LESSON 40
ANSWERS TO ARGUMENTS AGAINST CHRISTIANITY, II4. It is unjust to punish mankind for Adam's sin, or for one man, Jesus, to atone for the sins of mankind; as the Qur'ân says, 'No one bears another's burden' (35:18). In fact, Jesus didn't save the world, because evil continues.
—This objection supposes the substitution of the innocent for the good, which would be a violation of justice. Like St. Augustine's opponent Pelagius, who said that "Adam's sin never hurt us, and Jesus' suffering never helped us," it fails to take into account the solidarity of mankind. Adam had a special privilege of grace and immortality which he lost by his sin and deprived his descendants from inheriting. His descendants were not really being punished, because they had no right to this privilege. It was something God chose to restore in his own way and in his own time, through the new Adam, Jesus. By taking a human nature, he became the brother of every human person (cf. Heb 2), and with his own blood entered the heavenly sanctuary, having won an eternal redemption (cf. Heb 9). The effectiveness of this redemption depends on our freely accepting it and being faithful to the end (cf. Heb 10:19-39). There will be moral evil in the world until the end of time, because God does not force his grace on anyone.5. Jesus was a prophet only to the Jews, not the whole world. Muslims quote Mt 15:24 (cf. 10:5-6) to support this view, and contrast it with the universality of Muhammad's mission; see Q 12:104, 38:87, 68:52, 81:37 (the Qur'ân a "reminder for mankind"), 21:107 (Muhammad a "mercy to mankind"), 25:1 ("a warner of mankind"), 34:28 ("a preacher and warner to all men").
—To reply we must first point to Qur'ân 21:91: "We breathed into Mary from our spirit and made her and her son a sign for the world". Secondly, we must understand that Jesus' mission proceeded by stages. He started by preaching to his own people; then he sent his apostles to preach in his name to the whole world (Mt 28:19; Lk 24:37 etc.), while he remains "the Saviour of the world" (Jn 4:42) and "the light of the world" (Jn 8:12).6. Christianity is one-sidedly spiritual, and is an inadequate guide for society.
—We have seen in Lesson 37 the objection to "turning the other cheek". The same lesson touches on the objection that Christianity, with its distinction of Church and state, has no guidance for political and economic life. The Church recognizes the autonomy of these spheres; at the same time the Gospel principles of love and justice, though general, influence the whole and every detail of life. Besides, over the past one hundred years, from Leo XIII to John Paul II, the Church has issued many documents on social justice addressing the major problems of our age. Christians are urged to take full part in setting the direction of political and economic life; only clergy are forbidden to take part in party politics so as to respect people's right to a legitimate diversity of opinion in practical decisions and their choice of leaders.7. Christianity promotes renouncing of family and wealth, which is unnatural; at the same time it allows alcohol and interest on loans.
—Jesus did not preach a "gospel of prosperity". Likewise, although the Qur'ân promises a Paradise of sensual delights (see Lesson 35), it also warns: "Worldly life is like the rain we send from heaven; the grass soaks it up, but later dries out and is blown away by the wind... Wealth and children are the glitter of this life, but good deeds are lasting and guarantee a better reward with your Lord and better hope" (Q 18:44-5).
—At Cana Jesus blessed both marriage and wine (Jn 2:1-12). He admitted that a rich man can be saved, but warned of the danger of wealth (Mt 19:23-26 etc.) and invited some of his disciples to leave all and follow him (Mt 19:11-12,27; 10:37 etc.). Christian renunciation never implies that material things are evil; it makes sense only when understood as a sacrifice for the sake of a better good, the kingdom of God, which means greater freedom for prayer and for service.
—As for interest on loans, we may think of its implied acceptance in the parable of the talents (Mt 25:14-30 etc.), but it was rejected by Thomas Aquinas as "usury". Contemporary Catholic moral teaching accepts moderate interest on the principle that the loan is used for production, and the lender should have his share of the profit.8. Christianity is divided and 'will remain so until the end of time' (Q 5:14).
—Jesus preached "one flock and one shepherd" (Jn 10:16) and that "all may be one just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you, so that the world may believe..." "By your love for one another everyone will recognise you as my disciples" (Jn 13:35). Nevertheless, very few Christians are disturbed by the multiplication of Christian sects; some even see it as a blessing. This is because they do not meditate closely on the Gospel, or because of the notion that the Church is nothing and the faith of every individual in Jesus is all that counts, or because of unlearned, incompetent and worldly leaders. Sometimes Christians come together only because of the threat of Islam, yet it is Islam that calls attention to Christians that their disunity is a real scandal. Christians need to realize that if the Word became flesh, the visible unity of the body of Christ, which is the Church, is important and worth every effort to strive for.QUESTIONS
- Discuss how Jesus can take away the sins of the world.
- Compare the universality of Jesus' mission with that of Muhammad.
- Discuss how the Church's relationship to society differs from that of Islam.
- Compare Christian and Muslim attitudes to the goods of this world.
«—Back West Africa and Islam Lesson 41—»