العنوان: Islam and Christianity -- part1التاريخ : Feb 18, 2005Form the book((Islam and Christianity /by Ulfat 'Aziz-Us-Samad –published by Al-Falah Foundationwww.falahonline.com ,ISBN:977 -5813-14-X ))It is therefore with a feeling of deep love and respect for both Jesusand Muhammad (pbut), and for the religions which they preached, that Iembark upon a comparative study of Islam and Christianity. If at timesI find myself disagreeing with the Christians, it is not over thereligion of Jesus, but over the altered shape and features that theydeveloped after his departure. In the words of Lord Headley, "Islamand Christianity, as taught by Christ himself, are sister religions,only held apart by dogmas and technicalities which might very well bedispensed with" ((Lord Headley : A Western Awakening to Islam, P.15))The Authenticity of the Qur'anOn the other hand, there is no such doubt about the Glorious Qur'an.It contains nothing but the revelations received by the ProphetMuhammad (pbuh). The revelations came to him in fragments, from timeto time. As soon as he received any, he used to communicate it to hisCompanions and ask then not only to commit it to memory, but also towrite it down. Muhammad (pbuh) used to indicate in a precise mannerthe place to which the revelation belonged. Thus the complete Qur'anwas committed to writing and also preserved in the hearts of hundredsof Muslims in the life time of the Prophet.After the demise of the Prophet, Abu Bakr, the first Caliph, chargedZaid ibn Thabit with the task of preparing an authentic copy of theentire text in the form of a book. The Companions of the Prophet wrotethe revelations that had come to the prophet on parchment or pieces ofleather. Zaid ibn Thabit collected all these and after comparing themwith what the followers of the Prophet had learnt by heart, compiled acopy, called Mushaf (bound leaves). About the genuineness orcorrectness of which there was absolutely no doubt.At the order of 'Uthman, the third Caliph, seven copies of the Mushafedition of the Glorious Qur'an, again confined by the memory of thosewho had learnt it by heart (hafiz), were prepared and sent to thedifferent centers of the vast Islamic world. One of these seven copiesis still in existence in Tashkent. The Czarist government of Russiahad published it with a facsimile reproduction; and we see that thereis a complete identity between this copy and the text otherwise in useall over the world. The same is true of the other extant MSS ofQur'an, complete or fragmentary, dating from the first century of theMuslim era.From the time of the Prophet to our own time the practice of learningthe whole of the Qur'an by heart has continued unbroken, and thenumber of huffaz can now be counted by hundreds of thousands all overthe world. The result is that no scholar, Eastern or Western, Muslimor non-Muslim, has ever cast any doubt on the purity of the text ofthe Glorious Qur'an. Even such an unfriendly critic as Sir WilliamMuri (( The life of Mohamet, Introduction, p.18)) writes about theQur'an:" There is probably in the world no other book whichhas remained twelve centuries with so pure a text"
Read more…
