Other Faiths

Over the centuries of Islamic history, Muslim rulers, Islamic scholars, and ordinary Muslims have held many attitudes towards other religions, ranging from intolerant to tolerant attitudes. Attitudes have varied according to time, place and circumstance. more...

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Inclusive Muslims focus on the similarities between people of faith in general and Islam, Christianity, and Judaism in particular, stressing the universality of Islam and seeing other religions as reflections of the same higher truth (albeit less perfect versions) . Many Muslims conclude that the other faiths must be tolerated and that Islam states this.

Other Muslim groups take an exclusivistic approach. For example, they aggressively stress the differences between Islam and the Judeo-Christian community. This can lead to parts of the Muslim community holding beliefs like the necessity of bringing unbelievers back to the "Straight Path" by persuasion, or even force -- and then acting on such beliefs.

Both camps cite parts of Islam's highest canons, the Qur'an and the Sunnah, to justify their positions.

The Qur'an teaches that God Allah in Arabic has sent prophets to other peoples, revealing the true religion of Islam. Those peoples have rejected or perverted Islam. Muhammad, the last prophet the seal of the prophets, has called them to return to the true faith. Those who reject his message, when the truth of the message has reached them, are promised to be doomed to a fiery hell on the Day of Judgement Quran 29:68

The Qur'an distinguishes between the monotheistic People of the Book (Jews, Christians and Sabians), and polytheists or idolaters on the other hand. The People of the Book should be tolerated, even if they hold to their faiths; however, idolaters are not given that same degree of tolerance. There are certain kind of restrictions that are relaxed for Muslims, when involved with People of the Book, which do not apply to idolaters, such as Muslim males being allowed to marry a chaste woman from the People of the Book (Qur'an, 5:5), or Muslims being allowed to eat meat from the People of the Book .

According to the Qur'an, Moses and Jesus preached the pure Islamic doctrine. Jews and Christians then strayed from strict monotheism. The followers of Moses earned God's anger by worshipping the Golden Calf. The followers of Jesus went astray by worshiping Jesus as God and belief of the doctrine Trinity.

O People of the Book, commit no excesses in your religion; nor say of Allah anything but the truth. The Messiah Jesus son of Mary was (no more than) a Messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him; so believe in Allah and His Messengers. Say not "Trinity": desist! It will be better for you: for Allah is One: Glory be to Him! (far exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belong all things in the heavens and on earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer of affairs.
(al-Qur'an 4:171)

Muslims believe that due to human interference, some parts of the Jewish and the Christian scriptures are corrupted. The Quran calls itself Muhimin which means "quality controller". It claims that it upholds that which is truth in the Bible and rejects what is falsehood. Muslims believe that Qur'an and Bible have the same source and that any differences from absolute similarities would either mean replacement of a new Law with the previous ones or correction of the message that got corrupted.

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