Allah ≠ YHWH
Tuesday, 08 November, 2005
I am annoyed at myself because I am sick (again). Sick = sore throat, runny nose, feeling woozy. It's my own fault; I haven't had a day off in a while because I was doing my Numbers exegetical paper, then studying for my Revelation and finally for WRAG. I was supposed to go in to Matthias Media today but I chose to stay home instead. Pity. There was a Briefing meeting on today.
In keeping with Kathleen's request, I thought I would blog something in response to this exam question:
Discuss the assertion that the Allah of Islam is the God of the Christian Scriptures
but I am also wondering if I need to disguise what I write given Ben's comments. But I'm not an organisation and I don't work with Muslims and I think that Muslims would probably also agree with me that the Allah of Islam is definitely not the God of the Christian Scriptures (I will refer to him as YHWH for clarity's sake).
(Please note that the answer to this question is very rough and I haven't quoted the Qu'ran at all; my knowledge is all based on lectures from Mike Raiter and John Dickson's A Spectator's Guide to World Religions.)
Firstly, the first of the Five Pillars of Islam is “There is no god but Allah and Muhammed is his prophet”. As John Dickson takes pains to point out in A Spectator's Guide to Religion, the first part of this assertion is stated over and against Christianity. Allah is one. There is no god but Allah. Muslims do not believe that Jesus is God. They believe that he is a Prophet but definitely not God. If Jesus was God, that would be polytheism which is absolutely abhorrent to Muslims. Remember Muhammed was kicked out of Mecca in the first place for preaching monotheism.
But in the Bible YHWH reveals himself to be one in Three Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. “Where?” you ask. That's a subject for a whole other blog post in which I'd probably just regurgitate John Woodhouse's lecture on the Trinity. The important point to note here is that the Allah of Islam and the YHWH of the Christian Scriptures are completely different: Allah is a god who is one; YHWH is a God who is one in Three Persons.
This, I think, has interested implications for my second point. Muslims claim that Allah is unknowable and distant. It is blasphemous to say that you can approach Allah and talk to him face to face. It is blasphemous to even approach him at all. He is Allah—he is above us—he rules over the universe, etc. etc. The YHWH of the Christian Scriptures is just as powerful and sovereign but at the same time he is personal and intimate: he knows the numbers of hairs we have on our heads; he notices when a swallow falls from the sky; he formed us in the womb before we were born. YHWH is relational because he is Trinity for the Father, Son and Holy Spirit exist in the bonds of love and relationship. YHWH is the model for our relationships (equality but submission within the Trinity). But Allah is one and has no relationship except to himself (hence the answer to Michael Hill's interview question, “What's the difference between Allah and your marriage?”)
Finally, Muslims claim that Allah is loving and forgiving. Even though a Muslim's final destination—eternal paradise or eternal hell—is determined by the weighing up of his/her good deeds against the bad, a Muslim can still throw himself upon the mercy of Allah. Allah, however, gives no absolute assurances that his followers will enter Paradise. If you adhere to the Five Pillars of Islam and follow the example of Muhammed, you will probably get in but you cannot ever be 100% sure. Maybe 99% but not 100%.
In contrast, YHWH is love (1 John 4:8, 16). YHWH is love because he is Trinity. (NB: The doctrine of the Trinity contains heaps of implications for the average Christian and John Woodhouse even made the challenging comment during his lecture that, if you don't believe in the Trinity, you're not actually a Christian, but that is a topic to be explored some other time.) YHWH's love finds its ultimate expression in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross to make atonement for the sins of his human creation (1 John 4:9-10). Jesus' death provides the means by which we, upon repenting, can receive forgiveness from God and the assurance of an eternal inheritance, dwelling with him forever. With Allah, there are no such guarantees.
The Allah of Islam is not the YHWH of the Christian Scriptures. Pluralists make this claim but in doing so they expose themselves to be completely ignorant of the subtleties of each of these great world religions and disrespectful to both. Let us not be so foolish.
Blinks:
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Great answer, Karen: I think it’s fantastic that they’re teaching you about other religions at Moore.
Regarding censorship within this matter, it really only matters if you are a person or organisation who works with Muslims, or if you are tangibly linked to such organisations. The reason it is done is to protect Christians who are working in places like the Middle East from being discovered, as there are some horror stories about Muslim extremists tracking Christians down through web sites. In this context, I think it’s safe.
I think the uncertainty of salvation in Islam is something that I find quite staggering. Allah is an unknowable God; YHWH made himself known to us, that we might be in relationship with Him.
I love you and while I miss you and would love to see you more, it just isn’t always possible. But there will be tonnes of time come eternity. Hugs George
Amen to that, George!