Christianity A Brief Historical Perspective

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In the name of Allah, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful

Christianity A Brief Historical Perspective


The nature of this presentation is not so much to discuss the life and purpose of Prophet Jesus (as) as comparative between Islam and Christianity, but rather to instead provide a summarised history of the nature and development of the religion of Christianity itself. I intend to present both the conventional Christian view, or the myths, along with objective, equitable facts, and from this I then hope to unveil the reality, inshallah.


What is the Bible?
Conventional Christian view (the Myth)
Most Christians regard the Bible as the verified, indisputable Word of God. Yet although most Christians believe the Bible to be inspired by God Almighty Himself, Christians vary as to how far they literally perceive this claim. Some Christians (as I myself used to) believe that the Bible is perfect and is the literal Word of God inspired through men. Other Christians (perhaps the more modern ones) are aware of the countless mistakes in the Bible, admit and recognise the many contradictions in the Bible and yet nonetheless believe that the Bible in its entirety is authentic as still purport to the essential principles of Christianity.

Facts
The Bible is divided into two distinct parts, the first part is the Old Testament (OT) – or old agreement, and the second part is the New Testament (NT) – or new agreement. The Bible is four times as big as the Quran and is said to have over 40 different authors (although the actual figure is probably far more). The OT constitutes about ¾ of the Bible and there are some 66 chapters (books) of the Bible written over an astonishing period of 1600 years. The OT is almost identical to the Jewish Torah though the former contains additional books that the Jews do not accept (a fact which becomes important when examining ostensible messianic prophecy). The NT contains four Gospels “according” to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Most of the rest of the 23 chapters of the NT are written by a man called Paul. The Bible starts with stories of Aadam (as), through to Noah, Abraham, Moses (as) right up to the life of Jesus (as).

The Reality
The majority of scholars who profess the Bible to be by and large lacking in authenticity are either Western or are themselves ancestrally Christian turned – secularist / atheistic. In fact it has been documented by many sects and branches of Christianity that much of the content in the bible is of doubtful material. This reality is indicated through the Bible’s many contradictions, mistakes and alterations. See below for 101 clear unjustifiable Biblical discrepancies,-
http://www.islamway.com/english/imag...radictions.htm


What are the Gospels?
Conventional Christian View
Most Christians alledge that the true Gospels were written by the disciples of Jesus; Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Facts
The Gospel according to Mark was the earliest of the four gospels to be written, scholars estimate that it was written in around 60 CE. The Gospel according to John was the latest of the four Gospels to be written, in fact it was written some 100 years after Jesus (as) disappeared – therefore in order for “john” to have been a disciple he must have lived more than 130 years! In reality nobody knows who these characters really were as there are practically no historical accounts of their persons. All four Gospels are similar in that they tell similar stories, often in the exact same words. This means that the total words actually claimed to be the direct words of Jesus (as) is small enough to fill no more than two columns of a newspaper.

The Reality
Although the four gospels in parts have the same narrative they still manage to be contradictory on many grounds; logic, numeracy, science, description and authenticity. Sometimes the same event will be relayed with completely different details. This is even the case for the most important event in Christian theology – that is the account of the apparent Resurrection of Christ. See,- http://www.infidels.org/library/mode...adictions.html

It is interesting that most “proofs” of Jesus’ divinity are protracted from the Gospel according to John. This Gospel, the last to be written, contains far more elaborate, hyperbolic sayings and narrations attributed to Jesus (as). If you ask a Christian why he/she believes that Jesus is the begotten Son of God, she/he is likely to refer to the Gospel according to John.

We know that the Gospel Injil was given to Jesus (as) and that he was himself inspired by it. It is for this reason that Jesus (as) is referred in the Quran as the Word of God [Quran 004:171]. Some people speculate that Jesus (as) actually wrote this Gospel in the form of a written document. However, there is little evidence to support this claim.

Who was Paul?
Conventional Christian View
The Bible explains that Saul of Tarsus was originally a Jew who hated and used to persecute the Christians. However one day, on his way to Damascus where he had planned to capture some rebellious Christians, he had a vision whereby he saw Jesus Christ flying in the sky who thereabouts asked him, “Saul, why are you persecuting me?”. Jesus (as) apparently then gave Saul instructions to follow him. Saul soon became the Apostle Paul and began to preach a completely new message of Jesus Christ. For instance he taught that Jesus (as) was one who is the Lord (God) and the Saviour. Most of Paul’s writings in the Bible come in the form of letters sent to various churches around the Middle Eastern / Mediterranean vicinity.

Facts
Paul never ever met Jesus (well at least not in human form), yet his writings are said to have started as early as 3 years after Jesus (as) disappeared. This means that the writings of Paul were actually written 50 – 100 years before the Gospels themselves! This means that the four accepted gospels were written in hindsight of Paul’s writings.

The Reality
Paul is the true founder of Christianity as we now know it. Paul’s teachings were incredibly divergent to that of Jesus (as) despite that they were preached in his name. In all Paul’s letters he actually refers directly to the sayings of Jesus (as) no more than twice. Paul made it permissible for Christians to eat any meat (including Pork), drink wine and taught that circumcision is not necessary. Paul introduced new ways of praying which were “spirit –led” through “speaking in tongues”. Perhaps the greatest abomination is that Paul began to preach that Jesus (as) was the actual, literal, begotten Son of God, that he died for our sins, and that his followers must establish his kingdom here on Earth. He promoted ideas that later came to develop the doctrine of the Trinity, such as the Holy Spirit being an actual part (or third) of God. There is no doubt that, as the Qur’an tells us, Jesus would/will be outraged by such false claims promulgated in his name , so why and how did Paul manage to do it?

Paul was a Hellenized Jew (Greek Speaking), and was greatly influenced by Greek mythology and pagan modes of thinking like much of the Hellenised world of the time. In reality, it was for this mode of thinking he was more inclined than Judaism. Hence the target audience for Paul’s preaching was by and large the Gentile population (non – Jews, including Romans and Greeks). Now it is important for us to place this in a historical context as to appreciate the true ramifications of Paul’s actions. One must remember that during this period the (real) Jews were being devastatingly persecuted by the Romans – in fact massacred. Under such pressure many Jews felt the need to compromise their religion so as to live in peace under the ruling oppression of the Romans. As such some compromising Jews were prepared to reject their own prophets, John “the Baptist” (yahya) (as) and Jesus (as) as to save themselves from subjugation and victimization. It was the Emperor of the time Herod who beheaded Prophet Yahya (as), meanwhile there was little outcry from the majority of Jews, perhaps out of fear for their lives and livelihoods.

So by Paul saying that Jesus (as) was divine he greatly appealed to the masses (Romans occupying Jerusalem influenced by the Greek beliefs) in terms they were very much at home with, and his success was ensured. As the Bible admits, Paul even had associations with the Roman Emperor and some scholars suggest that he was in fact employed by the Roman High Priest (Pontius Pilot) for the specific role of squashing the new rebellious movement of the nazerites (followers of Jesus of Nazareth). It was these people, the nazerites, that were the true followers of Jesus (as), and it was for their purpose, the true message of Jesus (as), that they were themselves greatly persecuted. The disciples of Jesus (as) belonged to this group and they fought for their deen against transgressing oppressors rather like in the way of a jihad.

Quran says,-
[061 : 014]
O you who believe! be helpers (in the cause) of Allah, as~ Isa son of Marium said to (his) disciples: Who are my helpers in the cause of Allah? The disciples said: We are helpers (in the cause) of Allah. So a party of the children of Israel believed and another party disbelieved; then We aided those who believed against their enemy, and they became uppermost.



Who were the Early Church?
Conventional Christian View (the myth)
It is said that the Church as we know it today - its message, its institutionalisation, its principles and practices - is identical to that of the early Church. It is also said that the early church is certainly all what Jesus (as) sought to establish and promote in his mission on Earth.

Facts
There were hundreds of accounts of the extraordinary life of Jesus (as). After all, there had not been a prophet like him for hundreds of years and the legacy of prophet-hood was slowly drawing to a termination. Yet, it was only in 318 CE when the Roman Emperor of the time, Constantine, decided to openly declare Christianity as his and the States religion. Consequently in 325 CE the council of Nicea was formed to decide upon which accounts of Jesus (as) should be the official, conical, Gospels. Constantine and his contemporaries of course chose the gospels most inclined to the Pauline interpretation of Christianity they had been so very fond of for it was the opinion that the Empire of Rome had actually served to promote. All other accounts of Jesus’ (as) life were burnt. 20th Century discoveries however, namely the Dead Sea Scrolls, have revealed evidence of the existence of other, more authentic accounts of his life.

In the council of Nicea, 325 CE, the doctrine of the Trinity was made incumbent as a Christian tenet of faith, and Constantine ordered for the execution of anyone who dared speak out against it. All who did not conform to a belief in the trinity, which included the divinity of Christ, were deemed as heretics, worthy of punishment and even death.

The Reality
Paul and co were extremely successful in their preaching of the new message of Jesus (as). This was especially the case in the regions controlled by the Empire of Rome. The true message of Jesus (as) however, as transmitted and fought through his disciples, was not completely lost. Many of his true followers fled from areas under Roman occupation and sought exile elsewhere. Some of them fled to the regions of north Africa, namely Abyssinia (modern day Egypt) and Ethiopia. That is why when the final messenger (saw) came they remembered that Jesus had prophesied about the arrival of a last prophet whose name would be Ahmad (See Gospel of Barnabas,- http://barnabas.net/), as such these people by and large readily embraced Islam. Perhaps the most famous example is the Christian King Negus of Abyssinia who allowed the Prophet Muhammad (saw) and his companions (ra) to seek refuge in his Kingdom when they were escaping persecution in Mekkah – he later embraced Islam.


Who are the Modern Church?
The Myth
The Modern Church is said to represent the body of their Lord Christ who is said to be the body’s head. Through the Church Christ’s Kingdom is said to reign supreme on Earth. Christ will return to Earth soon to redeem the Church and in a spectacular event known as the rapture Christians will be saved from the trials and tribulations occurring on Earth wrought by the Anti-Christ. From there Christians will be taken up to dwell with Christ in peace and love in heaven. All other people who refuse to accept Jesus as God (or God’s literal begotten Son) will be condemned to Hell where they shall reside forever with Satan.

Facts
The Modern Day Church is deeply divided. There are thousands of different groups, sects and denominations. Some Christians do not even accept other Christians as real Christians! A good example is the Jehovah’s Witnesses. These people stringently deny belief in the Trinity, the Divinity of Jesus, or that its is permissible to eat unclean meats. Jehovah’s Witnesses have their own Bible, the New International Bible, where the name “God” has been reverted back to the original term “Jehovah”. They make up a minority of Christians known as Unitarian Christians. Unitarians are those Christians that regard God as One, not a third of one, or a one of three.

The Bible is by no means uniformly agreed upon amongst the Christians. Roman Catholics in fact have their own Bible which has extra books known as the apocrypha. Mormons too have their own Bible.

The first Bible to be translated into English from Latin was done under the authority of King James I (who was also a clinically diagnosed maniac, perhaps due to his candidly homosexual activities and lavish alcohol addiction). The Bible hence forth has been translated a hundred times over, revised and modernised. There is no original copy of any Bible.

The Reality
The most popular form of modern Christianity today is Evangelical – Born Again Christianity, or as I like to term it – George Bush Christianity. This is a relatively new version of Christianity and it originally derives from Protestantism and later Pentecostalism. It has been in fruition for around 70 years and was greatly influenced by the coercive Christianisation of Africans who were sold into chattel slavery through the brutal Atlantic Slave Trade Triangle.

Prior to this, in the 16th century during the Protestant Reformation, many faith groups had split away from the Roman Catholic Church. This destroyed the relative unity of Christendom in western Europe. Later on, from this split the Church of England was formed when King Henry VIII needed vindication that it was acceptable to divorce yet another one of his wives.

Evangelic Christians fundamentally hold strong to the belief that Jesus (as) is actually God. They also believe that the Holy Spirit is God and it dwells inside each of them allowing them to have prophetic insights, healing powers, and be “under the anointing”. When they are “under the anointing” it is not uncommon to witness them “speaking in tongues” – which involves a series of strange garbled words rapidly uttered whilst simultaneously making sporadic movements in enchanted sways as though under merciless intoxication. These people believe that they “walk with Christ as God” and that this guides them to that which is good and reveals to them that which may be bad.

What is important to emphasis is that most of modern Western Christianity does not conform to the Protestant – Catholic dichotomy. New Christians are said to be those that are “born-again” (like George Bush) through the Holy Spirit (a part of God). In more regions like parts of south America, Central Africa, Ireland and the Balkans, where Christianity is still an inbuilt societal establishment, traditional Christianity in the form of orthodoxy is still very much in place. In these places they may still ascribe to “Protestant”, “Anglican” labels as an expression of a certain religiosity. This kind of Christianity is rapidly on the decline, - hence the noticeable decrease in the popularity of the Pope in the past 100 years. NB – Catholicism in many ways ought to be treated separately from Christianity due to there vast differences, but just a quick note - Catholics believe Mary to be the Mother of God (Jesus) and a saint for whom they have many idols and to whom they pray towards.

The Quran on the Christians; ahlul Kitaab (people of the Book) ?

In Arabic there are three ways to describe the Christians;

1.esawi,- i.e followers of Esa (Arabic for Jesus).
2.Maseehi i.e followers of the Messiah, or Christ.
3.Nasaara i.e followers of (Jesus of) Nazerth (this is the group that was mentioned above)

It is this last group the Qur’an makes references to. Nasaara are the righteous followers of Jesus; people of the Book, true believers who providing they believe in one God and follow the correct teachings sent by Him through Jesus, are stated in the Qur’an as surely saved.

[002.062]
Those who believe (in the Qur’an), and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Christians (nasaara) and the Sabians,- any who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.

Perhaps some Unitarians may fall into this category, and Allah knows best.

However it is crucial that we recognise the paradox. The Quran is quite clear that anyone who believes that Jesus is God cannot be considered a true believer.

[05:017]
Certainly they disbelieve who say: Surely, Allah-- He is the Messiah, son of Marium. Say: Who then could control anything as against Allah when He wished to destroy the Messiah son of Marium and his mother and all those on the earth? And Allah's is the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and what is between them; He creates what He pleases; and Allah has power over all things,

Perhaps the modern day esawi / maseehi fall into this category, and Allah knows best.

What we do know however is that of the Christians there are those that are believers and those that cannot be considered as such;

[005: 66]
If only they had stood fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that was sent to them from their Lord, they would have enjoyed happiness from every side. There is from among them a party on the right course: but many of them follow a course that is evil.

Anything that I have said which is wrong or that is bad is from the desires of my own self - my nafs, and anything that I have mentioned that is right and good is from Allah subhanahu wa tala. May Allah (swt) keep us on the Straight path, the path of those whom He has favoured, not the path of those whose portion is wrath, and who have gone astray. Ameen.

Much of the information was taken from books such as,-
· Jesus, Prophet of Islam by Muhammad'Ata Ur Rahim
· A Closer Look at Christianity – Barbra Brown (a revert from Christianity to Islam)
· The True Message of Jesus – Dr. Abu Ameenah bilal Phillips (“ “)
· Founders of Faith…Jesus by Humphrey Carpenter (non-muslim)
· Gospel of Barnabas (non-muslim)

And lecture,-
From Esa (as) to Islam – Abdul Ahad (revert from Christianity to Islam)
http://nadeem.lightuponlight.com/ind...tml#Abdul_Ahad