Who is Allah? Understanding God in Islam - The ...

Allah, the divinity at the heart of Islam, has 99 names and is often poorly understood outside the faith. Islam recognises no god but Allah, ... Menu Close Home Edition Africa Australia Canada Canada(français) España France Global Indonesia NewZealand UnitedKingdom UnitedStates Edition: Availableeditions Global Getnewsletter Becomeanauthor Signupasareader Signin ChristophervanderKrogt,MasseyUniversity Author ChristophervanderKrogt LecturerinReligiousStudies,MasseyUniversity Disclosurestatement ChristophervanderKrogtdoesnotworkfor,consult,ownsharesinorreceivefundingfromanycompanyororganisationthatwouldbenefitfromthisarticle,andhasdisclosednorelevantaffiliationsbeyondtheiracademicappointment. Partners MasseyUniversityprovidesfundingasamemberofTheConversationNZ.MasseyUniversityprovidesfundingasamemberofTheConversationAU. Viewallpartners ThemaindomeoftheBlueMosqueinIstanbul. ninara/Flickr Email Twitter Facebook LinkedIn WhatsApp Messenger AccordingtotheIslamicstatementofwitness,orshahada,“ThereisnogodbutAllah”.MuslimsbelievehecreatedtheworldinsixdaysandsentprophetssuchasNoah,Abraham,Moses,David,Jesus,andlastlyMuhammad,whocalledpeopletoworshiponlyhim,rejectingidolatryandpolytheism. Thewordislam,whichmeanssubmission,wasnotatfirstthenameofareligionfoundedbyMuhammad.Itreferred,rather,totheoriginalreligionofallmankind–andevenoftheuniverseitselfwhich,likeus,wascreatedtoserveAllah. EarlierprophetsandtheirfollowerswereallMuslims(submitterstoAllah),thoughMuslimsdotendtoconflatethegeneralandspecificmeaningsofthewordsIslamandMuslim. SomeprophetsreceivedscripturesfromAllah,notablytheTorahofMoses,thePsalmsofDavid,andtheGospelofJesus.Theirmessagesandbooks,however,becamecorruptedorwerelost. Miraculously,theQur’an(“recitation”)revealedtoMuhammad–theverywordofAllah–willnotsufferthisfate,sothereisnoneedforfurtherprophetsorrevelations. ThenamesandcharacterofAllah TheQur’anreferstoAllahastheLordoftheWorlds.UnlikethebiblicalYahweh(sometimesmisreadasJehovah),hehasnopersonalname,andhistraditional99namesarereallyepithets. TheseincludetheCreator,theKing,theAlmighty,andtheAll-Seer.TwoimportanttitlesofAllahoccurinaphrasethattypicallyprefacestexts:Bismillah,al-Rahman,al-Rahim(InthenameofAllah,theCompassionate,theMerciful). AllahisalsotheMasteroftheDayofJudgment,whenthegood,especiallybelievers,willbesenttotheirheavenlyreward,andthewicked,especiallyunbelievers,willbedispatchedtohellfire.MuslimsclaimtorejectanthropomorphicdescriptionsofAllah,yettheQur’andescribeshimasspeaking,sittingonathrone,andhavingaface,eyesandhands. NothingcaneverhappenunlessitiscausedoratleastpermittedbyAllah,sowhenmakingplansofanykind,Muslimstypicallysayinsha‘allah(Godwilling). Ifmattersgowell,onesaysmasha‘allah(WhateverAllahwills),butinanyeventonecansayal-hamduli-llah(ThanksbetoAllah).Intheirprayersandonotheroccasions(includingbattlesandstreetprotests),MuslimsdeclarethatAllahisthegreaterthananythingelse(Allahuakbar). AllahandthegodoftheBible Allahisusuallythoughttomean“thegod”(al-ilah)inArabicandisprobablycognatewithratherthanderivedfromtheAramaicAlaha.AllMuslimsandmostChristiansacknowledgethattheybelieveinthesamegodeventhoughtheirunderstandingsdiffer. Arabic-speakingChristianscallGodAllah,andGideonbibles,quotingJohn3:16indifferentlanguages,assertthatAllahsenthissonintotheworld. AddressingChristiansandJews,theQur’andeclares,“Ourgodandyourgodareone”(29:46).ThenamesAllahandal-Rahmanwereevidentlyusedbypre-IslamicJewsandChristiansforGod,andtheQur’an(5:17-18)evencriticisesChristiansforidentifyingAllahwithChristandbothJewsandChristiansforcallingthemselveschildrenofAllah. Allahisnotatrinityofthreepersonsandhasnosonwhowasincarnate(madeflesh)asaman.SomeChristiansthereforedenythatAllahisthegodtheyacknowledge.Yet,theyseemsurethatJewsworshipthesamegoddespitesimilarlyrejectingthetrinityandtheincarnation. ClaimingthattheQur’an’sgodandtheBible’sgodaredifferentbeingsisratherlikearguingthattheNewTestament’sJesusandtheQur’an’sJesus(whoisnotdivineandwasnotcrucified)aredifferenthistoricindividuals.SomewillreplythatwhiletherearecompetinginterpretationsoftheoneJesus,GodandAllahhavedifferentorigins. Polytheisticorigins Indeed,AllahwasrecognisedmostlybypolytheistsbeforetherevelationoftheQur’an.Muhammad’sownfather,whodiedbeforetheProphetwasborn,wascalledAbdullah(ServantofGod). ButtheargumentthatAllahcannotbeGodbecausehewasoriginallypartofapolytheisticreligioussystemignorestheoriginsofJewishmonotheism(anditsChristianandIslamicderivatives). BiblicalwritersidentifiedtheCanaanitehighgodElwiththeirowngodeventhoughheoriginallypresidedoveralargepantheon.ThecloselyrelatedpluralformelohimisusedmoreoftenintheBible,butbothderivefromthesameSemiticrootasAllah. Elandelohim,theNewTestamenttheos(hencetheology),theLatindeus(hencedeism),andthepre-Christian,GermanicgodcanallreferbothtotheJudeo-Christiangodandothersupernaturalbeings. SoJewish,Christian,andIslamicunderstandingsofthedivinityoriginatedinpolytheisticcontexts.JustliketraditionalJewsandChristians,however,Muslimsbelievethatthereligionofthefirsthumans,AdamandEve,wasmonotheistic.Becauseitwascorruptedintopolytheism,Allahsentprophetswhoalltaughtthatthereisonlyonegod. IslamtookoverfromJudaismthenotionthatAbrahaminparticularwastheonewho(re)discoveredmonotheismandrejectedidolatry.ThusMuhammadsoughttorestoretheauthenticmonotheismofAbraham,fromwhichevenJewsandChristianshadallegedlydeviated. Godsashumanconstructions Ifhelivedatall,whichisdoubtful,AbrahampresumablyflourishedearlyinthesecondmillenniumBCE.Criticalhistoriansandarchaeologists,however,arguethatIsraelitemonotheismonlydevelopedaboutthetimeoftheBabylonianExile–welloverathousandyearslater. ThereasonwhytherearedifferentconceptionsofGodandofgodsissurelynotthathumanshaveculpablystrayedfromanoriginalrevelation.Rather,thesebeliefsarehumanconstructionsandreconstructionsthatreflectourownrationalisations,hopes,fearsandaspirations. ThelatterincludeattemptsbyparticulargroupsofpeopletodefendtheiridentityorevenasserttheirhegemonyoverothersonthegroundsthattheyhavebeenuniquelyfavouredbyGodwithauthenticrevelation. ThatseemstobewhysomeChristiansdenythatAllahisjustanothernameforGod.ItalsoexplainsMalaysianMuslimeffortstopreventChristiansfromreferringtoGodasAllahforfearthatlegitimisingtheChristianunderstandingofAllahwillthreatenIslamicdominanceintheircountry. ThisarticleispartofTheConversation’sReligion+Mythologyseries. 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