No! Islam went back to the Law of Moses

(read until the end)

One of my Muslim friends said to me, “That’s going backwards.” And 4 years earlier, I would have said the same. But currently, while studying the Gospel of John, I am seeing this from a much different perspective. I am seeing how Islam actually took us back to the Mosaic Law, which was so impossible to fulfill:

Commands Difficult to Fulfill

For a practicing Muslim, prayer is 5 times a day. In preparation for prayer there are conditions to be fulfilled:

• Ablution/washing
• The prayer’s time must be in
• A clean place
• Clean clothing
• Facing Mecca

So, let us say I have just washed perfectly, dressed, placed my mat facing Mecca, no dog hair or saliva has touched the area. Now, I am ready to pray but I pass gas, i.e. fart. Passing gas negates the ablution and I must do it all again.

In the month of Ramadan, the month of fasting, the fast begins at the break of dawn and ends at sunset. A woman could have fasted the entire day, but if her menstruation comes an hour before sunset, she must fast the entire day again. It will not ‘count’.

If one breaks their fast without an excuse there is also a severe punishment. I remember in Madinah, I was in the car with my 1st husband and one of his fellow students of knowledge. It was so weird, in Madinah when our husbands stayed out late, they were not at clubs or bars meeting women – they were with Sheikhs learning the religion. Anyway, a man had come to a big Sheikh and asked: ” Sheikh, my wife and I got married during Ramadan (why would they do that?) and we broke our fast every day for 12 days. (i.e. they had intimate relations).” The Sheikh answered his question this way: “For EACH of the 12 days, you owe 30 more. AND if your wife had sex with you willingly, then she owes the same.” I remember my mouth dropping open underneath my veil. “Damn!” I thought. I had read about the ‘kafara’ but reading about it was one thing. This is what I mean by commandments/laws that are difficult to fulfill. This was the situation of the Pharisees that Jesus encountered.

Dietary Laws

The dietary laws of Islam are also similar to that of the Jewish law.

 "He has only forbidden to you dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah..."

Al-Baqarah (2:173

I remember visiting my grandmother when she was alive, and being particular about the dishes and pots which had been used for pork. My grandmother said, ‘Oh you all are like the Jews.’ I was completely offended. (see the article Spiritual Hatred of Jews.)

Other than pork, there are other animals forbidden to eat in Islam. Predatory animals, animals which live in and out of water, scavenger animals such as crabs, and predatory animals having fangs or talons.

Lambs to Slaughter

First, in chapter 1, John the Baptist introduces Jesus by saying, “Behold the Lamb of God”. The Jews understood the significance of the lamb, an animal of sacrifice. The Muslims understand it too. When a Muslim couple marry, they slaughter a lamb called a Waleemah, and invite family and friends to eat the meat and share in the occasion. When that couple has a child, again they slaughter; 1 lamb for a girl and 2 for a boy. This is called Aqeeqah. They then share the meat with family and friends. When Muslims travel to Mecca for Hajj, pilgrimage, they are also obligated to slaughter either a lamb or another particular animal. I know this all too well! When my 1st husband and I made Hajj, we could not afford to slaughter, so we were obligated to fast for 10 days. During the Eid of sacrifice, those Muslims who did not travel to Mecca, are also encouraged to sacrifice/slaughter a lamb or similar animal in remembrance and celebration.

Threats & Harsh Punishments

Reading Chapter 8 was something i did not expect. the pharisees bring before Jesus, a woman who was ‘caught in adultery’. The Mosaic Law said to stone her to death, but Jesus showed them a new perspective. Let he who is without sin throw the first stone!

Indeed, the Islamic Sharia punishment is stoning to death of the adulterer, though this is not practiced in most places today.

This still image from a horrifying video, shows a woman accused of adultery, down in a hole being pounded in the head with large stones in Afghanistan. This was in the year 2020!! (I do not advise watching the video.) In authentic Prophetic hadith;

(Muhamad) Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) awarded the punishment of stoning to death (to the married adulterer and adulteress) and, after him, we also awarded the punishment of stoning, I am afraid that with the lapse of time, the people (may forget it) and may say: We do not find the punishment of stoning in the Book of Allah, and thus go astray by abandoning this duty prescribed by Allah. Stoning is a duty laid down in Allah’s Book for married men and women who commit adultery when proof is established, or if there is pregnancy, or a confession.

Sahih Muslim 1691a; Book 29, Hadith 21

It is understandable now why the Quran negates the crucifixion and the resurrection! Without them, we WOULD still be trying to fulfill the Laws of Moses.

Between Guilt and Arrogance

Jesus told the Pharisees that they knew the Law but they did not know God. Their hearts were dead.I was similar to them. Myself and my friends were so high on our horses. We were better and smarter than Jews, Christians, and even other Muslims. We knew the Law.

In the shadows of this arrogance, was shame and guilt. In Islam, When one truly humbled their heart to Allah, they found guilt, shame, or fear. If I missed a prayer and didn’t make it up, there was guilt. If I didn’t make up fasts or got weak during a fast and broke it, there was guilt. Wondering if I was ever forgiven or if my deeds were ‘accepted’. After prayers and at the end of Ramadan, Muslims say to each other, ‘may Allah accept it from us.‘ I never knew if I was good enough or if I was forgiven. And I always thought it was just me until later when I met so many others who had experienced the same thing.

Later on, I would like to discuss atonement and the idea of redemption and the difference in views between the religions. This is enough for now.

Nela