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Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 5:03 pm
(This post was last modified: April 27, 2013 at 5:04 pm by Dawud.)
Allah and God- same thing or different.
In Arab countries its not the case: Christians. Mislims, Atheists, Jews etc. use the Arabic word for God: "Allah" (literally the God). Hence why the Arabic bibles use the word God in Arabic "Allah" and some use the Quranic phrase "Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim": In the name if God The Most Gracious The Most Mercuful.
Allah was used by Christians since well before Muhammad was born too...
In this language some people try to do two things:
1. Say that because Muslims have differing opinions on The Creator that it is "a different God". Differing opinions on the attributes of God are held by Muslims and Christians sometimes (though the vast majority are the same). Does saying God has a son and God doesn't have a son really mean you are talking about two different things?
No - these are two opinions are on the same thing: the creator of the universe... If we both see a man with a jacket on and you say it is blue and I say it is purple: we are talking about the same jacket. Also loads of Christians differ about God: Catholics saying that God becomes flesh and blood in each and every bread and wine sacrament - Protestants mostly deny this. They are not now praying to 2 different 'gods' if they differ.
Some Christians might say: "But to believe in God you have to believe he has a son who he killed to forgive sins.." and give this as an essential attribute: well first of all- the same argument stands as Christians believe that there is one thing that is God. Second of all, Jews have never believed this and Christians wouldn't really say that Jews have some different God (well some did but surely Christians believe there is one God?). Jews pray to God - The creator etc...
Some might say - well it's the God that the prophets of the bible referred to: likewise Muslims call in the God of Abraham etc.
Jews generally do not have this exclusivist claim to God and really there is no serious difference between Jewish and Muslim co cents of God (hence the cooperation between Muslim and Jewish theologians throughout history).
Christians and Muslims have also lived side by side for centuries understanding that just because people have different ideas about the God of Abraham and Jesus etc. it doesn't mean that there are different gods... only one.
It's a non-starter in Arabic cos people don't have this polythesit idea that there are loads if gods out there (sun gods, moon gods etc.) when a Muslim calls on God: I say that its God they call on too - no matter the name.
Sorry about phone autocorrect typing...
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RE: Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 6:30 pm
(April 27, 2013 at 5:03 pm)Dawud Wrote: Sorry about phone autocorrect typing...
Your phone came up with "Mislims"? 
"Well, evolution is a theory. It is also a fact. And facts and theories are different things, not rungs in a hierarchy of increasing certainty. Facts are the world's data. Theories are structures of ideas that explain and interpret facts. Facts don't go away when scientists debate rival theories to explain them. Einstein's theory of gravitation replaced Newton's in this century, but apples didn't suspend themselves in midair, pending the outcome. And humans evolved from ape- like ancestors whether they did so by Darwin's proposed mechanism or by some other yet to be discovered."
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RE: Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 6:38 pm
Probably not.. 
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RE: Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 6:52 pm
The "same God" is not a concept I should not care too much about. I've described those "transcendentals" before, and I'll stick to it. The Christian, the Muslim, and the Native American have equal ability and opportunity in respect to salvation. Knowledge does not grant salvation. Ever.
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
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RE: Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 6:52 pm
The God of Abraham has many names; Elohim, El, Eloah, Allah, Yahweh, YHWH, God, Adonai, etc.
I don't get the hang-up with the name. The gods portrayed in the Old Testament, New Testament and Quran may all be considered the God of Abraham; however, are clearly different characters by deed and constitution.
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RE: Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 10:19 pm
(April 27, 2013 at 5:03 pm)Dawud Wrote: Allah and God- same thing or different.
You might find this page interesting:
http://www.answering-islam.org/Shamoun/god.htm
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RE: Dear Christians
April 27, 2013 at 10:46 pm
(April 27, 2013 at 6:52 pm)cato123 Wrote: The God of Abraham has many names; Elohim, El, Eloah, Allah, Yahweh, YHWH, God, Adonai, etc.
I don't get the hang-up with the name. The gods portrayed in the Old Testament, New Testament and Quran may all be considered the God of Abraham; however, are clearly different characters by deed and constitution.
Well, they do have different story tellers!
Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan
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RE: Dear Christians
April 28, 2013 at 12:07 am
(April 27, 2013 at 5:03 pm)Dawud Wrote: Allah and God- same thing or different.
Our gods are certainly the same in all ways that matter.
We both serve a god that suffers from crippling insecurity and needs worthless sinners like us to constantly fawn all over Him with sycophantic adoration, telling him how great He is all the time and singing his praises. If we properly prop up his fragile ego all our lives, He'll reward us with an eternity of kissing His holy ass. This doesn't sound like much but it beats the alternative.
We both serve a god that is all loving, all merciful and and omni-benevolent. And if we don't love Him back, He does what any loving father would do. He tosses us into an inferno where we are burned alive for all eternity. As the good Christian Drich has noted, what else is He supposed to do with us? Glory!
We even serve the same god that only talks to people when they're all alone. He waited until Moses was up on a mountain top all by himself before giving him the 10 commandments. So too, he only spoke to that Muhammad fella when he was by himself in a cave. Funny that.
Where we disagree is on what Jesus was. I could believe the church established by the people who knew him or go with your boy who lived several centuries later in another country who could only have heard about Jesus from our church and insists that they got it all wrong and he knew better than the people he heard the story from.
So why should I believe Muhammad got it right, that he knew Jesus better than the only people who he could have heard about Jesus from?
"You don't need facts when you got Jesus." -Pastor Deacon Fred, Landover Baptist Church
™: True Christian is a Trademark of the Landover Baptist Church. I have no affiliation with this fine group of True Christians ™ because I can't afford their tithing requirements but would like to be. Maybe someday the Lord will bless me with enough riches that I am able to.
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RE: Dear Christians
April 28, 2013 at 12:40 am
(April 27, 2013 at 5:03 pm)Dawud Wrote: Allah and God- same thing or different.
In Arab countries its not the case: Christians. Mislims, Atheists, Jews etc. use the Arabic word for God: "Allah" (literally the God). Hence why the Arabic bibles use the word God in Arabic "Allah" and some use the Quranic phrase "Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim": In the name if God The Most Gracious The Most Mercuful.
Allah was used by Christians since well before Muhammad was born too...
In this language some people try to do two things:
1. Say that because Muslims have differing opinions on The Creator that it is "a different God". Differing opinions on the attributes of God are held by Muslims and Christians sometimes (though the vast majority are the same). Does saying God has a son and God doesn't have a son really mean you are talking about two different things?
No - these are two opinions are on the same thing: the creator of the universe... If we both see a man with a jacket on and you say it is blue and I say it is purple: we are talking about the same jacket. Also loads of Christians differ about God: Catholics saying that God becomes flesh and blood in each and every bread and wine sacrament - Protestants mostly deny this. They are not now praying to 2 different 'gods' if they differ.
Some Christians might say: "But to believe in God you have to believe he has a son who he killed to forgive sins.." and give this as an essential attribute: well first of all- the same argument stands as Christians believe that there is one thing that is God. Second of all, Jews have never believed this and Christians wouldn't really say that Jews have some different God (well some did but surely Christians believe there is one God?). Jews pray to God - The creator etc...
Some might say - well it's the God that the prophets of the bible referred to: likewise Muslims call in the God of Abraham etc.
Jews generally do not have this exclusivist claim to God and really there is no serious difference between Jewish and Muslim co cents of God (hence the cooperation between Muslim and Jewish theologians throughout history).
Christians and Muslims have also lived side by side for centuries understanding that just because people have different ideas about the God of Abraham and Jesus etc. it doesn't mean that there are different gods... only one.
It's a non-starter in Arabic cos people don't have this polythesit idea that there are loads if gods out there (sun gods, moon gods etc.) when a Muslim calls on God: I say that its God they call on too - no matter the name.
Sorry about phone autocorrect typing...
meh...
Same God different God what does it matter? Do you really think religious branding has anything to do with being found righteous before God? Isn't That Judgement upto God/Jesus Himself?
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RE: Dear Christians
April 28, 2013 at 12:43 am
(April 28, 2013 at 12:40 am)Drich Wrote: (April 27, 2013 at 5:03 pm)Dawud Wrote: Allah and God- same thing or different.
In Arab countries its not the case: Christians. Mislims, Atheists, Jews etc. use the Arabic word for God: "Allah" (literally the God). Hence why the Arabic bibles use the word God in Arabic "Allah" and some use the Quranic phrase "Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim": In the name if God The Most Gracious The Most Mercuful.
Allah was used by Christians since well before Muhammad was born too...
In this language some people try to do two things:
1. Say that because Muslims have differing opinions on The Creator that it is "a different God". Differing opinions on the attributes of God are held by Muslims and Christians sometimes (though the vast majority are the same). Does saying God has a son and God doesn't have a son really mean you are talking about two different things?
No - these are two opinions are on the same thing: the creator of the universe... If we both see a man with a jacket on and you say it is blue and I say it is purple: we are talking about the same jacket. Also loads of Christians differ about God: Catholics saying that God becomes flesh and blood in each and every bread and wine sacrament - Protestants mostly deny this. They are not now praying to 2 different 'gods' if they differ.
Some Christians might say: "But to believe in God you have to believe he has a son who he killed to forgive sins.." and give this as an essential attribute: well first of all- the same argument stands as Christians believe that there is one thing that is God. Second of all, Jews have never believed this and Christians wouldn't really say that Jews have some different God (well some did but surely Christians believe there is one God?). Jews pray to God - The creator etc...
Some might say - well it's the God that the prophets of the bible referred to: likewise Muslims call in the God of Abraham etc.
Jews generally do not have this exclusivist claim to God and really there is no serious difference between Jewish and Muslim co cents of God (hence the cooperation between Muslim and Jewish theologians throughout history).
Christians and Muslims have also lived side by side for centuries understanding that just because people have different ideas about the God of Abraham and Jesus etc. it doesn't mean that there are different gods... only one.
It's a non-starter in Arabic cos people don't have this polythesit idea that there are loads if gods out there (sun gods, moon gods etc.) when a Muslim calls on God: I say that its God they call on too - no matter the name.
Sorry about phone autocorrect typing...
meh...
Same God different God what does it matter? Do you really think religious branding has anything to do with being found righteous before God? Isn't That Judgement upto God/Jesus Himself?
The problem is many wars and atrocities have been started/committed over who is correct follower.
Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere. - Carl Sagan
Professional Watcher of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report!
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