

In Christianity, women were created from men because man was alone and needed a helper. And while men may occupy a higher ranking in the spiritual heirarchy (men are heads of the household and the church), that does not give men a greater intrinsic value before God, as you suggest Christians might believe. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Galatians 3:28. All humans are equally saved and loved by God. The heirarchy in the home and church is an Earthly reminder of the Church's spiritual submission to God, not a judgment of women as less worthy than men.

Everything else you've got pretty much right, although whoever made that crack about the Qur'an to you should be punched in the face. It is entirely possible to believe someone else is wrong without being mean-spirited about it.

As to the main question, can Christians and Muslims get along, yes. They can. But they're going to disagree on just about every point of religion there is. So I suppose one might ask if the Christian and Muslim in question are planning to go hunting together, or to raise a child. The first one won't bring them into conflict that much. The second might have them going after it like cats and dogs.

* The technical term for the doctrine of Jesus being both fully God and fully man is called the "hypostatic union." There are whole books written on this subject. C.S. Lewis briefly covers the subject in The Horse And His Boy in the Narnia series.

This is not a debate forum, or a forum to discuss religion.

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You are awesome. Thank you. :)

Though, of course the role of Shaytan is changed a bit from denomination to denomination--one of my best friends is Missouri-Synod Lutheran, and Shaytan is always up to something. It sort of bugs me because God is always taking a back seat; it's "Satan did this, Satan did that...and oh, yeah, creation of the Earth, forgot about that." It's the same way with the Trinity. In some Christian traditions, particularly, the way that they separate and delegate powers to the separate bits begins to resemble Hinduism. Though they would probably eat me for saying that. ^_~

But that's my soap box for the day. Thanks for clarifying for me, also!

In general, from a political, socioeconomic view, the answer is no. Christianity and Islam cannot co-exist at the government level.

Yes, individual Christians, if they practice the love of God, and individual Muslims, if they believe that Jihad is a personal struggle, may get along very well. But in general, a Christian society and a Muslim society will not co-exist peacefully, for the following reason.

Christianity divides everything into the Kingdom of God, and the kingdoms or governments of the world. The Kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom, as Jesus said to Pilate, "My kingdom is not of this world, if my kingdom were of this world then my servants would fight." The governments of the world are for the purpose of providing justice by force (if necessary.) And Christianity can peacefully exist under a tolerant Civil government.

Islam does not or cannot divide religious observance from Civil observance. All laws in an Islamic government are also religious laws. There is no peaceful co-existence of Islamic and non-Islamic religions under an Islamic government (Unless that Islamic government is ruled by a tolerant Dictator who forces Muslims to refrain from militaristic Jihad against non-muslims.)

This is why it is stupid and egotistical for some Americans to believe that they can possibly set up a tolerant (non-Islamic) civil government to rule in Iraq, or Iran or any other muslim country. The only way such a civil government can rule an Islamic country, is by force. Think back to the example of Rome having taken over Israel/Palestine. They ended up having to destroy most of it to quell the rebellion of the zealots. The jews of that time wanted only the rule of their religion.

This is the difference. To Christians, Christianity is a spiritual path that guides the believer to peace and love. To the more militant Muslims, Islam is a set of laws for this earth, that guides them to paradise, and tolerates no differences in behavior, on pain of death. Christianity allows non-religious Civil Governments to exist. Islam does not tolerate non-religious Civil Governments.

Of course, this is from my point of view. And not being a Muslim, there is always the possibility that I'm wrong.

You've got it in regards to the extremists, except for this:

Islam does not or cannot divide religious observance from Civil observance. All laws in an Islamic government are also religious laws. There is no peaceful co-existence of Islamic and non-Islamic religions under an Islamic government (Unless that Islamic government is ruled by a tolerant Dictator who forces Muslims to refrain from militaristic Jihad against non-muslims.)

In shari'a, there is an entire clause called "jizyah", which is rights for non-Muslims living under the Islamic caliphate. They had to pay special taxes, but in essence, anyone who messes with the believers of another religion messes with Allah. Most of these rights are for Abrahamic religions alone--that's why there's a [proportionally] large Jewish community in Isfahan, Iran, but most Iranian Zoroastrians underwent a massive diaspora during the conquest of Persia by the Arabs. Many Jews and Christians moved into the caliphate, because of the protection under its massive amount of power.

(Turkey is an example of a 99% Muslim country run by a secular government. The Prime Minister and his wife are conservatives.)

I am closing this topic. As stated in the guidelines at the top of this for, the religious forum is not for debate. Because the debate has continued, the entire discussion is ending.