by Silas

INTRODUCTION

As I’ve studied the spiritual power behind Islam and wondered how this spiritual power influenced Muhammad’s theology, a well known difference between Islam’s god and Christianity’s God kept coming to mind. That difference is that Islam’s god is never described or known as "Father", but in both Christianity and Judaism, God is known as Father.

I thought about this not just from a mere doctrinal point of view, (anyone familiar with basic Islam knows that it has no concept of God as Father), but rather from a spiritual and relational point of view. I realized something about Muhammad’s relationship: the spiritual power behind Islam never gave Muhammad the intimate love that a father gives his son. That is why Muhammad never called that spiritual power "father". He simply did not know it that way. The relationship between Muhammad and his god was one of a slave to his master, with obedience, rather than love, being the primary impulse. Below is how Muhammad described this relationship.

Narrated 'Umar:
I heard the Prophet saying, "Do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians praised the son of Mary, for I am only a Slave. So, call me the Slave of Allah and His Apostle." [1]

(NOTE 1: Muhammad did talk about loving Allah, and about Allah’s love. But Allah’s love is predicated upon the Muslim’s performance and obedience, not on their relationship. More on that later.)

(NOTE 2: I know the word "Allah" means God in Arabic and that Arabic Christians use the word "Allah" for God. However, when I use the word, "Allah", I am specifically referring to the god of Islam).

Muhammad ascribed many names to Allah and these names reveal Allah’s character. As examples there are Al Muntaqim - The Avenger, Ar-Raoof - The Compassionate, and Ar-Razzaq - The Provider. You can search through Allah’s 99 names (some Muslims state that Allah has more names) and you’ll find many characteristics that a good father should have. [2] But one name is missing that is one of the most wonderful of God’s names, and that is "Father".

Why is this name missing? Why isn’t Islam’s god a loving father like Judaism’s and Christianity’s? Why the gaping hole in Muhammad’s spirituality? After all, Muhammad believed in the validity of Judaism and Christianity, their teachings and their books, [3] but his Quran and theology conspicuously lack a God who is a loving Father. Why couldn’t the spiritual power that drove Muhammad give him the tender love that the God of the Bible gave His people? Because the spiritual being that Muhammad believed to be God was unable to be a loving father to Muhammad. Islam’s god is indeed a master, and he can be a kind and forgiving master, but he can not deliver the goods as a God of infinite mercy and love. And this is why there is a dearth of description of Allah being a loving god in the Quran. Because it is not in Islam’s god’s nature to be a father.

Below is a comment from a Muslim web site on Islam’s concept of God

There is nothing like male Allah or female Allah. Allah has no gender. If you add the word ‘father’ to ‘God’ it becomes ‘God-father’. God-father means someone who is a guardian. There is no word like ‘Allah-Abba’ or ‘Allah-father’. [4]

Think about it. A good father loves his children, those whom he created. He is invested in them. He will care for them, provide for them, guide them, and love them intimately. He cherishes his children, is proud of them when they do well, and disciplines them when they lag. His commitment to his children exceeds that of a coach for his players, that of a boss for his workers, or that of a master for his slave. The slave will never hold the treasured position in the father’s heart that a child holds. And it is this type of love relationship that is lacking in Islam.

However, we see this love expressed by Judaism’s and Christianity’s God. God was more to His people than a master who required obedience. He was a Shepherd for His people. He went beyond their limitations and sinfulness and gave them His love. We see a Father’s love given in both Judaism and Christianity, but never in Islam.

People say love makes the world go round. Why is love lacking in Islam?

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SCRIPTURES THAT SHOW THAT GOD IS A FATHER

Let’s take a look at the groundwork that Judaism and Christianity lay regarding God as Father. The God of the Bible is indeed a Father to His people. From both the Old and New Testament Scriptures we see God revealing and describing Himself as a Father. Here are some examples taken from the New International Version. [5]

1) Deut. 32:6

Is this the way you repay the LORD, O foolish and unwise people? Is he not your Father, your Creator, who made you and formed you?

2) Psalms 2:7

I will proclaim the decree of the LORD : He said to me, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father.

3) Isaiah 63:16

But you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, O LORD, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.

4) Matthew 6:9

"This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,'"

5) John 20:17

Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"

6) Romans 8:15

For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."

On the other hand, the Quran denies God’s Fatherhood:

Sura 5:18

And (both) the Jews and the Christians say: "We are the children of Allah and His loved ones." Say: "Why then does He punish you for your sins?" Nay, you are but human beings, of those He has created, He forgives whom He wills and He punishes whom He wills. And to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, and to Him is the return (of all). [6]

You can see from the Quranic verse above that Muhammad refused to accept Christians and Jews as God’s children because He disciplined them. However, both the Old and New Testaments Bible teach that a loving father disciplines his children.

Hebrews 12:7-11

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Jeremiah 31:18, 19

"I have surely heard Ephraim's moaning: ‘You disciplined me like an unruly calf, and I have been disciplined. Restore me, and I will return, because you are the LORD my God. After I strayed, I repented; after I came to understand, I beat my breast. I was ashamed and humiliated because I bore the disgrace of my youth.'"

Muhammad grew up without a father. His father died before his birth, his mother died when he was six years old. Muhammad lived first with his grandfather and then mostly with his uncle. It may be that he was not disciplined by his uncle who raised him. If that was the case, then he missed out on a valuable aspect of the father-relationship. Fathers who love their children discipline them. God loves His people and He does indeed discipline them for their own good!

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MUHAMMAD’S INTIMACY WITH THE SPIRIT

Muhammad was intimate with the spiritual power that he encountered, first in a cave, but this intimacy was not a familial intimacy. It was not even close. Let’s examine Muhammad’s first encounter with a spiritual force that would lead him, guide him, and instruct him for the rest of his life. What emotions did this up-close and personal introduction produce in Muhammad? In what state did it leave Muhammad? Here is the story…

One day Muhammad was praying and mediating in a cave when a spirit came upon him. It seized Muhammad and squeezed and choked him. Muhammad was terrified, he was scared out of his wits. This spirit demanded that Muhammad "recite" (or read) but Muhammad replied that he didn’t know what to recite. This happened three times. Finally, out of fear for his life, Muhammad asked the spirit "what shall I recite?" Then the spirit told him the first verses of the Quran, Sura 96:1-5. [7]

Here are some quotes, from the earliest Islamic sources, written exclusively by devout Muslim scholars. Take your time and read them through. I encourage you to read them a second time through. As you read, read in-between the lines. What do you learn about Allah’s character?

…The angel came to him in it and asked him to read. The Prophet replied, "I do not know how to read." (The Prophet added), "The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it anymore. He then released me and again asked me to read, and I replied, "I do not know how to read," whereupon he caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it anymore. He then released me and asked me again to read, but again I replied, "I do not know how to read (or, what shall I read?)." Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me and then released me and said, "Read: In the Name of your

Lord, Who has created (all that exists). Has created man from a clot. Read and Your Lord is Most Generous...up to..... ..that which he knew not."

Then Allah's Apostle returned with the Inspiration, his neck muscles twitching with terror till he entered upon Khadija and said, "Cover me! Cover me!" They covered him till his fear was over and then he said, "O Khadija, what is wrong with me?"

…But after a few days Waraqa died and the Divine Inspiration was also paused for a while and the Prophet became so sad as we have heard that he intended several times to throw himself from the tops of high mountains and every time he went up the top of a mountain in order to throw himself down, Gabriel would appear before him and say, "O Muhammad! You are indeed Allah's Apostle in truth" whereupon his heart would become quiet and he would calm down and would return home. And whenever the period of the coming of the inspiration used to become long, he would do as before, but when he used to reach the top of a mountain, Gabriel would appear before him and say to him what he had said before….(Sahih al-Bukhari, volume 9, #111).

"O Khadija, I see light and hear sounds and I fear I am mad". [8]

"So I read it, and he departed from me. And I awoke from my sleep, and it was though these words were written on my heart. (Tabari: Now none of God's creatures was more hateful to me than an (ecstatic) poet or a man possessed: I could not even look at them. I thought, Woe is me poet or possessed - Never shall Quraysh say this of me! I will go to the top of the mountain and throw myself down that I may kill myself and gain rest. So I went forth to do so and then) when I was midway on the mountain, I heard a voice from heaven saying "O Muhammad! thou are the apostle of God and I am Gabriel." [9]

These quotes show us that Muhammad was suicidal and depressed because of his first intimate experience with this spirit (who supposedly represented Allah). He believed that he had become demon possessed or had gone mad. He quickly attempted suicide. Once the spirit successfully stopped him, Muhammad lived in depression and continued to attempt suicide, only to be stopped by the spirit yet again. He suffered from a mental disease. Eventually, after about 3 years, Muhammad believed the words of this spirit and thought of himself as an apostle. (For an in-depth look at Muhammad’s suicide attempts see this article.)

What does this experience tell us about the nature of Muhammad’s god? Where was the comfort that Mary was comforted with (Luke 1:30-38)? Where was the confidence and accompanying miracles that Moses performed after he dialoged with God (Exodus 3 & 4)? Where was the intimacy that God gave to Jesus at His baptism in Matthew (3:16, 17)? It was nowhere to be found.

Would a loving God freak-out his chosen man and allow him to become confused, full of doubt, and depressed, all the while letting him to swim in the pool of suicide? The God of the Bible, the Father, never allowed his chosen men to act in such a manner. Instead, the Father strengthened them and gave them peace.

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ALLAH’S LOVE COMPARED TO GOD’S LOVE

Earlier I said that Islam’s god does love, but it is love given only toward those who are obedient and righteous. Islam’s god demands power over others: Islam means "submission", i.e. submitting to its god and Muhammad’s rule. But the tender love of God, apart from this obedience, is not known in Islam.

Below are a number of verses I’ve found on Allah’s love. I list a few more at the end of this article.

2:222

They ask thee concerning women's courses (menses). Say: They are a hurt and a pollution; so keep away from women in their courses and do not approach them until they are clean. But when they have purified themselves ye may approach them in any manner time or place ordained for you by Allah. For Allah loves those who turn to Him constantly and He loves those who keep themselves pure and clean.

3:31

Say: "If ye do love Allah follow me: Allah will love you and forgive you your sins for Allah is Oft-Forgiving Most Merciful."

3:134

Those who spend (freely) whether in prosperity or in adversity; who restrain anger and pardon (all) men; for Allah loves those who do good.

3:146

How many of the Prophets fought (in Allah's way) and with them (fought) large bands of godly men? But they never lost heart if they met with disaster in Allah's way nor did they weaken (in will) nor give in. And Allah loves those who are firm and steadfast.

28:77

"But seek with the (wealth) which Allah has bestowed on thee the Home of the Hereafter nor forget thy portion in this world: but do thou good as Allah has been good to thee and seek not (occasions for) mischief in the land: for Allah loves not those who do mischief."

61:4

Truly Allah loves those who fight in His Cause in battle array as if they were a solid cemented structure.

You see in all of these verses that Allah’s love is predicated upon the Muslim’s performance. Muhammad’s depiction of and theology on Allah’s love contradict the depiction of God’s love in the Bible. Compare and contrast the following Biblical verses to the Quranic verses above.

(NOTE: Please take the time to read the passages. In doing so, you will taste a strong difference in the flavors of love between Islam’s Allah, and Christianity’s God. By comparing the Scriptures of each faith, you will discern the differences in their Gods’ natures. You will be able to see clearly and unequivocally, beyond any doubt, that Islam’s god is not Christianity’s God. Islam’s god is not capable of true love.)

Hosea 2:13-16

I will punish her for the days she burned incense to the Baals; she decked herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot," declares the LORD. Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor (trouble) a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. "In that day," declares the LORD, "you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master.'

Hosea 3:1

The LORD said to me, "Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress. Love her as the LORD loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes."

Isaiah 54:5-8

For your Maker is your husband, the LORD Almighty is his name, the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. The LORD will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit a wife who married young, only to be rejected," says your God. "For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you," says the LORD your Redeemer.

Jeremiah 31:3

The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.

Jeremiah 31:9

They will come with weeping; they will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams of water on a level path where they will not stumble, because I am Israel's father, and Ephraim is my firstborn son.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to [a] them, " declares the LORD. "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest," declares the LORD. "For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more."

John 3:16-21

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son…."

Romans 5:8

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

1 John 4:9-12

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Revelations 21:6, 7

He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.

I expect that you, the reader, have seen the difference between the quality of love between God and Allah. You can’t miss it. Muhammad’s god was incapable of great love. Its love was shallow. No wonder Muhammad believed that he would be tried in the grave and that he feared Allah’s wrath; the spiritual power that he interacted with was incapable of giving him the true love of God. The true love of God gives peace to the believer. No wonder the early Muslims quickly turned to murdering each other; the spiritual power that rules Islam could not motivate them towards a life of love. The true love of God motivates people to lend a helping hand to each other, not destroy each other. No wonder so many people left Islam after Muhammad died; they tasted Islam and spat it out. No wonder those that left Islam said about the other Muslims, "Their religion does not stop them from shedding blood, terrifying the roads, and seizing properties." [10] (Yes, many early Muslims were terrorists just like the Muslim terrorists of today). Because Islam lacks the true love of God, its followers can bomb children and believe they are doing Allah’s will.

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CONCLUSION

Islam does not have a father, it has a master. Let me be blunt, what I’ve shown you is that Islam’s god is not the same God Christians worship. He is a lesser spirit and inferior to God. Islam’s god is no One God at all. He is not the Father, rather, he is a spiritual power that exerts control over people. The fact that Islam’s god is unable to love as a true Creator reveals that he is not the Creator. Rather he is a master over his slaves, loving only those that do his bidding. It is a spiritual power that terrorized Muhammad, and only offered him a shallow love based upon performance. In many cases this performance motivated Muhammad to murder others.

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ADDITIONAL QURANIC VERSES ABOUT ALLAH’S LOVE

3:76, 3:159, 49:9

REFERENCES:

1) Bukhari, Muhammad, "Sahih Bukhari", Kitab Bhavan, New Delhi, India, 1987, translated by M. Khan, Volume 4, Book 55, Number 654.

2) http://www.dawateislami.net/general/devotions/99names/

3) "Muhammad and the Bible", http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/bible.htm

4) http://www.islam101.com/tauheed/conceptofGod.htm

5) The Bible, New International Version, pub. by Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan

6) The Noble Quran, translated by Dr. Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al-Hilali and Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan, published by Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, PO Box 21441, Riyadh 11475, Saudi Arabia, 1994

7) The spiritual power that communicated with Muhammad did not know genetics very well. http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Science/alaqa.html

8) Ibn Sa'd, (d. 852 A.D.), "Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir", (Book of the Major Classes), page 225, translated by S. Moinul Haq, Pakistan Historical Society.

9) Ibn Ishaq, (d. 782), "Sirat Rasulallah", compiled by A. Guillaume as "The Life of Muhammad", page 106, Oxford, London, 1955

10) al-Tabari, "The History of al-Tabari", (Ta'rikh al-rusul wa'l-muluk), volume 17, page 187, State University of New York Press, 1993