Judaism, Christianity, and Islam Judaism Hebrew History,

¶ … Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

Judaism

Hebrew history, as told by the Hebrews, begins in Mesopotamia, in the cities of Ur in the south and Haran in the north. With Abraham, the story of the Hebrews begins, and it is clearly stated that Hebrew origins lay outside Canaan. The command to leave his ancestral home and journey to Canaan was accompanied by a promise (Gen. 12:2) The exact location of the nation-to-be is not specified but was, of course, known to those hearing or reading the account, Abraham journeyed to Canaan, Egypt, the Negeb, Hebron, Gezer, Beer-sheba and back to Hebron where he and his wife Sarah died.

The journey itself was more than a pilgrimage, for it represented the starting point of a continuing adventure in nationhood. Nor are the travelers without vicissitudes, but throughout famine, earthquake, fire and war, god protected them.

The close relationship between the Hebrews and the people of the desert and steppes was acknowledged in the story of Ishmael, the nomadic first son of Abraham; but it is through Isaac, the second son about whom so very little is recorded, that the Hebrews trace their own family line. Both Isaac and his son Jacob retained a separateness from the people among whom they dwelled, The story of Jacob, who became Israel, and his twin brother Esau, who became Edom, was colored with contention, deception and harsh misunderstanding

Joseph, the son of Jacob, was sold into slavery by envious brothers and rose to high office in Egypt. When his father and brothers migrated to Egypt to flee famine, they were regally received and encouraged to settle there.

After what appeared to be an extensive period, the Hebrews increased in numbers and a pharaoh who was unsympathetic to the Joseph traditions inherited the throne and persecuted the Hebrews, pressing them into virtual enslavement. Moses, a refugee from Egyptian justice, became associated with the Kenite people. On the slopes of Mount Sinai in a dramatic encounter with God, he was commissioned to act as deliverer of the Hebrews.

Between this period, that is, the origins in Mesopotamia and the creation of the new nation in Egypt, Hebrew history centered around Palestine. This area was the special area of Hebrew history, for it was this land that the god promised to his chosen people.

Christianity

Jesus Christ ruling figure of Christianity was born in Bethlehem, to a peasant family between eight BC and four AD. We know very little about Jesus' life, the first record of his life was written some forty years after his death.

For many: a rescuer, a healer, a prophet, and a teacher, whose life and teachings formed the basis of Christianity. Christians regard Jesus as the incarnate Son of God, and as having been divinely conceived by Mary the wife of Joseph - a carpenter from Nazareth

Two of the Gospels, Matthew and Luke, give information about Jesus' birth and childhood (Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 3:23-38). An angel visited Mary and told her that she will bear a child who was conceived by the Holy Spirit. There was an very old belief that a new star will appear in the sky when a new leader is born. Three wise men saw the star in the east and came to Bethlehem to pay tribute and worship Jesus.

The proclamation that a new king was born was upsetting for King Herod. He ordered all children under two years old in the Bethlehem area to be killed. Joseph was instructed in a dream to take Jesus and Mary and flee to Egypt.

At the age of about thirty Jesus went to the Jordan River to be baptized by his cousin, John the Baptist, according to the Jewish practice, in preparation for the Kingdom to come. After that, he withdrew to the mountains of the Judean desert for 40 days where he was tempted three times by the devil.

Jesus' public ministry began after the jailing of John the Baptist and lasted for about one year. He moved to Capernaum and made it his headquarters of ministry. His followers were greater than before in number, He promised forgiveness and eternal life in heaven to the most sinful, provided their repentance was sincere. This induced the hatred of the Jewish Pharisees, who feared that his teachings might lead to disregard for the authority of the Torah. Despite the Jewish Authorities opposition, Jesus' popularity increased. He was devoted to the Torah, preached radical and in many cases more stringent observance and application of Jewish laws.

Jesus now was a labeled man, as his followers grew, his enemies grew too. The Sanhedrin - the Jewish Rabbinical Authority in Jerusalem challenged him on specific issues seeking to question him into self-discrimination.

With his disciples, he spoke of his looming betrayal and impending death as a sacrifice for the sins of humanity. Jesus was executed by crucifixion with two other criminals guilty of rebellion. Later in the day before sunset, his body was taken down and buried in a tomb by followers. On the following Sunday, his disciples found the tomb vacant. Later the same day, according to Luke, John, and Mark, Jesus appeared at various locations in and near Jerusalem.

Finally, according to Luke (24:50-51), Jesus ascended to heaven 40 days after the Resurrection.

After His death, His followers decided that Jesus had been divine. This did not happen immediately, the development of Christian belief in the Incarnation.

Islam

The Prophet Muhammad is not considered divine but a human being. He was born in 570 A.D. In one of the most powerful tribes in the Arabia of that time, for it had guardianship over the Ka'bah in Makkah. An orphan raised by his grandfather and later by his uncle, the young Muhammad displayed outstanding virtue as a trustworthy individual whom members of various tribes would invite to act as arbitrator in their.

The monotheistic message of Abraham had long become forgotten among the general population of the Arabian Peninsula. The young Muhammad, however, was a believer in the One God all of his life and never participated in the idolatrous practices of his tribe. He received the Devine message when he was forty and gradually people started converting to Islam but there was opposition to his teachings and living in Makkah was becoming more and more difficult. Therefore, in 622 A.D. The Prophet was ordered by God to migrate to Madina, In Madina, the Prophet set up the first Islamic society, which has served as the model for all later Islamic societies. Several battles took place against the invading Makkans, which the Muslims won against great odds. Soon more tribes began to join Islam and within a few years, most of Arabia had embraced the religion of Islam.

Soon he fell ill and after three days died in 632 A.D. In Madina where he was buried in the chamber of his house next to the first mosque of Islam.