Jesus from a Muslim perspective

There are so many rich passages and tenets of justice in the Qur’an, that it would be impossible to give them their due in one page.  I will narrow my focus then, to one point of study in our readings and class work – the Islamic idea of a non-crucified Jesus.

            As a Christian, I was taught that not only did Jesus die, but also that God sent him here to die.  It doesn’t evoke the image of a loving God.  Conversely, Jewish scholars believe that Jesus was crucified, but certainly not for divine purpose.  Learning then, that Muslims believe that not only was Jesus raised into heaven, but without a crucifixion at all is fascinating to me. 

            When I first heard that Muslims didn’t believe in the crucifixion, I assumed it was following Jewish tradition of Jesus as man – not divinity.  Only through our recent study of Qur’an, did I learn that Muslim belief on crucifixion comes closer to mimicking Christian theology – that is in the idea of a “raised” Jesus.  Christians believe that Jesus died first – but to see such different religions aligned in belief of a physical Christ in heaven is very exciting. 

            What particularly intrigues me as a Christian, is that Muslims believe Jesus was one of the most holy prophets ever recorded. I love the passage (Surah 4), which says, “They neither killed nor crucified him, even thought it seems so…rather, God lifted him up to Himself.”  As someone who was always horrified at the thought of a crucified Christ, I found this an almost comforting notion.  For it is not the crucifixion on which I focus as a Christian, but rather the life of Jesus and what he taught.

            Along the same lines, the notion of God letting Jesus die – and in such a horrific manner – has also really bothered me.  But as my classmate Mohammed explained, Muslims believe that God would “never let his greatest prophet be tortured or killed”.   As a Christian who doesn’t really subscribe to the view of Jesus as blood sacrifice – particularly by a loving and merciful God – I can’t help but find the Muslim view of a non-crucified Jesus just beautiful.  Toss in the Islamic faith in a second coming, and I am again in awe of two such divergent religions finding commonality through a reverence of Christ.