GroshLink

Today marks the death of Muhammed in 632. A confirmation of his mortality. While preparing for a Sunday School Class on Islam, as part of a series on World Religions, I came across the following quote in Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet (2002 PBS special recently used by Muslims at an outreach on CMU campus) w/regard to Muhammad's death:

Whoever worshipped Muhammad, then knew that Muhammad is dead. But whoever worshipped God, know that God lives on and never dies . . . a danger inherent in religious tradition is that the object of worship becomes the messenger and not the one sending the messenger.

The followers of Muhammad, find the worship of Jesus by Christians in error. They acknowledge Jesus as a great prophet, but argue that he was surpassed by Muhammad. They blame the early church for misunderstanding Jesus' teaching and destroying the people and documents which argued for Jesus being but a mortal prophet w/o final authority. Thereby giving space for a final, clear, absolute revelation of Muhammad.

The acknowledging of Jesus as Lord is quite bold. When going around the World Religions Sunday School Class, I was struck by the testimonies of those in the room as to how the Word of God, the Spirit of God, and the People of God spoke to them regarding Jesus being not just a way, a truth, a life; but the way, the truth, and the life. The followers of Christ respond to a personal God who calls us to Himself and grants us the grace to walk with Him day-by-day.

Toward the end of the PBS special, an interviewee comments,

Muhammad is the kind of person who combines political and military and social and religious and intellectual dimensions of life in ways that are important for those of us in the 21st century who are struggling to put together complete lives ourselves.

Yes, Muhammad has much to teach us with regard to wholeness, but much of what he learned was from the splinter of truth he retained from the teachings of Christ he encountered through his uncle Abutalib and priests along the caravan routes. But Muhammad, despite what this PBS special argues, has plenty that we should reject as we enter the 21st century. Islam is not the same as loving God and loving neighbor, if that were to be the case there would be no need to add to the summary of the simple faith brought to us by Jesus.

His reaction to the many gods of the Arabian tribes and the corruptions of Christianity he came across, should not have been to promote his own estatic expriences through an amalgation of poetic, monotheistic, zoroastrian, and political influences. We are to submit to the One True God, incarnated in Jesus which speaks to us w/clarity through His Word and the Holy Spirit. Our daily walking in Christ by the Holy Spirit enables us to see our relationship to the Creator, the creation, and other human beings as we offer our whole lives as a living sacrifice to the Father. More on this theme later.