-
Welcome to Religious Forums, a friendly forum to discuss all religions in a friendly surrounding.
Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to the following site features:- Reply to discussions and create your own threads.
- Our modern chat room. No add-ons or extensions required, just login and start chatting!
- Access to private conversations with other members.
We hope to see you as a part of our community soon!
Differences Between Judaism and Islam?
- Thread starter Saggio
- Start date
Caladan
Agnostic Pantheist
Difference of scriptures. The scripture of Judaism is the Hebrew Bible (What Christians also refer to as the Old Testament). The Islamic scripture is the Qur'an.
Judaism is based on a divine revelation experienced by an entire nation, while Islam is based on the revelation of one person who gained followers.
Jews do not venerate Muhammad nor Jesus. Muslims consider Muhammad to be the seal of the prophets, and Jesus is considered a prophet as well.
Alcohol is banned in Islam, while in Judaism wine has a part in ritual and festivities.
The liturgical language of Judaism is Hebrew and that of Islam is Arabic.
The temple mount in Jerusalem is Judaism's most sacred site, while Islam's most sacred site is the Ka'aba in Mecca. Jews turn in pray towards Jerusalem, while Muslim to Mecca, as the Qibla was changed from Jerusalem to Mecca in early Islamic history.
Generally, my above post is very superficial as there is much to dig when discussing differences and similarities between the two faiths.
Perhaps this is a failure on my part, but I do not see how Islam can avoid a reliance on a belief in direct revelation and the inerrancy of its scripture.
Let me suggest a [possibly naive] question: Can one be a Muslim without believing that the Qur'an was (a) revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel, and (b) that the Eid al-Adha sacrifice celebrated by Muslims references an historical fact? I ask this because I as a Jew do not require the prophets to be either inerrant or flawless, nor do I require the Akedah to be anything more than immensely rich folk lore / etiology. Similarly, see Did the Exodus Really Happen? by Rabbi David Wolpe.
sandandfoam
Veteran Member
F0uad
Well-Known Member
The most striking difference would be the acceptance of the Prophet Jesus and Mohammed(peace be upon them and there families).
In all honesty i think there are more similarities then differences in my point of view Islam and Judaism are more similar then Christianity.
O en welkom op de forums
Last edited:
I've heard more than a few rabbis 'accept' Jesus in much the same way as they might 'accept' one of the lesser prophets, but never as a god or an inerrant messenger of God.
F0uad
Well-Known Member
Islam only teaches that he is the Messiah and a Messenger nothing else that's why i said that this is the core difference that i know off.
There are off-course tradition and ritual differences but they are not that lets say "Important" except maybe for the Shabat.
Like i said before i belief that Judaism is the closest to Islam compared with other religions out there..
I would agree.
nazz
Doubting Thomas
I am told repeatedly by Jews that Jesus has no religious significance in Judaism. He has no standing in any sect. If anything he is considered a false prophet.
Caladan
Agnostic Pantheist
Jesus doesn't have a religious significance in Judaism, but then again neither does Einstein. So, there you have it, two remarkable Jewish men who aren't idolized in any way by their people... sounds pretty healthy.
If anything you need to ask what's with the other guys calling him 'God' or 'prophet'.
TheKnight
Guardian of Life
While I've never heard an official endorsement of the New Testament from any Rabbi, I've heard a great many claim that we can, and should, learn from various aspects of Jesus' message. A lot of what he taught could easily be seen as being relevant to Judaism today as Orthodoxy faces some of the challenges he had with the Pharisees in the New Testament story.
From my own personal experience with the NT, what Jesus advocates isn't necessarily contrary to or abhorrent in Judaism, and may even be necessary. However, I think that what he taught isn't particularly new to Judaism.
That said, the story the NT tells of him is, in my opinion, a pretty decent and concise way of putting something that would otherwise require a lot of study of Tanakh.
For someone who seeks to incorporate more liberal thought in the realm of traditional practice, what Jesus teaches is, to me anyways, quite enlightening.
As far as Islam goes, I know that they are monotheistic, I know that they have dietary laws, I know that there is some degree of shared appreciation for certain ways of thought and behaviors that are admirable, and some shared enactment of things which are not so admirable.
Overall, my experience with Muslims here in the US has been very positive. One of the synagogues at a military post I lived on would serve the Muslim community as well as the Jewish community because it was difficult for them to acquire Halal food (and thus preferred Kosher food over haraam). They would also use a part of the synagogue for their prayers. In those times we often had interesting discussion, usually there wasn't much disagreement save for details here and there.
Levite
Higher and Higher
I think the big differences are the acceptance of Jesus and of Muhammad, the acceptance of the Quran, the ways in which the Quran is and is not interpreted, the variations in the narratives of the patriarchs and other incidents between Tanach and Quran; and the unique covenental structure of Judaism as opposed to the universalist or proselytizing nature of Islam.
An interesting point, reflecting the different historical roles of the two belief systems. Paleo-Judaism was central to Israelite ethnogenesis.
nazz
Doubting Thomas
Just reporting what I generally hear in internet discussions.
BTW, I am awaiting your response on that other thread regarding whether or not Jesus taught Judaism.
That strikes me as being more than a little naive and lazy. No?
nazz
Doubting Thomas
No. Neither. Do all the opinions of all the Jews who have told me this not count? Do they not represent the majority of how Jews think? Or do rabbis normally give sermons about Jesus in shul?
Of course I understand there are exceptions. I've read a number of books by Jews that presented a positive treatment of Jesus. I can't remember one now by a Dan somebody who talks about how strongly criticized he was by other Jews for merely suggesting that Jesus was a failed messiah rather than a false one.
I have no knowledge of who told you, how many told you, whether you understood what they told you, or whether you are honestly communicating what they purportedly told you.
I have no idea, and I fully suspect that you have less. But if you insist on claiming a superior understanding of the Jewish position you are obviously free to do so.
None that I know of. Why do you ask?