In recent years, some individuals have claimed that Jesus of Nazareth was actually a Muslim. This claim has gained popularity among Muslims, but is it based on sound evidence and reasoning?
In this article, we will examine this claim and provide evidence from both the Bible and the Quran to refute it.
The Claim and Its Fallacies
The claim that Jesus was a Muslim is based on a number of fallacies and misunderstandings.
One common argument made by those who claim that Jesus was a Muslim is that the term “Muslim” means “submitting to God,” and since Jesus submitted to God the Father, he was therefore a Muslim. However, this argument is flawed and based on a false assumption.
The fallacy in this argument is known as the fallacy of equivocation, which occurs when a word is used in different senses within the same argument. While it is true that the term “Muslim” means “submitting to God,” this does not necessarily mean that Jesus was a Muslim in the Islamic sense of the term. The term “Muslim” has a specific meaning within the Islamic tradition, which was not part of Jesus’ teachings or beliefs.
Furthermore, the term “Muslim” did not exist during the time of Jesus, and it was only coined several centuries later in reference to the followers of Islam. Therefore, it is anachronistic and incorrect to apply this term retroactively to Jesus. This is what most Muslims do in assuming that the term “Muslim” has always existed and has the same meaning as it does today.
Secondly, the claim relies on a false analogy between the teachings of Islam and those of Jesus. While there are some similarities between the two, such as a belief in one God and a commitment to righteous living, there are also significant differences, such as the Islamic belief in the prophethood of Muhammad and the acceptance of the Quran as a sacred text. These beliefs were not part of Jesus’ teachings and cannot be extrapolated from the Bible.
Thirdly, the claim assumes that Jesus’ submission to the Father is equivalent to the Islamic concept of submission to Allah. However, this is a fallacious argument based on the equivocation of the term “submission.” While it is true that Jesus submitted to Father, this does not necessarily make him a Muslim in the Islamic sense of the term. Neither does it make Allah the Father. In fact, Islam categorically denies that Allah is Father.
In addition, the concept of submission to God is not unique to Islam but is a common theme in many religious traditions, including Judaism and Christianity. Therefore, the fact that Jesus submitted to the Father, does not mean he was a Muslim who submitted to Allah.
Evidence from the Bible
In addition to these fallacies, there is also evidence from the Bible that refutes the claim that Jesus was a Muslim.
Firstly, Jesus’ teachings and actions were in line with Jewish traditions and beliefs, which were the dominant religious and cultural framework in Israel during his lifetime. Jesus frequently quoted from the Hebrew Scriptures and engaged in debates with Jewish leaders, but he never referred to himself as a Muslim or suggested that he was following “a religion”. Jesus never even talked about religion but he often had the harshest condemnation for the religious. (None of the prophets of the Bible of the Old Testament even mentioned the word “religion.”)
Furthermore, Jesus’ teachings, and in fact, the whole of the Scriptures were based on a relationship with God as a loving father. Jesus emphasized the importance of love, forgiveness, and humility, which are not central themes in Islamic theology. In Islam, a Muslim relates to Allah as a slave relates to a slave master.
As an illustration, take a look at the parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. The father in the story is a representation of the loving heart of God the Father, When his rebellious son turns his back on him and leaves home, the father continues to long for his return. His love remains unchanged. This can never be said of Allah’s love. It is clear from the Quran that Allah only loves those who love him.
“A slave submitting to his slavemaster in fear is not the same as a son submitting to his father in love.“
Evidence from the Quran
Even if we look at the Quran, there is no clear evidence that Jesus was a Muslim. While the Quran recognizes Jesus as a prophet and emphasizes his miraculous birth and other aspects of his life, it does not suggest that he was a follower of Islam. Rather, it portrays him as a messenger of God who preached a message of love and redemption.
Furthermore, the Quran makes a clear distinction between Jews and Christians, who were called People Of The Book vs. Muslims, who were not called People Of The Book. (All the Jewish prophets were People Of The Book and they were not Muslims.)
The Quran and the Bible differ in their accounts of Jesus’ death and resurrection, which are central events in Christian theology. The Quran suggests that Jesus was not crucified, but rather was taken up to heaven, which contradicts the accounts in the Bible and the historical evidence.
Summary
- The religion of Islam that exists today did not exist during the lifetime of Jesus. Islam emerged in the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th century, several hundred years after the death of Jesus.
- Jesus was a Jew who lived in Israel during the Roman Empire. He was born into a Jewish family and practiced Judaism throughout his life. The Bible makes it clear that Jesus followed Jewish laws and traditions; he was not a member of a different faith. Additionally, throughout the New Testament, Jesus is referred to as “Rabbi” (a Jewish term for a teacher), further underscoring his Jewish identity. The teachings of Jesus and his followers formed the foundation of Christianity, which is again, a distinct religion from Islam.
- The claim that Jesus was a Muslim is based on a misunderstanding of the term “Muslim.” While the word “Muslim” literally means “one who submits to God,” it is specifically used to refer to followers of Islam. Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad was the final messenger of God, and that the teachings of Islam represent the completion and perfection of earlier prophetic traditions, including Judaism and Christianity. However, this does not mean that all previous prophets, including Jesus, were Muslims.
- The Quran also acknowledges that Jesus was a Jew and a prophet of God but it does not claim that he was a Muslim.
- The Quran emphasizes that Islam is a distinct religion from Judaism and Christianity. For example 2:62 and 5:69. These passages clearly distinguish Islam as a separate religion.
- The teachings of Jesus are fundamentally different from the teachings of Islam. For example, Islam emphasizes the importance of the Five Pillars, which include prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and charity. These practices are not part of Jesus’ teachings, which instead focus on themes such as love, forgiveness, and salvation. The central message of Christianity, which is that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save humanity from sin, is also fundamentally different from the Islamic belief in the oneness of God and the finality of Muhammad’s prophethood.
- The claim that Jesus was a Muslim is not supported by any historical evidence. There is no record of Jesus ever traveling to the Arabian Peninsula, where Islam originated, or of him having any knowledge of Islamic theology or practice. The earliest Islamic sources, such as the Quran and Hadith, were composed several hundred years after Jesus’ death, and there is no evidence to suggest that Islamic beliefs or practices had any influence on Jesus or his followers.
- The claim that Jesus was a Muslim is also based on a flawed understanding of the concept of monotheism. While Islam and Christianity share a belief in one God, the two religions have different understandings of the nature of God and the role of prophets. In Christianity, Jesus is believed to be both fully human and fully divine, while in Islam, Jesus is considered a prophet but not divine. These differences in theology and belief are significant and cannot be reconciled by simply claiming that Jesus was a Muslim.
- Finally, the claim that Jesus was a Muslim ignores the cultural, historical, and linguistic context in which he lived. Jesus was born and raised in a Jewish community and spoke Aramaic, not Arabic, the language of the Quran. He also lived in a specific historical period and in the religious and cultural traditions of his time. The claim that he was a Muslim overlooks these important factors and imposes a modern and anachronistic understanding of religion onto the past.
Conclusion
The claim that Jesus was a Muslim is based on a number of fallacies and misunderstandings. There is no evidence from the Bible or the Quran to support this claim, and it is contradicted by the historical and cultural context of Jesus’ life. One of the reasons why Muslims feel that they have to label Jesus a Muslim is to give validity to their religion. Remember that NO ONE else, other than Muhammad, preached Islam and its 5 pillars.
Muslims often claim that they love and honor Jesus. We can honor Jesus without trying to force him into a preconceived mold that does not do justice to his life, ministry, and sacrifice.
Interested in Christian-Muslim apologetics?
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Am afraid Jews and Christians today aren’t “ahl al-kitab” anymore by the Qu’ranic definition. Either they are sincere muslim or bigoted mushrik, and you fit the latter. Equivocation fallacy does not work that way as it is modernism; the patriarchs and prophets among othrets can be considered acting muslim, in service with, in submission to, or in attunement with the almighty God, and no amount of semantics can change it.
So Allah called them People of the Book. When did they cease being People Of The Book ACCORDING TO ALLAH? Show me in the Quran.
The only reason why Muhammad called Jews and Christians “People Of The Book” was because he was hoping they would validate him and his book. (e.g. 10:94)
He told the pagan Arabs that the Jews and Christians were supposedly on the same “side” as Muslims. Verses like 2:62, 5:69 show this.
When your fake prophet went to Madinah as a refugee, he even began copying the rituals and practices of the Jews there for his fabricated religion, still hoping the Jews would somehow accept him as a prophet.
When Jews laughed off his claims, suddenly the Jewsh “People Of The Book” were the worst of creatures.
His barbarian army slaughtered, enslaved and drove them out from Madinah.
(How ironic we have the followers of Muhamamd today accusing Israel of doing what Muhammad did!)
For a while, he held some hope with the Christians that he might get their backing at least.
So he said Christians were “nearest in affection” to the Muslims while condemning the animosity of the Jews. (see 5:82)
When Christians rejected him too, he turned on them. On his death bed, he died cursing both the Jews and Christians.
How did they go from being People Of The Book to apes and pigs just within a few years? What a joke! Because they embarassed him?
As for the argument of equivocation fallacy, it is Muslims who are gulty of it.
Isn’t it the argument of all Mohamedans that all the prophets are “Muslims” because they “submitted” to God?
Sorry, the prophets were Jews. They practised Judaism. They submitted to Yahweh, not to an Arab idol sitting with 359 other idols in a block box thousands of miles away.
Admit it. You Muslims hate Jews because of Muhammad. He blamed everything on them.
He was bewitched. Jew!
He was poisoned. Jew!
Meat goes bad. Jew! (I’m not kidding. I can give you the hadith if you were not aware.)
By the way, Carl, have you joined in one of the protests to show how much you hate the Jews?
Drive them out of the land, so Palestine can be free. Do what Muhammad did.
It has been narrated by ‘Umar b. al-Khattib that he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say:
I will expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula and will not leave any but Muslim.
Sahih Muslim 1767a
While I agree with your conclusion and all your points in the blog. I have to say I am a little disappointed in your replies. (I am assuming you are the writer of this blog and Im also assuming that you are a Christian).
If I am correct in both of my assumptions I would say there is no need to devolve down to insults even if they insult you first. You have a great amount of knowledge on both religions and discredit yourself to the people you could potentially save by insulting and degrading others.
I am enjoying your well-thought-out answers and pray that you can continue to spread the message and love of Jesus our Lord.
Muslims don’t love Jesus Jesus said whoever loves me keep my commandments and there are no Jesus commandments anywhere in Islam