From: Radio europe
To: John, Allatti2d, others...
Subject: crunch time
Date: Mon Nov 26 18:01:24 2001
Message:
The Character of God in Bible and Qur'an
A Study In Contrasts
These are the notes of the Christian speaker from a
Muslim-Christian dialog end of 1998
The Muslim speaker's notes have not been made available
to us
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! I think tonight we are
witnessing a very exciting event, since it is not very often that
Muslims and Christians get together to listen to each other.
And I would like to put the emphasis tonight on truly
listening to each other.
I have not come here with my boxing gloves. I have not come
here to score points or win an intellectual battle. I am sure
most of the Christians and the Muslims out in the audience
have already raised their defensive walls quite high and are
ready for a good fight on the stage. Well, I would like to ask
everyone to make a conscious attempt to lower their walls
and try to listen empathetically to the position of the other
side. After 1400 years of debates and polemical exchanges
between Muslims and Christians, a deep gulf of
misunderstanding still separates the two communities of
faith.
Just to cite one example, a great contemporary Muslim
writer, Shabbir Akhtar, can still say,
"Most Muslims, including educated ones, know next to
nothing about Christology. Few Muslims can distinguish
clearly between the view that a man claims to be divine - a
blasphemy - and the entirely different view according to
which God volunteers to become human - the orthodox
Christian conviction. And both of these views are routinely
confused with the heretical doctrine that God `adopted' a
son... A Muslim cannot reasonably claim to be seriously
engaged in dialogue with Christians unless he can
possess a thorough knowledge of the Christian faith..."[1]
Of course, one can put the same charge towards Christians
and their ignorance of the Islamic faith and the many
negative stereo-typed images that Christians have
developed against Muslims.
So, once again, my request is that tonight we would all
make an extra effort to really listen and thus take one step
closer towards a mutual understanding of each other's
position.
Having said that, I must note that I am not advocating that
we ought to brush aside the deep and genuine differences
that divide Islam and Christianity. In fact, in my lecture
tonight, I would like to highlight five points of tension that I
notice as a Christian when I compare the doctrine of God as
it is developed in the Christian faith with the view of God
expounded by the Qur'an and historic, orthodox Islamic
theology.
I would like to start with an analogy. I am not very musically
minded, but I can imagine that if one immerses himself or
herself in the musical style of a great composer, one can tell
which pieces belong to the genuine composition of this
great musician and which pieces are not genuine. One
begins to develop a "feel" for what a composer sounds like.
I guess that same thing can be true of great painters or the
great poets. Some of you might know the "feel" of the poetry
of Hafiz or Rumi so well, that you can immediately tell if a
piece of poetry is written by them or not.
In a same way, when I pay close attention to the character of
God portrayed for us through the biblical narratives and then
I compare it with the Qur'an, I get the strong sense that the
Qur'an plays a different tune, that it does not exactly match
the God of the Bible, even though the Qur'an claims to be
from the same God.
This is not an exhaustive list, but I would like to bring to your
attention, five areas of disagreement between these two
portraits of God. These areas concern the issues of THE
INTIMCAY OF GOD (with his people), THE SUFFERING OF
GOD, THE LOVE OF GOD, THE KNOWABILITY OF GOD (the
question regarding whether we can know the character of
God, what God is like), and THE HOLINESS OF GOD.
The reason that I would like to focus on these fundamental
characteristics is that they provide the foundational basis for
such distinctive Christian concepts as the doctrine of the
Trinity, the incarnation and the atonement. Oftentimes,
Muslims and Christians argue ad infinitum about these
specific Christian doctrines and don't come to any better
understanding of each other, because they have not realized
that their disagreement about the nature of God is even
more foundational than they had thought. There is no use
talking about more advanced concepts, if we don't even
have the basics down, no use arguing about the complex
formulas of advanced calculus, if we have not understood
the simple principles of arithmetic.
So, let me now elaborate on what I mean by these areas of
disagreement that I have highlighted.
I. The Intimacy of God
A. The dominant Qur'anic picture is that of a master and
servant. Even though there is a Qur'anic verse that claims
that God is closer to the people than their own jugular
vein,[2] nevertheless, the idea of God's intimacy with his
people is not very much developed in the Qur'an or in
orthodox Islamic theology. In fact, sura 50:16, is set in the
context of the angels recording man's deeds for the day of
judgment. God is constantly referred to as a Sovereign
Master (although he is Rahman and Rahim). He is gracious
and is the source of all the bounties of the earth, but overall
the image is that he is far above and beyond the struggles
and the tragedies in the human realm.
Once again, Shabbir Akhtar gives us the following insightful
comments:
Visitors to the famous Cordoba mosque in Spain cannot fail
to read the ubiquitous inscription, `He is the dominant
(Huwal-ghalib)'. What a revealing index to the Muslim
mind![3]
Furthermore,
Muslims do not see God as their father or, equivalently,
themselves as the children of God. Men are servants of a
just master; they cannot, in orthodox Islam, typically attain
any greater degree of intimacy with their creator.[4]
Kenneth Cragg, in his classic book, The Call of the Minaret,
points to the same basic insight. After briefly reviewing the
99 most beautiful names of God (Asma' al-Husna) in the
Qur'an, he observes,
This eternal and all-encompassing God is described as
"the Creator," "the Fashioner," "the Life-Giver," "the Provider,"
"the Opener," "the Bestower," "the Prevailer." God brings to
life and brings to death, is "the Reckoner" and "the
Recorder," "the King of Kingship" and "the Lord of the
Worlds." It is repeatedly declared in the Qur'an that there is
no strength and no power save in God, who "is over all
things supreme." ...
The relative frequency with which the different names occur
is a matter of deep interest. Terms, or their corresponding
verbs, that have to do with strength, majesty, greatness are
most prominent.[5]
B. Of course, the Bible also presents us with the picture of
a Sovereign God who is the infinite one and the creator of
the universe. However, the Biblical faith also describes
God's relationship with his people in many tender
passages in which God is portrayed as a father who
teaches his child to walk (Deut. 1:31, Hosea 11:1-4),[6] a
shepherd who carries his lamb in his arms (Isa. 40:11),[7] a
lover who woos his beloved, and even a husband who
longs for his unfaithful wife to return (Jer. 3:1,12,14).[8]
We are confronted with a God who dwells in the midst of his
people and desires to have an intimate relationship with
them. The book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible,
gives us a glimpse of the fulfillment of God's relationship
with his people, when the author states,
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the
dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They
will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be
their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will
be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old
order of things has passed away." [Rev. 21:3-4]
II. The Suffering of God
A. The God of the Qur'an shows his mercy to humankind by
sending prophets to guide the people to the straight path.
God sends prophets to various people groups but judges
the disobedient nations (oftentimes by destroying them)
when they don't listen to God's prophets (see the sura of the
poets, al-Shuara, as one example of this prominent Qur'anic
theme). God's dealings with people are reported in a very
matter of fact way. To cite one example, I would like to focus
your attention on the stories of Noah. The Qur'anic
passages which have more of an extended treatment of
Noah are found in sura 7:59-64; 11:25-49; 23:23-30;
26:105-122; 37:75-82; 54:9-15; and sura 71:1-28 which is
the sura of Nuh. In all these passages, Noah warns his
people, they disbelieve in his message and God sends the
flood to destroy the unbelievers. Period. We are not told
anything about how any of this, whether the peoples'
sinfulness or the judgment of God, affects God himself.
B. The Bible on the other hand presents us with a God who
suffers because of his disobedient people. He is grieved,
he is angered. The prophets of Israel reveal him as a
wounded lover, a husband who feels the pain of betrayal
because of his unfaithful wife, a father whose heart is
broken because of his rebellious children. I will get back to
these images, but to continue our example of Noah, let's
begin by looking at Gen. 6:5-7 :
The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth
had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his
heart was only evil all the time. The LORD was grieved that
he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with
pain. So the LORD said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have
created, from the face of the earth - men and animals, and
creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air -
for I am grieved that I have made them."
Please note the emphasis of the text on the suffering of God
in that in the space of two verses, three times we are
informed that God was grieved, filled with pain and grieved.
The significance of this repetition is pointed out by the
eminent German Old Testament scholar, Claus
Westermann, who writes, "Yahweh's regret is so important
for the [writer] that he puts it before the decision to destroy
and repeats it again after it. He considered it decisive for the
understanding of the event which these verses introduce."[9]
As Walter Brueggemann, a prominent American OT scholar
puts it, "The narrative is not about the anger of God but
about the grief of God."[10]
Due to the shortness of time, let me draw your attention to
only one more passage in the OT. The prophet Hosea,
describes the intimacy of God's relationship with Israel in
terms of the intimacy of a husband and wife and a father
and child. But God brings a charge against Israel for being
an unfaithful wife, by going after idols, and a rebellious child.
Commenting on the imageries of Hosea, one of the most
profound Jewish thinkers of the 20th century, Abraham
Heschel, writes, "Hosea has given us a supreme
expression of the vision of the subjective God so typical for
prophetic awareness." He continues:
God is conceived, not as a self-detached Ruler, but as the
sensitive Consort to Whom deception comes and Who
nevertheless goes on pleading for loyalty, uttering a longing
for a reunion, a passionate desire for reconciliation....
Hosea is able to express as no other prophet the love of
God for Israel in its most varied forms - as compassion, as
a mother's tenderness, as love between husband and
wife.[11]
And a Christian commentator, Terrence Fretheim, describes
the language of Hosea in this way,
The image here, obviously, is not that of some heavenly
General Patton having difficulty tolerating acts of
insubordination. Rather, it is the image of the long-suffering
parent and, given the roles in child rearing in Israel, it is
probably more the image of mother than father. God is
pictured as one in great anguish over what the children have
done, but her love is such that she cannot let go. [12]
Fretheim beautifully summarizes the impact of these
various images,
God has been rejected both as parent and as husband!
God is like a person who has been rejected not only by his
spouse but by his children as well. God suffers the effects of
the broken relationship at multiple levels of intimacy. The
wounds of God are manifold.[13]
It should be noted that this divine suffering is not because
God is weak, but because he is love and one cannot truly
love without opening oneself up to risking the possibility of
rejection and the pain which results from it.
III. The Love of God
A. Much ink has been shed on this issue, portraying Islam
as having an unloving God. That is not true, but
nevertheless, the Qur'anic picture is quite different. God
loves the good, not the unlovely and the sinner.
That God does not love the sinner is abundantly clear in the
Quran. Note these key verses from the Quran:
"Allah loves not transgressors" (2:190);
"He loves not creatures ungrateful or wicked" (2:276);
"Say: 'Obey Allah and His Apostle;' but if they turn back Allah
loves not those who reject Faith." (3:32);
"Allah loves not those who do wrong" (3:57, 140);
"Allah loves not the arrogant, the vainglorious" (4:36).
"Say, if ye love Allah, follow me; Allah will love and forgive
you your sins." (3:31)
The Quran is littered with dozens of verses like this. It is a
fact, nowhere in the Quran is God ever reported to love
someone who does not love Him first, nor is God's love ever
used as the central motivating factor to draw someone
close to Him.
B. In contrast, both the Old and New Testaments record
that God loves everyone regardless of their sin. In the Bible,
we see God as not only the initiator of love but as one who
loves those who are his enemies.
"The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you,
because you were more in number than any people; for you
[were] the fewest of all people...." (Deut. 7:7)
In the New Testament we see that God's love for sinful man
is given as the primary reason He sent Jesus Christ.
"For God so loved the world He gave His One and Only
Son.... (John 3:16). Also, "This is love, not that we loved God,
but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation
for our sins. " (I John 4:10) And, "We love, because He first
loved us." (I John 4:19)
C. The concept of Grace is radically different in the two
religions!
IV. The Knowability of God
A. This point becomes a bit heavy on the philosophical
side, but I would appreciate your patience here, because it
has profound practical ramifications. Despite all the names
of God in the Qur'an, in orthodox Islam we confront a God
who is basically unknowable. These names do not tell us
anything about what God is like but only how God has willed
to act. God's actions do not reflect God's nature.
Al-Ghazali, the most prominent theologian in the history of
Islam, went so far as to say:
"The end result of the knowledge of the `arifin is their
inability to know Him, and their knowledge is, in truth, that
they do not know Him and that it is absolutely impossible for
them to know Him."[14]
Fadlou Shehadi, a contemporary scholar of Al-Ghazali, after
analyzing Al-Ghazali's arguments about the transcendence
of God, concludes,
From all the foregoing, one important consequence has to
be drawn.
God is Utterly Unknowable
If God is a unique kind of being unlike any other being in any
respect, more specifically, unlike anything known to man, it
would have to follow by Ghazali's own principles that God is
utterly unknowable. For, according to Ghazali, things are
known by their likenesses, and what is utterly unlike what is
known to man cannot be known. Furthermore, God would
have to be unknowable, completely unknowable, not only to
'the man in the street', but to prophets and mystics as well.
This is a conclusion that Ghazali states very explicitly and
not infrequently. It is also a view that is often stated
independently of its logical relation to God's utter
uniqueness.[15]
Another contemporary scholar of Islam, Isma`il al-Faruqi
expresses the mainstream Islamic thinking on the inability
of humans to know God, when he writes:
He [God] does not reveal Himself to anyone in any way. God
reveals only His will. Remember one of the prophets asked
God to reveal Himself and God told him, "No, it is not
possible for Me to reveal Myself to anyone. "...This is God's
will and that is all we have, and we have it in perfection in
the Qur'an. But Islam does not equate the Qur'an with the
nature or essence of God. It is the Word of God, the
Commandment of God, the Will of God. But God does not
reveal Himself to anyone. Christians talk about the
revelation of God Himself - by God of God - but that is the
great difference between Christianity and Islam. God is
transcendent, and once you talk about self-revelation you
have hierophancy and immanence, and then the
transcendence of God is compromised. You may not have
complete transcendence and self-revelation at the same
time.[16]
Shabbir Akhtar, again:
The Koran, unlike the Gospel, never comments on the
essence of Allah. 'Allah is wise' or 'Allah is loving' may be
pieces of revealed information but, in contrast to Christianity,
Muslims are not enticed to claim that 'Allah is Love' or 'Allah
is Wisdom'. Only adjectival descriptions are attributed to the
divine being and these merely as they bear on the revelation
of God's will for man. The rest remains mysterious.[17]
Kenneth Cragg:
"[all the attributes] are to be understood finally as
characteristics of the divine will rather than laws of the divine
nature. Action, that is arising from such descriptives may be
expected, but not as a matter of necessity. What gives unity
to all God's dealings is that God wills them all. He as Willer
may be recognized from time to time by means of the
descriptions given. But God does not essentially conform to
any of them. The act of the divine will may be identified in
this or that quality; the will itself is inscrutable. One may not,
therefore, say that God is necessarily loving, holy, righteous,
clement, or relenting, in every and all relationships.
It is this fact that explains the antithesis in certain of the
Names. Such antithesis would not be theologically
predicable if either element within it were essential to God's
nature. Because they are not, God's action may
demonstrate each element in differing relations. The
antithesis is dogmatically resolved in the realm of will, in
that God wills both - in every other sense and realm,
antithesis remains. But the problem has no anguish and is,
indeed, inscrutable, given the conviction of the divine will as
an ultimate beyond which neither reason nor revelation go.
So God is "the One who leads astray," as well as "the One
who guides." God is "the One who brings damage," as also
does Satan. God is described also by terms such as "the
Bringer-down," "the Compeller" or "Tyrant," "the Haughty" -
all of which, when humanly used, have an evil sense. In the
unity of the single will, however, these descriptions coexist
with those that relate to mercy, compassion, and glory."[18]
B. The biblical emphasis is that God has revealed himself
and our highest calling is to know God and be in intimate
relationship with him (e.g., Jer. 9:23-24; Matt. 11:27; Jn.
1:18; Jn. 17:3; II Cor. 4:6).
This is what the LORD says:
"Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom
or the strong man boast of his strength
or the rich man boast of his riches,
but let him who boasts boast about this:
that he understands and knows me,
that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight," declares the LORD. [Jer. 9:23-24]
All things have been committed to me by my Father.
No one knows the Son except the Father,
and no one knows the Father except the Son
and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." [Mt.
11:27]
No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only,
who is at the Father's side, has made him known. [John
1:18]
Now this is eternal life: that they may know you,
the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have
sent.
[John 17:3]
For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness,"
made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light
of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
[II Cor. 4:6]
God is as God has acted! In the Christian faith the actions of
God in the history of redemption provide the basis for the
Christian doctrine of the Trinity. God has revealed himself in
the history of redemption by showing himself to be our
Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier. We see a God who is not
only above us as our heavenly Father, but with us in Christ
(Immanuel) and in us through the Holy Spirit.
V. The Holiness of God
A. Even though Muslims often give the impression that
Islam presents a loftier picture of God's forgiveness,
because God just forgives when people repent and does
not need any bloody sacrifices to atone for people's sin, the
Qur'an is at odds with the biblical emphasis on God's
holiness and his requirement for sacrifices.
B. As a Christian, I find it incredible that the adjective Holy
(Quddus) is only used twice of God in the Qur'an. See
Leviticus as the heart of the Torah. This is the basis for the
heart of the Christian view of atonement. Guthrie explains
the need for the atonement such:
Costly Love
If God already loves and forgives us, why atonement at all?
Why did Jesus have to die to reconcile us to God? Why did
not God just say, "I forgive you," and let it go at that?
We can catch a glimpse of the answer with an analogy in
human relationships. Suppose that I have done something
that betrays a friendship and hurts a friend. Suppose that I
go to her to tell her how sorry I am and how bad I feel about
it, and she says to me, "That's OK. It doesn't make any
difference. Forget it." Has she forgiven me? What she has
really said is, "I don't care enough about you to be bothered
by anything you say or do. You are not that important to me."
She also leaves me alone with the pain of my guilt, refusing
to help me deal with it, put it behind me, and make a fresh
beginning with her.
Good-natured indulgence and casual acceptance are not
forgiveness and love but an expression of indifference and
sometimes hostility. Real love and forgiveness mean caring
enough to be hurt, caring enough to put ourselves in others'
shoes and sharing their guilt as if it were our own. Real love
and forgiveness are costly - not in the sense that the guilty
party must squeeze them out of the injured party but in the
sense that the injured party genuinely sympathizes with the
guilty and shares his or her pain.
Why did Jesus have to die? Why atonement? Because God
cares for us too much to dismiss our sin and guilt with a
flippant "It doesn't matter." Because words were not enough:
action was necessary to prove that God's love and
forgiveness are genuine. Because God wanted to stand
with us in the loneliness and alienation we bring on
ourselves when we separate ourselves from God and other
people. Because it is just when God comes to our side in
our loneliness, alienation, and guilt that they are overcome.
In the cross God says to us, "Yes, it is true. You have hurt
and offended me. But I still love you. Therefore I will make
your guilt and its consequences my own. I will suffer with
you - for you - to make things right between us again."[19]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes:
[1] Shabbir Akhtar, A Faith For All Seasons, Chicago, Ivan R.
Dee Publisher, 1990, p. 182.
[2] It was We Who created man, and We know what dark
suggestions his soul makes to him: for We are nearer to
him than (his) jugular vein. [Q. 50:16] (also see sura 2:186;
34:50; 56:85; 57:4 on "nearness").
When My servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed
close (to them): I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when
he calleth on Me: Let them also, with a will, Listen to My call,
and believe in Me: That they may walk in the right way. [Q.
2:186]
Say: "If I am astray, I only stray to the loss of my own soul:
but if I receive guidance, it is because of the inspiration of
my Lord to me: it is He Who hears all things, and is (ever)
near." [Q. 34:50]
But We are nearer to him than ye, and yet see not,- [Q.
56:85]
He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in Six Days,
and is moreover firmly established on the Throne (of
Authority). He knows what enters within the earth and what
comes forth out of it, what comes down from heaven and
what mounts up to it. And He is with you wheresoever ye
may be. And God sees well all that ye do. [Q. 57:4]
[3] Akhtar, op. cit., p. 129.
[4] Ibid., p. 180.
[5] Kenneth Cragg, The Call of the Minaret, 2nd ed., New
York, Orbis Books, 1992, p. 35.
[6]
There you saw how the LORD your God carried you,
as a father carries his son, all the way you went
until you reached this place. [Deut. 1:31]
"When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
But the more I called Israel,
the further they went from me.
They sacrificed to the Baals
and they burned incense to images.
It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;
but they did not realize it was I
who healed them.
I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love;
I lifted the yoke from their neck
and bent down to feed them. [Hosea 11:1-4]
[7]
He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young. [Isaiah 40:11]
[8]
"If a man divorces his wife
and she leaves him and marries another man,
should he return to her again?
Would not the land be completely defiled?
But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers -
would you now return to me?" declares the LORD.
Go, proclaim this message toward the north:
"`Return, faithless Israel,' declares the LORD,
`I will frown on you no longer, for I am merciful,'
declares the LORD, `I will not be angry forever.
"Return, faithless people," declares the LORD,
"for I am your husband.
I will choose you - one from a town and two from a clan
-
and bring you to Zion. [Jeremiah 3:1,12,14]
[9] Claus Westermann, Genesis 1-11: A Commentary,
Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1984, p. 407.
[10] Walter Brueggemann, "A Shape for Old Testament
Theology," in The Flowering of Old Testament Theology,
Ollenburger, Martens, Hasel, eds., Winoma Lake:
Eisenbrauns, 1992, p. 418.
[11] Abraham Heschel, The Prophets, New York, The
Jewish Publication Society of America, 1962, pp. 48-49.
[12] Terrence Fretheim, The Suffering of God, Philadelphia,
Fortress Press, 1984, p. 120.
[13] Ibid., p. 116.
[14] Fadlou Shehadi, Ghazali's Unique Unknowable God,
Leiden, E.J. Brill, 1964, p. 37. The `arifin, literally "the
knowers", used by mystics in the sense of "gnostics".
[15] Ibid., pp. 21-22. Later on p. 48, he also states:
Thus the uncompromising character of Ghazali's
agnosticism follows logically from his uncompromising
stand on the utter difference of God's nature.
[16] al-Faruqi, Christian Mission and Islamic Da`wah:
Proceedings of the Chamb sy Dialogue Consultation [held
1976 in Chamb sy, Switzerland], (Leicester: The Islamic
Foundation, 1982), pp. 47-48
[17] Akhtar, op. cit., pp. 180-181.
[18] Cragg, op. cit., p. 36-37.
[19] Guthrie, Christian Doctrine, Revised Edition,
Westminster/John Knox Press, 1994, p. 260