World religions. The religion of all prophets - what did all the prophets teach? All prophets were Muslim
If we take the religion of the prophets as the basis, then religions can be divided into two categories: faith with the presence of a prophet in it and faith without a prophet. Such a classification shows the division of most religions, especially religions of a universal scale, into two groups. Each system of religion, by virtue of its structure, allocates a place for the faith of the prophet. In almost all religions, the Prophet is a leader who provides information and knowledge about the metaphysical world and the future, warning people against various events and states of affairs. Along with this general view of prophetic faith, in religions there are concepts that differ from this view. For example, some religions limit the prophecy to a certain length of time, while some take it as an ongoing phenomenon. Also, in a similar way, there are different views of religions regarding the qualities and characteristics of the prophets.
Islam views the prophets from the perspective of the faith of Tawheed and the prophets in Islam, both in relation to the historical chain they have created and in relation to the main theme in their messages, constitute a unity and complement each other. Tawhid, not only in a theological concept, but also in a cosmological and anthropological concept, expresses union and unity regarding the qualities of Allah. Also, tawhid is the basis of the message communicated to people by all the prophets. In Islam, there are two names associated with a prophet - they are Prophet and Messenger. Each prophet is a messenger who brings to the attention of people and informs them about the truth and truth transmitted to him by Allah and at the same time a prophet, warning and warning people about the approaching day of judgment.
Islam strongly emphasizes the appearance of the prophets as people like all other people. They are by no means divine or semi-divine creatures. By this sign, Islam clearly and clearly separates prophets from traditions that mistake prophets for divine creatures or angels. The Holy Quran at times draws attention to non-believers who object to the prophecy of the Prophet Muhammad in this direction and completely refutes their protests. At the same time that they are the same normal people like everyone else, the only distinguishing feature of the prophets is the chosenness of the messenger and, as a result, the obligation to convey to people the message or book transmitted to them by Allah. But their duty is not limited to this, tk. they are models and mentors in the implementation and observance in practice of divine messages and at the same time teachers who teach people this ...
Islam, while attaching great importance to the faith of the prophet, in no way takes the prophet as the center of the religion. Because the center of religion is the faith of Tawhid, the undeniable unity and oneness of Allah. The presence of prophets is associated with the delivery of this faith to people, teaching them this and becoming a model for people in terms of perception and implementation of this message in the personal and public spheres of life. In this sense, Islam is fundamentally different from religions that elevate prophets more than necessary, deify and bring them to the fore before faith in Allah. From the Prophet Adam to the Prophet Muhammad, all prophets are just prophets, and nothing else ... They are leaders who were chosen by Allah for this purpose and therefore their degree was increased. They must be perceived in this form and, except for this, should not be exaggerated. Just like the words of the Qur'an, which warns Muslims about the Prophet Muhammad: "And Muhammad is no more than a messenger, he was preceded by many others, and if he dies or is destroyed, can you turn back? Apostates will not harm Allah in anything, but Allah will fully reward those who are grateful. " (Ali Imran, 3/144)
Assalamu alaykum wa RahmatuLLAHi wa Barakatuhu! What is translated from Arabic as - May the Peace and Blessings of Allah be with you.
With the name of Allah, the Merciful and the Most Merciful (BismILLAHi Rahmani Rahim).
The Almighty, according to His Will, created His servants in this world, endowed them with incalculable blessings in it and commanded them, by His mercy, to observe all the laws of God and to be obedient to Him. Observance of God's laws leads to happiness in this world and in the next world, and their violation leads to suffering and To bring and clarify his laws, the Almighty sent his chosen slaves-prophets to people, so that on the Day of Judgment we would be among the saved and forever become inhabitants of the Gardens of Eden prepared by the Creator for the God-fearing. All the prophets taught the true faith, the basis of which is Monotheism. All of them asserted: "There is nothing worthy of worship, except for One God (Allah)", and called people to Monotheism, telling them that there is no accomplice or helper (and this is wrong - it is a sin that in the West in the church the pastor cleans up their griha behind the partition. He cannot forgive them sins, because the person himself is not without sin. And only God (Allah) can do this) to the Creator and that He, and only He, has absolute, perfect dignity, and there is nothing They called for the worship of the Almighty, explaining to people that idols, animals, people are not worthy of worship, because they themselves were created: that is, they have a beginning and an end. There is a widespread misconception that Islam is the new and youngest religion, and Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be with him) is the founder of Islam. Truly, this is not so.
The Muslim religion is based on the belief in One One God, Who is like no one and nothing like Him. In Arabic this religion is called "Islam", in Russian - "obedience", and the word "Muslim"means "a man obedient to God Alone." After the last Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and the sending down of the Holy Book of the Koran in Arabic, these words naturally began to be used in the language of the Koran. Islam is a religion of obedience to the Almighty.
Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is not the founder of this religion He revived the doctrine of the previous prophets and messengers (peace be upon them). The first prophet was our pro-father Adam (peace be upon him), the last Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him). The Prophet Muhammad, Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), Isa (Jesus), Nuh (Noah), peace them all knew that the last Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) will come, and there was absolute continuity between all of them. A submissive to God must believe in all the prophets and messengers and recognize their mission, otherwise he is not a Muslim. All the prophets were submissive to God, that is, Muslims. The Almighty in the Qur'an commanded those who follow the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to believe in Allah and in what was sent down by Him with all the prophets, i.e. the Qur'an and other Scriptures, and there is no difference between them: they are all brothers -Muslims. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "The best words that I and all the prophets before me uttered are:" La ilaha illallah " He is an accomplice.) Therefore, Muslims recognize, believe, love and honor all prophets.
Yes, it is necessary to recognize all the prophets, but you cannot deify any of them, for they are the servants of Allah, created by Him. None of the prooks taught that people should worship him or some other creation, because this would be paganism and delusion, from which they saved people.
Why are there so many different beliefs now, if all the prophets professed one religion?
Initially, humanity had one religion - the religion of obedience (in Arabic - Islam). Prophet Adam (peace be upon him) worshiped only One God and taught his children the true faith. Subsequent prophets also called upon their peoples to worship the One Creator and be obedient to Him. But after the prophets left this mortal world, some people began to distort the faith, introducing their own views into the Scriptures. Some deliberately, others for selfish ends, others because of their own. This is how various beliefs arose, distorting the true teaching. And whenever people departed from faith, the Almighty sent them a new prophet in order to direct them on the right path. The first signs of paganism appeared after the departure of the prophet Shisa (peace be upon him) from this world - son of Adam (peace be upon him) .Then the prophet Idris (Enoch) (peace be upon him) was sent to instruct people, then the prophet Nuh (Noah) (peace be upon him) and all the other prophets. Each of the prophets was sent to one specific people, and only prook Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was sent to all mankind, completing the mission of the prophecy. Islam is the optimal norms and rules of life on Earth, sent down to us by the Almighty, taking into account all the subtleties of psychology and human capabilities. It consists of two components: the doctrine and the Sharia. The foundations of faith, such as faith in Allah, in His angels, in the Scriptures, in the prophets, on the Day of Judgment and in the predestination of fate, have never changed and never change. Muhammad (peace be upon him) says: "All the prophets are brothers in faith, their religion is one, Islam, and the laws of God, Sharia, differed from each other depending on time, place and conditions." Indeed, it is so, and it cannot be otherwise. Because if God sent prophets with different knowledge about Himself, it would be absurd, because it would lead to a different understanding of the Essence of God. Just as God is Eternal and all His attributes are are also eternal, then the knowledge about Him, about His attributes is unchanging. So, the foundations of faith were the same, regardless of when they were transferred - at the dawn of mankind to the prophet Adam (peace be upon him) or in later times to the prophets Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, peace be upon them all. Thus, all the prophets were co-religionists who professed the one true religion and called people to this. Therefore, even today, the true religious doctrine should not contradict the foundations of the faith of all prophets and messengers. Therefore, the opinion of some people about that "all existing religions with all contradictions with each other are correct" and that "they were all sent down by the Creator in this form."
As for the laws (i.e. Sharia), only some of them can change over time due to changes in the way of life of people, etc. Therefore, there were different Heavenly Scriptures sent down at different times to different nations.
The basic principles of the laws of all the prophets were the same. For example, the prohibitions on murder, lying, adultery, theft and all other useless or harmful acts in this and in the next world remained unchanged. But some rituals and laws of life changed in connection with the development of human society. Here are some examples:
1. According to the Sharia of Adam (mirem), believers were obliged to perform one prayer per day. A similar instruction survived until the time of the people of Israel. The people of Israel were prescribed two prayers, then at the time of Moses there were 50. In our time, 5 namz per day.
2. In the Sharia of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), unlike the previous Sharia, it is allowed to pray in any clean place. Previously, this was only allowed in specially designated places for prayer.
Each new messenger through the Revelation from the Almighty was given Sharia, which annulled some of the previous laws that had ceased to be valid from that moment. The last Law, which was sent down to the whole world and will be in force until the End of the World, is the Law set forth in the Holy Quran. unlike other Scriptures, it remained unchanged, since the Most High Himself promised to keep it until the Day of Judgment.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) revived the doctrine that was set forth in the Torah, the Gospel and other scriptures. Therefore, the adoption of Islam does not in the least mean that a person changes or betrays the faith of his ancestors. On the contrary, he purifies his faith from distortions and returns to the true religion of their ancestors-prophets Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, for all previous prophets (peace be upon them) told their communities about the arrival of the last Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and bequeathed to follow him and help him. For example, the prophet Isa (Jesus, peace be upon him) said: "O children of Israel! I am a messenger to you from God, confirming the truth of what was sent down before me in the Torah and preaching to you about the Messenger who will come after me, whose name is Ahmad (one of the names of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), which translated into Russian means "Praised"). "This is written in the Koran, and in the Torah, and in the Gospel. Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Al laha him) is called the word "Periklitos", which in the exact translation from Greek means "Praised" (ie Ahmad). Closer to the End of the World, by the will of Allah (He is Almighty and Great), Jesus (peace be upon him), who was ascended safe and sound by the Almighty to heaven, where he remains to this day, will be sent down to earth. He will come to people not as a messenger and not with another Sharia, but as a follower and scholar-theologian of Islam to confirm the messenger mission of the last Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). He will call people to observe the Sharia, sent down to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and when he dies , they will bury him in the city of Medina, where the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is buried.
At all times, the whips and their followers were waiting for the last Seal-Messenger of all the prophets. And all the true followers of the prophets Moses and Jesus (peace be upon them), who were waiting for the appearance of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) followed him, because in the Torah and the Gospel they read detailed stories about him, which mentioned the characteristics of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), the place of his appearance, his name, the main provisions of his sermons, etc.
Truth always finds a response in the heart of every impartial person seeking the truth. Thus, Negus, the king of Christian Ethiopia, received the word of truth with which the Messenger of Allah-Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) addressed him through the Koran. He called the Negus to faith and encouraged him to accept Islam. And the king embraced Islam. His following immortal saying remained: "I testify before Allah that this is the Prophet awaited by people who have the Scriptures." It entered the annals of history as evidence of human justice and another proof that Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was the Prophet and Messenger who was awaited and on whom hopes were pinned for the salvation of mankind.
The history of religion, as well as the history of mankind, can be compared to the school system: religion, like the rules of human life, improves with the development of human society. For example, the prophet Adam (peace be upon him) - the first man on earth - is like the first teacher , and in those ten Scriptures (scrolls) that he received, there was the most necessary knowledge, the alphabet of relationships. His son, the prophet Shis (peace be upon him), is like a 2nd grade teacher who, having received 50 Holy Scrolls, for the first time gave such concepts to humanity, as a system of fair government, rules of trade, introduced the concept of measure and weighing, began mining. Their descendant Idris (Enoch peace be upon him) is like a 3rd grade teacher who, having received an additional 30 Holy Scrolls, broadened the horizons of his followers. the concept of counting, writing, began to observe celestial bodies and began to sew clothes.
Then Nuh (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), Isa (Jesus) (peace be upon them all), and, finally, the graduating class and the last teacher-the last prophet, the Prophet of all Prophets-Muhammaf (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him ) brought to mankind the complete rules of life, by which people are guided to the end of the world. He kind of offered us the questions of graduation tests and announced that there would be no more teachers and new subjects and we needed to prepare for exams.
He left us the Quran and hadiths (a description of the life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)) and said that there will be no more prophets: prepare for the Day of Judgment, when the good and bad deeds of each person will be weighed with perfect accuracy and the sum of our earthly And the one of us who has more good deeds will be rewarded in Eternal life, and the one who has more bad deeds will be punished justly. This is the whole essence and content of true religion at all times - to teach, educate and to save man, the most beloved intelligent creation of Allah Almighty. For this, the prophets were sent, and they received instructions in the form of the Holy Scriptures. Kazid Holy Scripture confirmed the truth of the previous one and announced the following. Therefore, in one of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) says : "All prophets are brothers, and their religion is one." oh by the Lord, except for the religion of obedience and obedience to Him. "(ie Islam).
Faith in God surrounds a person from infancy. In childhood, this still unconscious choice is associated with family traditions that exist in every home. But later, a person can deliberately change his confession. How are they similar and how do they differ from one another?
The concept of religion and the prerequisites for its appearance
The word "religion" comes from the Latin religio (piety, shrine). This is an attitude, behavior, actions based on belief in something that transcends human understanding and is supernatural, that is, sacred. The beginning and meaning of any religion is belief in God, regardless of whether he is personified or impersonal.
Several prerequisites for the emergence of religion are known. First, from time immemorial, man has been trying to go beyond the boundaries of this world. He seeks to find salvation and consolation outside of it, sincerely needs faith.
Secondly, a person wants to give an objective assessment of the world. And then, when he cannot explain the origin of earthly life only by natural laws, he makes the assumption that a supernatural force is applied to all this.
Third, a person believes that various events and incidents of a religious nature confirm the existence of God. The list of religions for people of faith already serves as a real proof of the existence of God. They explain it very simply. If God did not exist, there would be no religion.
The oldest species, forms of religion
The origin of religion took place 40 thousand years ago. It was then that the emergence of the simplest forms of religious beliefs was noted. It was possible to learn about them thanks to the discovered burials, as well as rock and cave paintings.
In accordance with this, the following types of ancient religions are distinguished:
- Totemism. A totem is a plant, animal or object that was considered sacred by a particular group of people, tribe, clan. This ancient religion was based on the belief in the supernatural power of the amulet (totem).
- Magic. This is a form of religion based on belief in the magical abilities of a person. The magician with the help of symbolic actions is able to influence the behavior of other people, natural phenomena and objects from a positive and negative side.
- Fetishism. From among any objects (a skull of an animal or a person, a stone or a piece of wood, for example), one was chosen to which supernatural properties were attributed. He was supposed to bring good luck and protect from danger.
- Animism. All natural phenomena, objects and people have a soul. She is immortal and continues to live outside the body even after his death. All modern religions are based on the belief in the existence of souls and spirits.
- Shamanism. It was believed that the head of the tribe or cleric possessed supernatural power. He entered into conversation with the spirits, listened to their advice and fulfilled the requirements. Belief in the power of the shaman is at the core of this form of religion.
List of religions
There are more than a hundred different religious trends in the world, including the most ancient forms and modern trends. They have their own time of origin and differ in the number of followers. But this large list is based on the three most numerous religions in the world: Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. Each of them has different directions.
World religions in the form of a list can be represented as follows:
1. Christianity (almost 1.5 billion people):
- Orthodoxy (Russia, Greece, Georgia, Bulgaria, Serbia);
- Catholicism (states of Western Europe, Poland Czech Republic, Lithuania and others);
- Protestantism (USA, UK, Canada, South Africa, Australia).
2. Islam (about 1.3 billion people):
- Sunnism (Africa, Central and South Asia);
- Shiism (Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan).
3.Buddhism (300 million people):
- Hinayana (Myanmar, Laos, Thailand);
- Mahayana (Tibet, Mongolia, Korea, Vietnam).
National religions
In addition, in every corner of the world there are national and traditional religions, also with their own directions. They arose or became especially widespread in certain countries. On this basis, such types of religions are distinguished:
- Hinduism (India);
- Confucianism (China);
- Taoism (China);
- Judaism (Israel);
- Sikhism (Punjab state in India);
- Shinto (Japan);
- paganism (Indian tribes, peoples of the North and Oceania).
Christianity
This religion originated in Palestine in the Eastern part of the Roman Empire in the 1st century AD. Its appearance is associated with faith in the birth of Jesus Christ. At the age of 33, he was martyred on the cross to atone for human sins, after which he was resurrected and ascended to heaven. Thus, the son of God, who embodied a supernatural and human nature, became the founder of Christianity.
The documentary basis of the doctrine is the Bible (or Holy Scripture), which consists of two independent collections of the Old and New Testaments. The writing of the first of them is closely related to Judaism, from which Christianity originates. The New Testament was written after the birth of religion.
The symbols of Christianity are the Orthodox and Catholic cross. The main provisions of faith are defined in dogmas, which are based on faith in God, who created the world and man himself. The objects of worship are God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit.
Islam
Islam, or Islam, originated among the Arab tribes of Western Arabia at the beginning of the 7th century in Mecca. The prophet Muhammad became the founder of the religion. From childhood, this man was prone to loneliness and often indulged in pious reflections. According to the teachings of Islam, at the age of 40, on Mount Khira, the heavenly messenger Jabrail (Archangel Gabriel) appeared to him, who left an inscription in his heart. Like many other world religions, Islam is based on belief in one God, but in Islam it is called Allah.
Holy Scripture - Koran. The symbols of Islam are the star and the crescent. The main provisions of the Muslim faith are contained in dogmas. They must be recognized and unquestioningly fulfilled by all believers.
The main types of religion are Sunnism and Shiism. Their appearance is associated with political differences between believers. So, Shiites to this day believe that only direct descendants of the Prophet Muhammad carry the truth, and the Sunnis think that this should be an elected member of the Muslim community.
Buddhism
Buddhism originated in the 6th century BC. Homeland - India, after which the teaching spread to the countries of Southeast, South, Central Asia and the Far East. Considering how many other most numerous types of religions exist, it can be safely argued that Buddhism is the most ancient of them.
The founder of the spiritual tradition is Buddha Gautama. This was an ordinary person, whose parents were rewarded with the vision that their son would grow up to be the Great Teachers. Buddha was also lonely and contemplative, and very quickly turned to religion.
There is no object of worship in this religion. The goal of all believers is to achieve nirvana, a blissful state of insight, to free themselves from their own shackles. Buddha for them represents a certain ideal, which should be equal.
Buddhism is based on the doctrine of four Noble Truths: about suffering, about the origin and causes of suffering, about the true cessation of suffering and the elimination of its sources, about the true path to the end of suffering. This path consists of several stages and is divided into three stages: wisdom, morality and concentration.
New religious movements
In addition to those religions that originated a very long time ago, new beliefs still continue to appear in the modern world. They are still based on faith in God.
The following types of modern religions can be noted:
- Scientology;
- neoshamanism;
- neopaganism;
- burkhanism;
- neo-Hinduism;
- Raelites;
- oomoto;
- and other trends.
This list is constantly being modified and supplemented. Certain types of religions are especially popular with show business stars. For example, Tom Cruise, Will Smith, John Travolta are seriously interested in Scientology.
This religion originated in 1950 thanks to science fiction writer L.R. Hubbard. Scientologists believe that any person is inherently good, his success and peace of mind depend on himself. According to the fundamental principles of this religion, humans are immortal beings. Their experience lasts longer than one human life, and their abilities are unlimited.
But everything is not so simple in this religion. Scientology is considered in many countries to be a sect, a pseudo-religion with a lot of capital. Despite this, the trend is very popular, especially in Hollywood.
All cheerful time of day! The concept of religions is found quite often in exams in the humanities. Therefore, I would recommend looking at these religions of the world, their list, in order to better navigate in them.
A little about the concept of "World religions". It often refers to the three main religions: Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. This understanding is not complete, to say the least. Since these religious systems have different streams. In addition, there are a number of religions that also unite many people. Before publishing the list, I also recommend that you read the article about that .
List of world religions
Abrahamic religions- these are religions that go back to one of the first religious patriarchs - Abraham.
Christianity- you can briefly about this religion. It is presented today in several directions. The key ones are Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Protestantism. Holy book Bible (mainly the New Testament). It unites today about 2.3 billion people
Islam- how religion took shape in the 7th century AD and absorbed the revelations of Allah to his prophet Muhammad. It was from him that the prophet learned that he had to pray a hundred times a day. However, Muhammad asked Allah to reduce the number of prayers, and in the end Allah allowed to pray five times a day. By the way, the ideas about heaven and hell in Islam and in Christianity are somewhat different. Paradise here is the quintessence of earthly goods. The holy book of the Koran. It unites today about 1.5 billion people.
Judaism- the religion of the predominantly Jewish people, unites 14 million adherents. Most of all I was struck by the divine service: during its time you can behave quite naturally. Holy book Bible (mostly Old Testament).
Other religions
Hinduism- unites about 900 million followers and includes faith in the eternal soul (atman) and in the universal God. This religion and others like it are also called dharmic - from the Sanskrit word "dharma" - things, the nature of things. The religious priests are here called brahmanas. The key idea is the rebirth of souls. Who cares, aside from jokes, here's a look at Vysotsky: a song about the transmigration of souls.
Buddhism- unites over 350 million adherents. It proceeds from the fact that the soul is bound by the wheel of samsara - the wheel of reincarnation, and only work on oneself can allow it to break out of this circle into nirvana - eternal bliss. There are different branches of Buddhism: Zen Buddhism, Lamaism, etc. The sacred texts are called Tripitaka.
Zoroastrianism("Good Faith") - one of the most ancient monotestical religions, incorporates faith in one god Ahura Mazda and his prophet Zarathushtra, unites about 7 million people. Religion embodies belief in good and evil thoughts. The latter are the enemies of God and must be rooted out. Light is the physical embodiment of God and is worthy of worship, therefore this religion is also called fire worship. Thus, in my opinion, this is the most honest religion, since it is thoughts that determine a person, and not his actions. If you agree with this - like it at the end of the post!
Jainism- unites 4 million adherents and proceeds from the fact that all living beings are eternally living in the spiritual world, calls for self-improvement through the education of wisdom and other virtues.
Sikhism- unites about 23 million adepts and includes an understanding of God as the Absolute and as a part of every person. Worship takes place through meditation.
Juche Is a North Korean political ideology that many refer to as a religion. It was formed on the basis of the transformation of the ideas of Marxism-Leninism and synthesis with traditional Chinese philosophy.
Confucianism- in the strict sense of the word, it is a more ethical and philosophical doctrine than religion and combines ideas about proper behavior, about ritual and about tradition, which, according to Confucius, must be represented. The main treatise is Lunyu. It consolidates about 7 million people.
Shintoism- this religion is prevalent mainly in Japan, so read about it.
Kao Dai- a fairly new religious system that appeared in 1926 and combines many of the provisions of Buddhism, Lamaism, etc. Calls for equality between the sexes, for pacifism, etc. It originated in Vietnam. In essence, religion embodies everything that has been lacking in this region of the planet for a long time.
Hope you got an idea of the religions of the world! Like, subscribe to new articles.
Many people today believe that the world's three monotheistic religions are truly divine religions. However, many of them ask: Why did God create different religions? Why did He create Judaism, Christianity and Islam by sending Moses, Jesus and Muhammad? Allah bless and greet them all.
Wouldn't it be better to give people only one religion, so that there are no inter-religious conflicts on earth, and so that people live in peace and tranquility?
Indeed, in reality, if God is one, why then did He not create one religion so that all people, together, equally worship Him?
We will try to answer this extremely important question, with the permission of the Almighty, in this article.
Belief in the existence of God and religious practices are not the main call of all prophets
Think about the purpose for which all the prophets came? In fact, many do not know the correct answer to this fundamentally important question. Many believe that the main purpose of all prophets was to encourage people to believe in the One Creator - God. Also, many believe that the main goal of the prophets was to teach people sacred commandments, such as "I do not steal", "Do not kill", or teaching their followers various rituals of worship: Jews must observe the Sabbath, Christians must be baptized, and Muslims pray 5 times a day. day.
However, it may surprise you, but this is not why all the prophets came!
Think for yourself: civilizations and peoples, to which many different prophets came, were they atheists and believed in the theory of evolution? Of course not! On the contrary, as is clearly seen from the books of history about various civilizations, almost all peoples believed that the creator of the entire universe is only One God. Remember the Jewish people, to whom the prophet Jesus came (peace and blessings be upon him), did they not believe in one Creator - God?
The same can be said about the Arab idolaters, to whom the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) came - they all believed that only One God created this entire universe. Look what the Qur'an says about the Arab idolaters: "If you ask them:" Who created the heavens and the earth and subdued the sun and the moon? " - they will certainly say: "Allah". How they are turned away from the truth! " (Holy Quran, Surah "Spider": 61)
It turns out that belief in the only creator God was not the main appeal of all prophets!
On the other hand, if the main mission of all prophets was to teach people different commandments and religious rites, why then were the commandments and ceremonies of worship of individual prophets different from each other?
To understand what was the purpose of all the prophets, as an example, you can consider the prophetic period of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), who preached for a total of 23 years (13 of them in Mecca and 10 in Medina). If today you conduct a survey of the population, including Muslims, asking them: "Why did Islam come?", Then many of the respondents will mistakenly point to the obligatory five-fold prayer, fasting in the month of Ramadan, zakat - a mandatory tax of the rich in favor of the poor. pilgrimage to Mecca, hijab - women's Muslim clothing, a ban on alcohol, pork and usury, etc.
However, did you know that in the first 10 years of Islam, Muslims were not prescribed to perform any religious rites? The obligatory five-fold prayer, fasting in the month of Ramadan, pilgrimage to Mecca and others - the first Muslims did not know all this. Moreover, did you know that the prohibition of alcohol, pork, usury, the requirement for a woman to wear a hijab - all this became part of Islam only in the last years of the prophecy of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)? In simpler terms: all those attributes of Islam that are today, in the eyes of many, an integral part of a Muslim, actually became the attributes of a Muslim only in the last years of the prophecy of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
Then a natural question arises: what then did the prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be) calling for all this time? What did he call for that, which was more important than a fivefold prayer and a ban on alcohol and pork? Think, Muslims during this period did not perform five times daily prayer and drank alcohol, but Islam did not forbid them to do so!
Without a doubt, what the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) called for during this period must have been something extremely important. Indeed, it was during this period that Islam quickly spread among the local population of Mecca. Having accepted the call of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and believing in "this", the new Muslims began to be persecuted and tortured by the Meccan idolaters. As a result of this torture and persecution, many Muslims were killed or maimed. The cruelty and inhumanity of the Meccan idolaters ultimately forced many Muslims to flee to Ethiopia and Medina, leaving behind all their property and wealth, while saving their religion and their lives.
What did the Prophet Muhammad call for (peace and blessings be upon him) and for what the first Muslims were ready to endure any suffering and trials? On the other hand, why did the call to "this" evoke such enmity and hatred on the part of the Meccan idolaters?
The Purpose of All Prophets is True Monotheism
It may seem that we are contradicting ourselves: at the beginning we say that many nations, to which the prophets came, believed in one and only Creator and that the call to this is not the main goal of all prophets. Now, we say that the main goal of all prophets was the call to monotheism. Isn't this a contradiction ?!
In fact, the whole problem lies in understanding the term "monotheism". Therefore, we have emphasized in the title of the chapter, pointing precisely to "true monotheism".
The fact is that many people today understand the words "monotheism" or "monotheism" as "the belief that everything that exists has only one Creator." However, we have already seen in the previous chapter that many prophets came to nations who believed in the One Creator.
What is true monotheism? True monotheism is complete independence from everything worldly and complete dedication of your life to God alone, without betraying anyone or anything in companions to him. This was the basis of the call of all the prophets. As Allah Almighty said: “We have not sent a single messenger before you who was not inspired:“ There is no deity but Me. Worship only Me! ”(Holy Quran Surah“ Prophets ”: 25). In other words, “submit and devote your whole life, faith and worship to the One Supreme Creator-God, without dedicating them to anyone or anything else, and do not entrust them to all false deities, ie "Holy saints", idols, idols, fashion, dollars, power, vanity or superstition, horoscopes, etc. "
Pay attention to the above verse from the Qur'an. It clearly indicates that all the prophets had the same mission throughout all eras, from the prophets Adam, Nuh (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham) and ending with Musa (Moses), Isa (Jesus) and Muhammad - peace to them all and blessings of the Almighty. All these messengers came to this world from the One and the same Creator God and with a single "message" for all mankind: "Worship only one God and avoid worshiping anyone or anything other than Him."
This was what the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) urged people to do before religious rites and commandments appeared in Islam. And this is exactly what all God's messengers, without exception, called for, starting with the first Prophet Adam, and ending with the last Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon them all. After all, isn't true Monotheism and obedience to God the essence of the religion of all prophets: Moses, Jesus, Muhammad and others (peace and blessings of Allah be upon them)?
Why did God prescribe distinctive worship practices for each prophet?
The Supreme Lord sent His messengers for only one purpose - so that all mankind would be freed from the slavery of everything worldly and completely submit to God alone, not equating anyone and nothing with Him as companions.
However, at the same time, the Supreme Lord prescribed certain distinctive rites of worship to his messengers, allowing something to one messenger and forbidding it to another. Thus, every messenger of God either came with a new scripture (code of laws), or confirmed and adhered to the old scripture, calling his people to it. Among the prophets who came with new scriptures are Musa (Moses), to whom the Torah was sent down, Isa (Jesus) - the Gospel, Davud (David) - the Scrolls of David, Muhammad - the Koran, and others. At the same time, the scripture or code of laws of each newly sent messenger canceled the previous scripture and obliged the believers to follow the new scripture. For example, the scrolls of David replaced the Torah, the Gospel replaced all the scriptures of the prophets before Jesus (peace and blessings be upon him), and the Koran, God's last revelation, replaced the Gospel. In legal terms: God's law is not retroactive. Anyone who catches a new messenger from God, who showed clear signs and wonders according to God's will, should follow this prophet.
However, the following questions arise: Why did God act in this way? Was it not possible for all prophets to prescribe the same religious rites and commandments? Why was it not possible to prescribe to all prophets one universal scripture for all ages?
There are three main reasons why the Omniscient Lord, throughout the history of mankind, sent his messengers with updated scriptures.
First, the Omniscient Lord, sending his new messengers, thus tests the believers: can they, for the sake of the Most High God, leave the old code of laws and follow the new prophet? After all, if they do this, then they will lose their respect in the eyes of many of their relatives and friends, and may even endanger their lives.
The Supreme Lord says in this regard in the Qur'an: “For each of you, We have established a certain law and path. If Allah had willed, He would have made you one community, but He divided you in order to test you with what He gave you "(Holy Quran Surah" Meal ": 48)
Thus, believers will need to prove whether they are following God's will by following a new prophet, or whether they are following their passions. After all, every next messenger of God confirms previous prophecies and shows clear signs and wonders to prove his prophecy.
Remember the prophet Isa (Jesus) peace and blessings be upon him, who came to the followers of Moses - the Jews. By the will of the Lord, Jesus, peace and blessings be upon him, showed unique miracles and signs to prove his prophecy: he revived dead people, gave sight to blind people, created living birds from clay, etc. This is how the call of Jesus, peace and blessings be upon him, is described in the Qur'an: “The Messiah (Jesus) said:“ O sons of Israel (Israel)! Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord. " Indeed, whoever associates partners with Allah, He has forbidden Paradise. Gehenna will be his refuge, and the wicked will have no helpers "(Holy Quran Surah" Meal ": 72)
However, did all the Jews follow him? Not at all! Out of their arrogance, and out of fear of persecution from the authorities of the Roman Empire, many Jews refused to follow Jesus (peace and blessings be upon him), and even tried to kill him! Refusing to acknowledge the prophecy of Jesus, they called him a liar and a sorcerer, and his miraculous birth without a father was the result of the extramarital relationship of his mother, the most pure Mary! May Allah be pleased with her, and may Allah reward him according to his merits to everyone who deliberately leads a lie to His religion!
Secondly, each people or civilization, to which new messengers of God came, existed in certain historical periods, and had their own geographical and climatic conditions. You should know that there was no such people to whom the Most High Lord would not send his prophet and who would not call his people to worship the One Creator, without betraying Him anyone and nothing in companions. Allah Almighty says: "We sent a messenger to each community:" Worship Allah and avoid tagut "(Holy Quran surah" Bees ": 36)
Also Allah Almighty says: "And there is not a single people to which a warning exhortor does not come" (Holy Quran Surah "Creator": 24)
And since many of God's messengers, due to the geographical isolation of many civilizations, came exclusively to certain nations, the Omniscient Lord chose the most appropriate laws and rituals of worship for such people. Thus, the Omniscient Lord could allow one people what he forbade another. So, for example, God allowed the sons of Adam to marry their sisters, since at that time there were no other women on earth, and humanity was supposed to multiply. When humanity multiplied, the All-Knowing God forbade marriage between brothers and sisters.
Thirdly, all of humanity cannot at once, at one moment, completely change and turn into an ideal society. In order for humanity to adapt to the new social order and legal order, it needs time and consistency. Those. years, and sometimes even centuries must pass. Even studying world history, we see that throughout the history of their existence, various civilizations have gradually passed from one social system to another. The slave system, feudal, capitalist, etc. Not a single society jumped over and did not go over from the slave system immediately to the capitalist one, bypassing the feudal system. And if it took humanity more than two thousand years to relatively improve and modernize the social order created by man, then what about the divine legal order? Undoubtedly, humanity needs an even greater period of time to gradually adapt and reach the stage when it can understand, realize and put into practice the last divine rule of law.
For this reason, in order to send down his last law, suitable for all peoples and for all times, the rule of law with the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), the All-Knowing Lord prepared all mankind for this for a long time. Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), in one of the hadiths, described this great divine plan and his connection with other prophets: “My example and the example of all the prophets who came before me are like a man who built a strong and beautiful building, without completing only one brick. After that, people, walking around this building, began to wonder at its beauty and ask: "Why was this last brick not completed?" I am this last brick, and I am the last of all prophets. " (Bukhari)
Therefore, we all need to realize the important fact that the religion of all God's prophets is one - this is obedience to one only God, not giving Him any companions. And the fact that God prescribed different rites of worship for each prophet does not mean at all that different prophets professed different religions. In this regard, the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) perfectly described the mission and essence of all prophecies, saying: “All Prophets are brothers. They have one religion - they are from the same father and different mothers ”(Muslim).
One father - i.e. they all call for the worship of one God, without associating Him with companions. Different mothers - i.e. for each of them, distinctive rites of worship were established.
May Allah Almighty guide all those who seek the pleasure of the Almighty Lord on the straight path. Amen.
