Quote (poulgaragr @ Aug 9 2012 08:37am)
Was Jesus truly crucified?
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Besm Ellah El Rahman El Raheem
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
وَقَوْلِهِمْ إِنَّا قَتَلْنَا الْمَسِيحَ عِيسَى ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ رَسُولَ اللّهِ وَمَا قَتَلُوهُ وَمَا صَلَبُوهُ وَلَكِن شُبِّهَ لَهُمْ وَإِنَّ الَّذِينَ اخْتَلَفُواْ فِيهِ لَفِي شَكٍّ مِّنْهُ مَا لَهُم بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ إِلاَّ اتِّبَاعَ الظَّنِّ وَمَا قَتَلُوهُ يَقِينًا ﴿١٥٧
Waqawlihim Ina Qatalna-Al Maseeh ,Eesa Ebn Maryama Rasool Allah Wa Ma Qataloohou Wa Ma Salabuhu Wa Lakin Shoubeha Lahum Wa Inal-LaTHeena Ikhtalafoun Feehi La Fee Shakin Minhu Ma Lahoum Beh Men ,Elm Ila-Tiba, THan Wa Ma Qataloohou Yaqeena
“And they said in boast: “We killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, and apostle of Allah,” but neither did they kill him, nor crucify him, but it was made to appear to them so. And those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no certain knowledge. They follow only conjecture, for assuredly, they killed him not”
Holy Qur'an, Surah An-Nisa' (4), Verse 157
As everyone knows, Islam rejects three aspects from the Christian Religion, and one of them is the Crucifixion. The Crucifixion is what Christianity is based upon. Our Christian friends believe that Jesus Christ – whom they consider to be the literal “Son of God” – came on Earth as God in manly form, in order to sacrifice himself “for the sins of mankind.”
Before I continue with this topic, I would like to remind the reader, that according to the Bible, “If Christ is not risen from the dead, then our preaching is in vain, and our faith is also in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14), which means that if the crucifixion is proven to be false, then the whole concept of Christianity automatically crumbles along with it. Again, these are not my words!
Please remember that verse from the Bible, as it is very important for the topic which I present here in this thread.
Contents of this Thread:
1: Talking to the Christian.
2: What do the Gospels say?
3: Contradictions within the Gospels.
4: Prophecies indicating that Jesus will not die.
5: The story behind the alleged crucifixion.
6: Jesus was unwilling.
7: The unfair trial.
8: Crucifixion, or Cruci-Fiction?
9: Conclusion.
1: Talking to the Christian.
Following is a typical conversation that takes place every now and then between me and Christians. As usual, “M” is for the Muslim (Me), and “C” is for the Christian.
C: So you're a Muslim?
M: Yes! I became a Muslim around the middle of the year 2006.
C: And what were you before?
M: A Christian Catholic.
C: (raising his eyebrows) And you left Christianity and your salvation to follow Islam? What made you convert to Islam? Why did you betray your family, your culture, and Jesus who died for your sins? I suggest that you pray to Jesus and ask for his forgiveness, and he will surely take you back! You are following a wrong path that will lead you to Hell!
M: Islam makes absolute sense to me, and I am following...(he cuts me off)
C: Islam rejects Jesus! How could you reject the Messiah who died for your sins?
M: Please allow me to explain (I pause for a moment to make sure he won't cut me off again) We Muslims believe in Jesus (pbuh). We believe that he was the Messiah, but Islam rejects the crucifixion.
C: What? Then who will pay for your sins?
M: In Islam, we believe that everyone is born sinless, and is made responsible for his or her own sins. We believe in Jesus Christ (pbuh) as a mighty Prophet and Messenger of God, but we reject the doctrine of the Original Sin, as well as the Trinity, and of course the crucifixion.
C: Oh Lord Jesus have mercy! (he makes the sign of the cross three times while he is speaking) Then you have nothing left! Especially since you don't believe in the crucifixion! You are lost without Jesus and his sacrifice for your sins! Return to Jesus NOW! Jesus is the only way!
M: No disrespect, I have already found the way, and that is by following Islamic Monotheism.
C: What about that Moon-God, Allah? He tells you in his book to worship him instead of God, and he also tells you to deny Jesus' sacrifice for you! That is what you just told me! Why do you Muslims deny the Gospel and blood sacrifice of Jesus? Why?
M: We Muslims do not contradict Jesus. The Holy Qur'an says: “And they said in boast: 'We killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, and apostle of Allah,' but they killed him not, nor crucify him, but it was made to appear to them so. And those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no certain knowledge. They follow only conjecture, for assuredly, they killed him not” (Holy Qur'an, Surah An-Nisa' (4), Verse 157), and you will be surprised to know that even in your Bible evidence exists which proves that the crucifixion never happened!
C: (highly excited now) WHAT?!? WHERE?!? The Bible only teaches that Jesus was tortured, killed on the cross, buried, and was resurrected 3 days later! So how can you utter such blasphemies? Are you reading some kind of Muslim Bible or something? And how can we trust the word of an illiterate desert-dweller who came 600 years later? How can this Arab know better than the companions and close followers of Jesus?
M: There is no such thing as a Muslim Bible. You reserve the right not to want to listen to what the Qur'an says. Yet, I can show you solid evidence from your Bible that Jesus wasn't crucified. Would you care to listen?
C: Ha! This is something I really gotta see!
Having said thus, I take the Christian on a small journey; a journey which I am very proud to present to you too. The arguments and verses I will give can be found in any Bible in the world, regardless of which version you are using. Please bare in mind that the Christian, as you read above, was informed that Jesus was “neither killed, nor crucified” and of course his most obvious reaction was the following: (Christian) “How can we trust the word of an illiterate desert-dweller who came 600 years later?” Of course, we as Muslims know that the Qur'an is the Perfect Word of God, and we know that everything in the Qur'an is correct. However, the Christian doesn't accept the Qur'an to be the word of God. Some of them have even been trained to hate Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the Qur'an, and everything Islamic.
Thus, we have no other alternative other than referring them to the Bible itself to prove our position. The Bible, in its present-day form, is nowhere near the original Torah, Psalms, Gospel etc. that were revealed to the Holy Prophets who pre-dated Muhammad (pbut all), but the good news is that there are still parts of these Scriptures that have remained intact, and have thus survived up to this day in the present-day Bible.
It is these parts which I will turn to in order to prove my arguments as indeed valid. Why, I even have a good argument that generates from the discrepancies of the Bible! Thus, in short, it is a win-win situation!
Ironically, when the Christian tells me: “My Bible says this, my Bible says that”, I reply using a famous verse from the Holy Qur'an: “Produce your proof, if you are truthful.” (Holy Qur'an, Surah Al-Baqara (2), verse 111). The Christian, at that moment, happily brings forth his book of authority; the Holy Bible. The poor chap hasn't the slightest form of a clue of what awaits him!
For those who vigorously defend their Christian faith and its foundation, the following contents of this chapter will surely be disturbing. However, rest assured that it has been written in good will, and the only objective is to expose the ultimate truth behind the alleged crucifixion. Thus, the question arises:
Is the crucifixion true, or was it a hoax?
At this point, I would like to bring to your attention what “Billy Graham”, the great evangelist, once said (quote): “I was forced to the conclusion that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is either one of the most wicked, heartless, vicious hoaxes ever fisted upon the minds of men, or it is the most fantastic fact of History.”
Continued in part 2...
This