Why does it say we are closer to the Christians than the Jews?

[loveislam1]

Asalam Alikoum
I read somewhere that we are closer in belief to the Christians than the Jews is this true? And if so can you give me some explination with daleel? In a practical sense as far as rituals the Jews seem more comparable, they do the mikvah they dont eat pork. etc.? is it because the Jews deny both Maryam and Isa ali salat wa salam?

 

[apocalypse77]

islam may be similar to christianity in terms fo the fact both religions are universal and accept jesus and beleive in hell and heaven unlike judaism BUT STILL..I still think islam is closer to judaism in the sense its the same MONOTHIESTIC TEACHINGS and we worship the same God as the Jews.I cant say the same with christians as theyve blasphemise Allah by saying Jesus is Allah in human form

 

[Happy 2BA Muslim]

Are the Christians who exist nowadays the closest to us in love and friendship?​

Question:
In His Book, Allaah says of the Christians (interpretation of the meaning):
“Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and those who are Al-Mushrikoon, and you will find the nearest in love to the believers (Muslims) those who say: ‘We are Christians’”
[al-Maa’idah 5:82]
It is well known that at present they are extremely hostile towards Islam. So what should our attitude be towards them? Is it permissible to curse them as we are allowed to curse the Jews? This issue is confusing me a great deal.

Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.

The praise mentioned in these verses should not cause any confusion regarding the Christians or make us refrain from cursing them. The description in the verse does not include all Christians, rather it refers to a group among them who responded to the truth and were not too arrogant to follow it. This is what is implied by the context of the verses asked about:

“Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and those who are Al-Mushrikoon, and you will find the nearest in love to the believers (Muslims) those who say: “We are Christians.” That is because amongst them are priests and monks, and they are not proud.

And when they (who call themselves Christians) listen to what has been sent down to the Messenger (Muhammad), you see their eyes overflowing with tears because of the truth they have recognized. They say: “Our Lord! We believe; so write us down among the witnesses”

[al-Maa’idah 5:82-83 – interpretation of the meaning]

These verses are speaking of some Christian people who, when they came to know the truth, became Muslim and declared their faith.

The great scholar Ibn al-Qayyim said concerning these verses:

What is meant is that the people described here, when they realized that he was the Messenger of Allaah according to the description that they had, they could not stop their eyes from weeping or their hearts from hastening to believe.

With regard to cursing those among the Christians who do not believe in Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), there is innumerable definitive evidence which points to that, such as the hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari and Muslim in their Saheehs from ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her), which says that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, during his final illness:

“May Allaah curse the Jews and Christians, for they took the graves of their Prophets as places of worship.” How can they not be cursed when Allaah has described them in His Book as follows?

“Surely, they have disbelieved who say: ‘Allaah is the Messiah [‘Eesa (Jesus)], son of Maryam (Mary).’”

[al-Maa'idah 5:72]

“Surely, disbelievers are those who said: ‘Allaah is the third of the three (in a Trinity).’”

[al-Maa'idah 5:73]

And there are other texts which speak of their kufr (disbelief) and misguidance.

Among the verses which speak of their ultimate destiny is the last of the verses in the passage referred to by the questioner, where Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“But those who disbelieved and belied Our Ayaat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.), they shall be the dwellers of the (Hell) Fire”

[al-Maa'idah 5:86]

From a fatwa of Shaykh Ibn Ibraaheem. Majallat al-Buhooth al-Islamiyyah, 58/36-39.

Islam Q&A

 

[Mohsin]

Assalamu-alaikum

:salam2:

Sister i would not give any scholarly view but rather my own view which i have gained through some self study. Allah SWT forgive me if i am wrong in my approach. The time i saw your question i was reading about a sect among the early christians named Ebionites and about another sect called Nazarene

Matthew 2:23 says that Jesus was called the Nazarene because he grew up in Nazareth. Hence, the followers of Jesus of Nazareth would likewise be called Nazarenes.]

The place-name Nazara (which later became Nazareth), as in the Greek form Iesous Nazarenos. This is the traditional interpretation within mainstream Christianity, and it still seems the obvious interpretation to many modern Christians. Matthew 2:23 reads that "and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets: "He will be called a Nazarene"" (NIV) (Greek is Ναζωραῖος/Nazoraios).

Source:wikipedia
( sounds quite similar to NASARA and NASRANI i.e the word used for the followers of Jesus PBUH in Quran and Hadith. Quran does not use the word Messiahians or Christians but it calls them as NASARA ) and some hold the view that Ebionites are same as Nazarenes.

Since there is no authenticated archaeological evidence for the existence of the Ebionites, their nature and history cannot be definitely reconstructed from surviving references. The little that is known about them comes from critical references by early and influential theologians and writers in the Christian Church, who considered them to be "heretics" and "Judaizers".[5]

Interesting thing is that these two/one Jewish Christian sect is really near to Muslims view of Jesus, as it accepted Jesus PBUH as the Messiah and it held the view that Jesus was not devine neither he ever denounced the Law of Moses ( Torah ) as the Quran tells us the same and i can quote some verses from the Gospel of Matthew as well to support the view that Jesus himself told his followers to observe the law of Moses,

1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.

23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

Matthew 23

And there can still be found many more such statements in the Gospels.

Anyways this is not my point here. So lets come back to the topic of that sect Ebionites or/and Nazarenes. Here, I quote some of the things you can find on wikipedia about them.

The majority of Church Fathers are in agreement in claiming that the Ebionites rejected many of the central Christian views of Jesus such as the pre-existence, divinity, virgin birth, atoning death, and physical resurrection of Jesus.[5] The Ebionites are described as emphasizing the oneness of God and the humanity of Jesus

The Catholic Encyclopedia says that some of them beleived in Virgin Birth of Jesus as well

Jerome apparently had some confusion as to the differences between Nazarenes and Ebionites, a different Jewish sect, and that the Nazarenes probably never positioned themselves as being Christians. His criticism of the Nazarenes is noticeably more direct and critical than that of Epiphanius.

The Roman Emperor Constantine at the Council of Nicea (325 C.E.), declared a formal and complete break from all Jewish practices and interaction with Jews or Judaism.

The following creed is that of a church at Constantinople at the same period:

"I renounce all customs, rites, legalisms, unleavened breads & sacrifices of lambs of the Hebrews, and all other feasts of the Hebrews, sacrifices, prayers, aspersions, purifications, sanctifications and propitiations and fasts, and new moons, and Sabbaths, and superstitions, and hymns and chants and observances and Synagogues, and the food and drink of the Hebrews; in one word, I renounce everything Jewish, every law, rite and custom and if afterwards I shall wish to deny and return to Jewish superstition, or shall be found eating with The Jews, or feasting with them, or secretly conversing and condemning the Christian religion instead of openly confuting them and condemning their vain faith, then let the trembling of Gehazi cleave to me, as well as the legal punishments to which I acknowledge myself liable. And may I be anathema in the world to come, and may my soul be set down with Satan and the devils." [4]
There are no mentions of this group later than the fourth century.

The Ebionites (from Hebrew; אביונים, Ebyonim, "the Poor Ones") were an early sect of mostly Jewish disciples of Jesus, who flourished in and around the land of Israel, as one of several Jewish Christian communities coexisting from the 1st to the 5th century of the Common Era

However, according to the few modern scholars who have studied their historicity, the Ebionites existed as a community distinct from early Christianity before and after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 C.E., but were marginalized and persecuted by gentile Christians despite the possibility that they may have been more faithful than Paul of Tarsus to the authentic teachings of the historical Jesus

The legacy of the Ebionites is debated. Once the Jerusalemite leadership of the mother church of all Christendom was decimated during Bar Kokhba's revolt in 135 C.E., Jewish Christians gradually lost the struggle for the claim to being the true followers of Jesus, due to marginalization and persecution by both Jews and Christians.[7]

12th century Muslim historian Mohammad al-Shahrastani, in his book Religious and Philosophical Sects, mentions Jews living in nearby Medina and Hejaz who accepted Jesus as a prophetic figure and followed traditional Judaism, rejecting mainstream Christian views

Patristic sources report Ebionites as denouncing Paul of Tarsus as an apostate from the Law,[39] for his slander of the pillars of the church, and condemnation of their "judaizing teachings" as a threat to the spread of his schismatic religion.[40] Epiphanius claims that some Ebionites fought back by gossiping that Paul was a Greek who converted to Judaism in order to marry the daughter of (Annas?) a high priest of Israel, apostasized when she rejected him;[41] and later, according to scholar Hyam Maccoby, developed the early Christian church as a Gnostic Jewish mystery religion.[7]

Source: wikipedia

But still the things that are mentioned are not totally trustworthy. There is mentioned that most of them did not beleive in virgin birth but some say that they did believe in the virgin birth of Jesus PBUH.

So, to clear your confusion in few words it would be right to say that Quran does not talk about the Pauline Christianity to be near to the Muslims but rather the Chritianity that was practiced by Jesus' real desciples.

I can give some more references if you want to know.
Ma'assalaam