A Comparison of the Lives of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) & Jesus Christ
Despite having almost the same role according to the perspective of Islam and Christianity respectively, the lives of Prophet Muhammad and Jesus Christ differed in many ways. Each was a messenger of religions that would flourish throughout the world, but each was regarded in different ways. Christ, according to Christianity, is the son of God, while Muhammad, according to Islam, is the last prophet sent down by God. One was an incarnate of God, while the other was considered a political figure at one time. These two shared few similarities, including the message of a new religion.
Jesus Christ began his life being conceived miraculously by the Virgin Mary. He was born in Bethlehem and had to flee the country for a short period only to return once again as the messiah to many Jews. After his call to public ministry, he "took up the life of an itinerant preacher, teacher, and healer," (Columbia Encyclopedia, 243). Some of his miracles included changing water to wine at a party, healing of the blind or crippled, curing of lepers, and resurrection from the dead. People looked to him in awe and almost as a miracle worker. Jesus was regarded as the "messiah" by the Jews and this attracted a great deal of attention to him. All this attention was not necessarily positive. It gained the attention of the Roman forces that ruled during that period. Eventually, the Roman forces led him to his crucifixion on the cross.
Muhammad's existence seemed to very different from that of Jesus Christ. Muhammad was born in a normal home with a normal conception. His parents both died by the time he was six years of age and Muhammad was left in the hands of his foster mother. He was soon passed on to his uncle who continued to raise him. Compassion, mercy and simplicity seemed to be his trademark. Unlike Jesus, who was known for his miracles, Muhammad was known for his ability to conduct business and his compassion towards others. He didn't perform any miracles and never claimed to have that ability. Muhammad married a wealthy widow when he was about 25 while Jesus remained celibate throughout his life.
Jesus Christ was believed to be the son of God as well as God's very word, while Muhammad was the recipient of God's word. This can be seen as Christians believing that what Jesus thought were God's very thoughts. The holy trinity, which consists of God, Christ and the Holy Spirit is seen as three separate entities while being one. In a sense, this would mean Christ's word alone was regarded as the word of God. Christ would not have to go anywhere to gain insight as to what God would want in a particular situation for he was the very existence of God. Muhammad, on the other hand, received his call in a different manner. He went to a cave to meditate often and one afternoon the angel Gabriel came down to him and aroused him to a voice that belonged to God that gave him the message of God as the creator. Muhammad continued receiving such revelations, which he spread. Many of these revelations seemed to deal with events occuring in the prophet's own life and this enabled him to grasp their meanings more thoroughly rather than just hearing the words and reciting them out loud to others. Though Muhammad lived in a society that was mostly pagan at that time, he followed a different belief that hadn't yet been fully cultivated but mainly believed in one God as the basis. Christ was believed to have been sent to earth with his mission predetermined.
Christ was sent to redeem mankind, and to atone for the sins of the world. He knew of his mission while Muhammad was caught by surprise at receiving the revelations. Muhammad, similar to Christ, faced much opposition. When he went to tell the world about Islam, not everyone responded positively. He once went to Taif, a town near Mecca, where "people mercilessly showered the Holy Prophet with stones," (Faruqui, 6). God guided Muhammad through the revelations to spread Islam while according to Christian belief, many already viewed Christ as a messiah and others viewed his word as the world of God. At age 30, Jesus began to proclaim religious teachings.
Needless to say, Jesus, being considered the Son of God, would seem to have a very personal relationship with God. Also, in view of the trinity, Jesus was God himself, therefore it difficult to determine how close each entity was to one another. Christians believes that to this day, Jesus is sitting to one side of God, his father, awaiting Judgement Day. The prophet Muhammad was all human. Muhammad was never believed to have seen God. In a sense, he never had a personal relationship with God besides having heard his voice. His entire relationship seemed to be based on Muhammad hearing the revelations. Because Muhammad was illiterate, he just recalled these revelations to trusted scribes, who wrote out these ideas. There was no personal contact or conversation in any other way. Through the help of Gabriel, Muhammad learned his mission and by following the word of God, which he could only hear and feel, he established the religion of Islam.
Jesus Christ led a noble and celibate life. In accordance to the standards set by him, Christianity would consider his celibate lifestyle ideal. "And when the strength of a man refuses to lead a consort in marriage, so that the man for love of my son controls himself in the vigor of his children…..but he restrains his body so as not to fulfill the desires of the flesh; that this man conquers himself in this manners is extremely pleasing to me," (Columba, Bishop, 178). Ideally, a man who is able to restrain from this urge of the flesh is "pleasing" to God. Therefore the celibate lifestyle would be an ideal to the community as is the case with monks and church clergy even today. Muhammad's view was quite the opposite. Muhammad had nine wives at the time of his death. He made his love for women public declaring that "three things are made lovable to me; women, perfume, prayer." Many of his wives were widows and his act of marriage to them gave one a sense of charity. In those days, women were not able to fend for themselves and if their husbands died, they would live a life of torment. Muhammad married some of these widows and gave them a life to live on his accord. Therefore, Muhammad's followers continued the tradition of many wives, provided they could all be cared for. He set an example for others to "elevate the position of women…He gave them rights when they had none," (Faruqui, 22). Another example set by Jesus would be, "do not set yourself against the man who wrongs you. If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn and offer him your left," (Matthew, 204). Christians follow this example to go against those condoning violence and such. Muhammad set a similar example politically. "Islam exhorts that the balance between the material and physical aspects between the individual and societal needs be maintained in order to narrow the gap between two opposite sides of human world," (Tuwaijri, 21). A figure that brings a religion to a group of people is easily the strongest influence on those people. The individual's actions will seem ideal to those who follow his lead. Even to the extent that his appearance may influence the appearance of his followers. In this manner, those who followed a religion would naturally set the ideals based on the founder's lifestyle and ideals.
Jesus is regarded in Islamic tradition as born of the Virgin Mary and as a prophet, The Qur'an dictates his miracles. There is no diction of him being regarded as a "son of God" in any aspect. The idea of the trinity is specifically denied in Islam. Muslims don't believe that Jesus died on the cross. Muslims believe someone else was put in his place while Jesus was taken by God to return on the day of Judgement. Muhammad is not regarded in Christianity as he came after the beginning of Christianity.
The Prophet Muhammad and Jesus Christ seemed to share a common goal of spreading a religion but the process and limitations vary a great deal. Christ was celibate, died young, and had no interest in a political life. Muhammad had many wives, was a statesman and actually became the political head of Arabia at one point. This allows one to see that despite similarities in goals, each of these individuals chose a very different path to convey their messages. Christians look to Jesus at their ideal figure and one who they base their actions on. Similarly in Islam, Muslim males look to Muhammad as the ideal figure and even go to the extent of believing that one must look as he did in appearance as well. Muhammad and Christ are founders of two of the most flourishing and public religions of the world, and therefore will always be regarded as two of the ideal men of society of any day.
