There are great similarities between Christianity and Islam, to the extent that Muslims consider Christianity to be their ‘Sister-religion’. The most noticeable similarities between the two most followed world religions is a shared history and strikingly common tenets. On the other hand, the most glaring differences can be seen in certain fundamental concepts and laws. However, the similarities greatly outweigh the differences between the two.
The most striking similarity between Islam and Christianity are the basic principles of faith. Muslims around the world believe that the laws and code of ethics given in their holy book, the Koran, are the word of God. The ethics of Islam are based on the attributes of Allah, the Arabic name for the single, all mighty God in Christianity and Judaism. Islam literally means ‘the submission of one’s will to God’. It should be noted that, if a Muslim is expected to submit his or her will to Allah, they cannot then act in difference to his Attributes . The religion has a set of key beliefs that are followed by every sect: a) There is no God but Allah, b) Prophet Muhammad is the final messenger of Allah, c) believing in angels as well as earlier holy books including the Injeel or Bible, d) believing in all prophets of Allah such as Ibrahim or Abraham, Isa or Jesus, Adam, Musa or Moses, and Dawood or David, e) Believing in the Day of Judgment . It is due to these similarities, and the fact that Muslims are obligated to believe in several aspects of Christianity, that they consider Christianity to be a sister religion along with Judaism.
However, there are also certain key fundamental beliefs in Islam that either do not exist in Christianity or, at the very least, are not compulsory for Christians to follow. Muslims are required to fulfill the Five Pillars of Islam, which are: a) Shahadah – declaring the submission of one’s will to Allah, b) Salah – five daily prayers, c) Zakat – alms and charity, d) Sawm – fasting throughout the Islamic month of Ramadan, and e) Hajj – a once a year pilgrimage to Mecca to be performed at least once in a Muslim’s lifetime . A Muslim who does not fulfill even one of these ‘pillars’, is not considered a practicing Muslim.
Christians, on the other hand, believe in the existence of the Holy Trinity, three parts of one God. While Muslims believe in the existence of one God, they do not consider Jesus to be His son but only his messenger. They also believe that the Holy Spirit to be the same as the Archangel Gabriel. Christians do not have any obligatory pilgrimage prescribed to them while charity and alms, although encouraged, are also not obligations. Finally, while Christians are required to attend Church, they do not have daily prayers prescribed to them as Muslims do.
Hence, it can be said that the differences between Christianity and Islam has more to do with their practice than their beliefs. The two biggest world religions have common histories of prophets and basic belief in a single, Almighty God. The difference lies in what each faith ‘requires’ its followers to practice and its implications on their day to day lives.
Works Cited
Al Attar, Mariam. Islamic Ethics - Divine Command Theory in Arabo-Islamic Thought. Oxford: Routledge, 2010.
Aziz-Us-Samad, Ulfat. Islam and Christianity. Cairo: Al Falah Foundation for Translation, 2003. 26 February 2013.
BBC Religions. Islam - Basic Articles of Faith. 19 July 2011. 19 October 2012.
Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia. The Five Pillars of Islam. 2012. 19 October 2012.
