“Islam, Christianity, and Judaism: More Same than Different?”
by Rakibul Islam
Among the most important and largest religions in the world are the three main monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Despite the three religions all tracing their formation in some way to the same person, members of these three religions have had various conflicts throughout history. Jews, Christians and Muslims have been combating each other year after year, starting as early as the formation of Christianity, to the Crusades, the Inquisition, and recent events in the Middle East. Many times, the leaders make it seem that they are fighting a religious war—that the three religions are independent of each other. The truth is, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are much closer than most people think.
Beyond the obvious similarity that all three religions are monotheistic, there are many shared figures. As stated before, all three religions have roots in one person: Abraham. Jews, Christians, and Muslims believe strongly in the holiness of Abraham, and they all believe that he was spreading their message. They also believe in such figures as Moses and Issac. Though their stories may differ from religion to religion, these men all play important roles. Not surprisingly, the figures shared by all three are from before the creation of Christianity. Christianity and Islam also share a few religious figures, most importantly Jesus Christ.
A very important shared province between the three religions is the city of Jerusalem, currently in Israel. Jerusalem is the holiest city in Judaism, while Islam places it third behind only Makkah (Mecca) and Medinah (Medina). Some Christian denominations also consider it a holy city. Each religion has a major structure in Jerusalem. For the Jews, it is the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. Christians have the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, and Muslims have the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock. The city is so important that, going as far back as the 1940s, many plans for the division of Israel/Palestine have Jerusalem completely separated and made its own territory to keep one religion from controlling it. Whatever the final result, Jerusalem will always be a major city for all three sister religions.
The three texts of these religions also share many more similarities than at first glance. The Jewish text, the Torah or the Old Testament, is also the first part of the Christian Bible. The Holy Qu’ran, the Muslim religious text, contains elements of both the Torah and the Bible. Shared portions include the stories of Noah and Abraham, among other ideals. Many disciples of the three religions, especially of Islam, believe that the three religious texts are actually telling the same message, but that the texts not belonging to their religion were written incorrectly or were incomplete.
While there are many differences in the basic principles and practices of the three religions, some things are shared or at least have some commonalities. Each religion has a fasting period where the followers must give up something for a length of time. Judaism has Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. On this day, Jews give up food and water for the entire day and night, a period of 25 hours, and engage in prayer throughout. The Islamic month of Ramadan is similar to Yom Kippur. The main difference is that the fasting is only during the daytime, and it is done for an entire lunar month (29-30 days). Christianity is most unlike the others, since only some denominations require fasting. The main period for fasting is Lent, which occurs during March and April (approximately 40 days) and surrounds Easter. Most denominations only ask that the followers give up something of importance during that time, for example a certain food or activity. The period of fasting may be different for the three religions, but the premise is the same.
While Judaism, Christianity, and Islam may have inherent differences in many of their aspects, it remains that the three religions are linked to each other. Beyond the monotheistic base, they share such various aspects as holy cities, religious texts, major figures, and plenty more. The three religions may have had their fights and wars over the years, but if the leaders can see that the religions have common values, they can end the string of conflicts that have marred the world’s landscape, especially in the Middle East, and establish peace.
