Jesus Christ (عيسى المسيح) in Islam

Here we are, in the splendid month of December, looking forward to a New Year in 2007. But before this year ends, many an occasion will be observed. On the Jewish calendar, we have Hanukkah, an important Jewish festivity. This year, Eid ul-Adha is coming up near the end of this month as well. And of course, not so far behind, we have Christmas, which falls on the 25th of this month. How close these festivities are...

...and yet, we choose to bicker and segregate instead of unite and celebrate together, not that we should compromise our faiths, but I believe in a modicum of respect for others and their beliefs. Well, let's get back to Christmas. On this day (according to Christians, though we do not know the exact date), a man who would instill a big change unto this world was born a birth. And not just any birth, but a miraculous virgin birth. His mother was Mary, and his name was Jesus. You might have read this before, but as a Muslim, I believe that Jesus (peace be upon him) is indeed one of God's Prophets and Messengers, and he sent a message to Mankind that has been echoed in the New Testament and the Koran. I hear his name quite often. One example includes this implicit reference to him in Fairuz's masterpiece, Zahrat el Mada'in (زهرة المدائن, "Flower of the Cities"):

الطفل في المغارة و أمه مريم وجهان يبكيان

"The infant in a cave, with his mother, Mary... both of them crying..."

Well, according to the song, they were crying because of injustice, and Jesus Christ (pbuh) was definitely one who stood up against all sorts of injustices being wrought against the innocent. Well, that, and of course preaching the Gospel (which we believe has not been fully preserved to the present day).

Now, as a Prophet and Messenger of God, Jesus was bestowed miracles which he could perform by God's leave and Will. From what I've read in the Koran, Jesus is a special case because miracles were bestowed upon him since birth, which itself was miraculous. And so was the birth of John the Baptist (Yahya, يحيى, pbuh) before him: to a barren woman, the wife of Zachariah (Zakariyya, زكرية, pbuh). God mentioned in the Koran this beautiful story, in Chapter 19, dubbed - not surprisingly - Mary (Maryam, mother of Jesus):

[19:2] (This is) a recital of the Mercy of thy Lord to His servant Zakariya.
[19:3] Behold! he cried to his Lord in secret,
[19:4] Praying: "O my Lord! infirm indeed are my bones, and the hair of my head doth glisten with grey: but never am I unblest, O my Lord, in my prayer to Thee!
[19:5] "Now I fear (what) my relatives (and colleagues) (will do) after me: but my wife is barren: so give me an heir as from Thyself,-
[19:6] "(One that) will (truly) represent me, and represent the posterity of Jacob; and make him, O my Lord! one with whom Thou art well-pleased!"
[19:7] (His prayer was answered): "O Zakariya! We give thee good news of a son: His name shall be Yahya: on none by that name have We conferred distinction before."
[19:8] He said: "O my Lord! How shall I have a son, when my wife is barren and I have grown quite decrepit from old age?"
[Yusufali 19:9] He said: "So (it will be) thy Lord saith, 'that is easy for Me: I did indeed create thee before, when thou hadst been nothing!'"
[19:10] (Zakariya) said: "O my Lord! give me a Sign." "Thy Sign," was the answer, "Shall be that thou shalt speak to no man for three nights, although thou art not dumb."
[19:11] So Zakariya came out to his people from him chamber: He told them by signs to celebrate Allah's praises in the morning and in the evening.
[19:12] (To his son came the command): "O Yahya! take hold of the Book with might": and We gave him Wisdom even as a youth,
[19:13] And piety (for all creatures) as from Us, and purity: He was devout,
[19:14] And kind to his parents, and he was not overbearing or rebellious.
[19:15] So Peace on him the day he was born, the day that he dies, and the day that he will be raised up to life (again)!

One might find a similar descriptions in the New Testament regarding John the Baptist (pbuh), who is elevated to a saintly status due to his piety and wisdom in preaching the Word of God. Of course, he was but a forerunner of Jesus Christ (pbuh) himself, who would also come with glad tidings and preach to Mankind, through the Children of Israel and the residents of Palestine.

Following John's (pbuh) preaching and death, another remarkable figure enters the fray. Her name is Mary (peace be upon her), mother of Jesus. Could it have been coincidence that she had such a pious son? After all, God praises her as a pious, upright and righteous woman who stayed away from wrong and sin. God relates in the same chapter:

[19:16] Relate in the Book (the story of) Mary, when she withdrew from her family to a place in the East.
[19:17] She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then We sent her our angel, and he appeared before her as a man in all respects.
[19:18] She said: "I seek refuge from thee to (Allah) Most Gracious: (come not near) if thou dost fear Allah."
[19:19] He said: "Nay, I am only a messenger from thy Lord, (to announce) to thee the gift of a holy son.
[Yusufali 19:20] She said: "How shall I have a son, seeing that no man has touched me, and I am not unchaste?"
[19:21] He said: "So (it will be): Thy Lord saith, 'that is easy for Me: and (We wish) to appoint him as a Sign unto men and a Mercy from Us':It is a matter (so) decreed."
[19:22] So she conceived him, and she retired with him to a remote place.
[19:23] And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm-tree: She cried (in her anguish): "Ah! would that I had died before this! would that I had been a thing forgotten and out of sight!"
[19:24] But (a voice) cried to her from beneath the (palm-tree): "Grieve not! for thy Lord hath provided a rivulet beneath thee;
[Yusufali 19:25] "And shake towards thyself the trunk of the palm-tree: It will let fall fresh ripe dates upon thee.
[19:26] "So eat and drink and cool (thine) eye. And if thou dost see any man, say, 'I have vowed a fast to (Allah) Most Gracious, and this day will I enter into not talk with any human being'"
[19:27] At length she brought the (babe) to her people, carrying him (in her arms). They said: "O Mary! truly an amazing thing hast thou brought!
[19:28] "O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!"
[19:29] But she pointed to the babe. They said: "How can we talk to one who is a child in the cradle?"
[Yusufali 19:30] He said: "I am indeed a servant of Allah: He hath given me revelation and made me a prophet;
[19:31] "And He hath made me blessed wheresoever I be, and hath enjoined on me Prayer and Charity as long as I live;
[Yusufali 19:32] "(He) hath made me kind to my mother, and not overbearing or miserable;
[19:33] "So peace is on me the day I was born, the day that I die, and the day that I shall be raised up to life (again)"!
[Yusufali 19:34] Such (was) Jesus the son of Mary: (it is) a statement of truth, about which they (vainly) dispute.

Among the many miracles that Jesus was bestowed was, suggested by these verses, his ability to speak from infancy. This is confirmed in an earlier chapter in the Koran, titled Aal Imran ("the family of Imran (Amram in the Bible, is it?)"):

[3:45] Behold! the angels said: "O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honour in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to Allah;
[3:46] "He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity. And he shall be (of the company) of the righteous."
[3:47] She said: "O my Lord! How shall I have a son when no man hath touched me?" He said: "Even so: Allah createth what He willeth: When He hath decreed a plan, He but saith to it, 'Be,' and it is!
[3:48] "And Allah will teach him the Book and Wisdom, the Law and the Gospel,
[3:49] "And (appoint him) a messenger to the Children of Israel, (with this message): "'I have come to you, with a Sign from your Lord, in that I make for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by Allah's leave: And I heal those born blind, and the lepers, and I quicken the dead, by Allah's leave; and I declare to you what ye eat, and what ye store in your houses. Surely therein is a Sign for you if ye did believe;
[3:50] "'(I have come to you), to attest the Law which was before me. And to make lawful to you part of what was (Before) forbidden to you; I have come to you with a Sign from your Lord. So fear Allah, and obey me.
[3:51] "'It is Allah Who is my Lord and your Lord; then worship Him. This is a Way that is straight.'"

Jesus (pbuh), like all prophets and messengers before and after him (peace be upon them), performed miraculous signs so as to get people into believing that he was indeed bestowed with the gift of bearing God's Message and tidings. He was able to speak to people from birth, teach them the Revelations in both the Torah and the Gospel, make a bird out of clay, heal the blind and the leper, and raise the dead... all by God's leave. But it was for the purpose of preaching that he performed these miracles. He definitely carried the same Message that was preached before and after him: worship God and fear Him.

Now, here's the catch. Christians believe that Jesus was crucified "for our sins". Crucifixion, however, is, from the Islamic perspective, not a fitting fate for a man who preached the Message of God. And indeed, we do believe that his fate was otherwise. Rather than crucifixion, he was raised to the company of His Lord, and will return near the End of Times (i.e. Second Coming). God tells us:

[3:52] When Jesus found Unbelief on their part He said: "Who will be My helpers to (the work of) Allah?" Said the disciples: "We are Allah's helpers: We believe in Allah, and do thou bear witness that we are Muslims.
[3:53] "Our Lord! we believe in what Thou hast revealed, and we follow the Messenger; then write us down among those who bear witness."
[3:54] And (the unbelievers) plotted and planned, and Allah too planned, and the best of planners is Allah.
[3:55] Behold! Allah said: "O Jesus! I will take thee and raise thee to Myself and clear thee (of the falsehoods) of those who blaspheme; I will make those who follow thee superior to those who reject faith, to the Day of Resurrection: Then shall ye all return unto me, and I will judge between you of the matters wherein ye dispute.

Strange, I know, but that's what we believed happened. For more explicit verses that explains this occurrence:

[4:157] That they said (in boast), "We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah";- but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow, for of a surety they killed him not:-
[4:158] Nay, Allah raised him up unto Himself; and Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise

So, in short, someone in his place (i.e. someone who looks like him) was sent to the cross, but Jesus (pbuh) was taken up and awaits the day that he will return to Earth and restore peace and justice for all of humanity.

Islam holds that God is One, and takes no partners. We do not believe in the Trinity, nor do we believe that Jesus (pbuh) is part of a "Trinity". But we do agree that his character was godly in essence because of his piety and his steadfastness. While human, he did not sin and, like his contemporary, John the Baptist (pbuh), did not take pleasure in worldly affairs. Returning to the idea of the crucifixion, we do not hold that one has to die for atoning for one's sin. According to Islamic belief, all that is needed to atone for one's sins is sincere repentance. It is this wonderful message, full of goodness, that Jesus has preached. Such messages can be found in the New Testament (though we believe that much of it has not been preserved) and the Koran. For example, Jesus once said:

[John, 13:84]A new command I give you: Love one another.

[Luke, 6:27-28] But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

[Romans, 12:14]Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse (Romans 12:14).

Of course, God in the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) confirm this message of goodness, but many people tend to favor different people who preached the message of God. God tells us:

[2:285]The Messenger believeth in what hath been revealed to him from his Lord, as do the men of faith. Each one (of them) believeth in Allah, His angels, His books, and His messengers. "We make no distinction (they say) between one and another of His messengers." And they say: "We hear, and we obey: (We seek) Thy forgiveness, our Lord, and to Thee is the end of all journeys."

This is why I believe that this Message, the one that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), was revealed to many Prophets and Messengers (peace be upon them all). We love them all and do not discriminate against any one of them because they have revealed the Message of God, whom we hold the highest love for. Whether it's Adam, Enoch (Idris), Noah (Nuh), Abraham (Ibrahim), Lot (Lut), Ishmael (Isma'il), Isaac (Is-haq), Jacob (Ya'aqub), Job (Ayyub), Jonah (Yunus), Elias (Ilyas), Elisha (Al-Yasa'), Ezekiel (Dhul-Kifl), Heber (Hud), Shelah (Saleh), Jethro (Shu'aib), Saul (Talut), David (Dawud), Solomon (Sulaiman), (Saint) George (Khidr), Moses (Musa), Aaron (Harun), Zechariah (Zakkariyya), John (Yahya), Jesus (Isa) and Muhammad... peace be upon them all... we care moreso about the Message that they revealed and, because God ordained it, believe that it was they who received the message and spread it to all of mankind.

My beliefs regarding Jesus are not meant to attack any other faith, especially Christianity. I only wish that we all learn to live together, regardless of background, all equal under the Eyes of God, in peace and prosperity, and hopefully practice what they, the Prophets and Messengers of God, have preached, with humility, piety and benevolence towards others. I also hope that during this critical period, where the festivities of the three Abrahamic faiths intersect, that we come to understand each other more, and understand those who do not adhere to our faiths or any faiths for that matter, and set during this holiday an example of interfaith and intercultural solidarity, for all of humanity to witness. Let's pray for a "heavenly peace" on Earth.

Farewell, and God Bless.

Salaam, from Saracen