The Qur’an is a central divine book of Islam, written in the sacred language – Arabic. Many scholars believe that the message written within the passages of the Qur’an cannot be imitated since the Book is unique and contains universal knowledge. However, despite the initial beliefs, the Book can be compared to the other religions’ divine writings. This essay will discuss how Qur’an differentiates from the other religious texts in the context of history and its message.
The comparison will occur between the two sacred texts because of their similarities: Qur’an and the Bible. The first field of comparison would be the age of the known fragments of the books. As stated in the article of Coughlan, the most aged pieces of Qur’an have been found near the Birmingham University, and it is as senior as 1,370 years (Coughlan, 2015). These manuscripts indicate the approximate date of the founding of Islam, and these parts are believed to be written by Muhamad himself. However, the oldest Biblical text is the 2,000-year ancient scroll (Griffin, 2016). The manuscript consists of passages from the Book of Leviticus. The Bible was presumably written by God, who inspired regular people to write in His name. Therefore, Qur’an is a younger sacred text than the Bible.
The role of women within both texts is an interesting part since, despite the initial beliefs, it is Christianity that deems women inferior to men and not Islam. The first story of the Bible uncovers the creation of Adam and Eve, where Adam was created from the soil and Eve – from the rib of Adam as his helper, which made her inferior and submissive. Moreover, it was Eve who was initially faulted for the First Sin since the devil chose her to spread disobedience. Therefore, females were bearing the fault of the First Sin, which is why, according to the Bible, they had to bear the pains of childbirth as a punishment:
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
with painful labor, you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.” [Genesis 3:16]
On the contrary, Islam establishes equality between a man and a woman. It is described how God created both, from a single soul; and from it, He created its mate, and from the two of them He spread abroad so many men and women. [4:1] He also says: Mankind, we have created you all out of a male and a female. [49:13] Moreover, in Islam, the same episode of the First Sin is interpreted differently since it is showcased that a male and a female are equally responsible. Islam charges both sexes the same, both have equal requirements before God, and they are similar in receiving the reward.
Both sacred texts had the figure of Jesus appearing; however, the difference between them is in the role of Jesus. Within the Bible, Jesus plays a major part in the New Testament and most of the occurrences within the Bible is connected to the figure of Jesus. Nevertheless, Qur’an shares an opposing view on the holy person, and he appears as the messenger of Allah, who was saved from crucifixion. Therefore, in Qur’an, no person is at least close to the divine Allah. In Bible, Jesus Christ performed miracles and was resurrected by God. However, in Qur’an, there was no such thing. Within the Muslim sacred texts, Jesus, son of Mary, was not a divine entity. Instead, he was just a man, a messenger to Allah, a person with no exceptional powers except for his belief.
Bible and Qur’an both share the afterlife beliefs with slight differences. Both sacred texts describe how only true believers are worthy to enter the gates of heaven while the rest will burn in hell. Both sacred texts describe the concept of respect for the parents. ‘Honor your father and your mother so that your days may belong to the land that the Lord your God is giving you. [Deuteronomy 5:16]. ‘We have entrusted the human being with the care of his parents.
His mother carried him through hardship upon hardship, weaning him in two years. So, give thanks to Me, and your parents. To Me is the destination’. [Luqman 31:14]. Furthermore, both texts preach modesty among women of the religion. In Christianity, female was obligated to cover her hair and wear vail while praying since she was considered the source of sin. However, Qur’an specifies that a woman should be covering herself for the purpose of not being abused. ‘Every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. [Corinthians 11:5-6]. ‘O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be known and not be abused. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.’ [Ahzab 33:59].
One more difference between the Qur’an and the Bible is the view on polygamy, which is the practice of having multiple wives or husbands simultaneously. Possessing lots of husbands is strictly prohibited both in Qur’an and the Bible, but having several wives is allowed in the Muslim sacred texts. In Bible, the marriage is allowed between a man and a woman, which possess each other and become one flesh, one soul. However, in Qur’an, a man could have multiple wives as long as he keeps all of them satisfied in every sense. The Bible and Qur’an also differ when it comes to the divorce process and re-marrying. Christianity highly discourages divorce and views it as a sin: ‘I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery’ [Matthew 5:32]. Although within Qur’an, divorce, and re-marrying are permitted, it is often discouraged, and it is regarded as the most hated of permissible things by Allah’ [Surah Talaq 65:1].
To conclude, Bible and Qur’an share some common ideas and worldviews. However, the core ideas of both sacred texts are different, since one proclaims that the woman is sinful and should suffer more than man as punishment, while the other commands respect for the women. In Qur’an, Jesus appears as a secondary figure, since within the sacred text of Muslims, one can understand that no entity can be more religious than Allah. In Bible, Jesus is the son of God, an entity similar to God in power and influence. Overall, as a younger religion, Qur’an appears to be more progressive and relates to the society of that time.
References
King James Bible. (2017). King James Bible Online. Web.
The Qur’an. Translated by M.A.S. Abdel Haleem, Oxford UP, 2005.
Coughlan, S. (2015). ‘Oldest’ Koran fragments found in Birmingham University. BBC News. Web.
Griffin, A. (2016). Scientists finally read the oldest biblical text ever found. Independent. Web.