Religion- Abby Amis

Islam and Christianity are two of the largest religions in the world today. While at the surface it might like these two religions are vastly different they actually have a lot in common. Both are monotheistic, and both have foundations that lay within the religion of Judaism. Islam and Christianity spread over vast distances, and came in contact with many different cultures. Both religions even have some similar beliefs, though they have some very different beliefs as well. Regardless of the differences Islam and Christianity have a long and fascinating history.

Both the religions of Islam and Christianity had a treacherous beginning. Islam began when a rich merchant by the name of Muhammad claimed that the angel Gabriel came and spoke to him. After this, in 613 AD, Muhammad claimed that he was the final prophet of Allah(Terry), and began to go around Mecca and preach. Muhammad gained many followers, but shortly had to flee to Yathrib which eventually was named Medina. While in Medina Muhammad gained more followers and political power. In 630 AD Muhammad and his followers marched back to Mecca and overtook the city(Terry). Muhammad enjoyed two more years as caliph before he died in 632 AD. After the death of Muhammad Islam split into different factions over who would be the next caliph(Terry). The Sunni believed the next caliph should follow Muhammad’s example, and the Shi’a believed the next caliph should be a descendant of Muhammad. This division in Islam is still occurring today. Christianity began when a man named Jesus began to go around Judea and preach about the word of God. Jesus gained many followers, but the most important were the twelve Apostles. After the crucifixion of Jesus the Apostles continued to preach his teachings and claim that he had risen from the dead because he was the son of God. Eventually Christianity became a widespread religion, and became a popular religion in Rome when Constantine converted. Christianity  prevailed even when Western Rome fell to the Ottomans. All that remained of Rome was Eastern Rome, which quickly became the Byzantine Empire. Due to the cultural development of the Byzantine Empire Christianity in Byzantium began to change. A major example of cultural difference would be that instead of the services being done in Latin, they were done in Greek(Whitters). Due to Muslim conquest the Byzantine Empire became cut off from the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. After years of lack of communication, cultural differences, and an argument over who should be in charge a great schism between the Catholic Church and the new Greek Orthodox church occurred. The new Greek Orthodox church and Islam continued to spread.

The spread of Islam and Christianity could be attributed to many different ways. Islam spread largely through the conquest of other lands and trade. Due to a well organized military Islamic forces conquered “from Morocco to Central Asia, across three continents”(Flinn). Instead of forcing conversions on the conquered people Islamic forces imposed taxes. Some of the conquered people eventually converted so that they would not have to pay taxes, though some did convert because they liked Islam. Islamic forces even conquered most of the Byzantine empire except Constantinople, which lead to a lack of communication between Byzantine and the Roman Catholic Church. Constantinople “became a Christian island in an Islamic sea”(Tschen). Through all their conquering Islamic forces gained control of the spice trade which lead to contact with many other cultures, and made it so a lot of people came in contact with Islam. Christianity spread through conquest and trade as well they mainly spread through missionaries. An example would be Cyrill and Methodius. Cyrill and Methodius were sent to Bulgaria and Morovia to convert the Slavs. Cyrill and Methodius “greatly innovated religious customs of the church so that the Slavs could more easily accept Christianity”(Whitters) by creating a phonetic alphabet that the Slavs could use. They also allowed them to use their own language in their religious services, which eventually lead to the foundation of Bulgarian, Serbian, and Russian churches.(Whitters). Due to the spread of these two major religions Islam and Christianity have lasted way past their foundation.

Islam and Christianity were both founded out of the same monotheistic Judean belief (Flinn).Both religions believe in the same God, and that he created the universe, sustains the universe, guides all, and judges all(Davis). One major difference between the two religions is Islam believes Jesus is a prophet and not the son of God. They believe that “Muhammad is considered to be the final and most perfect of the prophets. His miracle is the Quran”(Davis). The Quran is the holy book of Islam, but only if it is in the original Arabic. To Muslims the Quran not only carries the sacred word of Allah(Flinn), but also rules to guide their daily life. Contained in the Quran are The Five Pillars of Islam which contain a profession of faith, prayer five times a day, almsgiving, fasting during Ramadan, and a pilgrimage to Mecca. The holy book for Christianity is the Bible. The Bible contains the Old Testament, which talks about the word of God through prophets like Noah, Abraham, and Moses, and the New Testament, which contains the word of God through Jesus. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all rely on the Old Testament.  Much like Islam Christianity has its own rules for daily life. Those rules are called The Ten Commandments, and according to the Old Testament were given to Moses by God.The customs and beliefs of these two religions has impacted many to this day.

Islam and Christianity have influenced many people since their formation. Their intertwining history is still talked about years later. Through the spreading of Islam and Christianity and through the beliefs and customs, many people from different countries have been brought together . Though there are big differences between the two, there are also more similarities than one would think. Though these differences have driven some Muslims and Christians apart, the similarities bring some together.

Bibliography

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