Monotheism, are all one-god religions related?

Are all one-god religions related?

Photo Credit: Ashley Hagley

Monotheism: “The belief that there is only one God, as found in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam”. (Encarta Dictionary: English)

Is it possible that three of the most common religions in the world are actually basically the same? It is interesting to see that even in the definition of Monotheism the three main one-god religions are used as examples. The fact that they are all grouped together in one category seems to suggest that there are extensive similarities between the three religions. Now of course there are differences as well, anyone following each of these ideologies would likely be glad to explain why their religion is the right one.  In this blog I intend to compare the policies and beliefs of each faith on a few key factors of religion.

So what is the nature of God? Christians would say there is one God, who exists in three distinct persons (The Trinity): Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). Muslims would say there is one God (Arabic: Allah). The Islamic view of God is called strict Monotheism (Quran 112:1). Jewish people would say that there is one God (known in English as 'Yahweh' or 'Jehovah') - "...Hear Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one." (Deuteronomy 6:4).  So it is safe to say that all three of these religions are monotheist, they all believe that there is only one god.

Does each religion believe in the existence of a Holy Spirit? Christians believe the Holy Spirit to be the third person of the Trinity, truly divine: "....with the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified"(Nicene Creed). While Muslims believe the spirit is identical with the Angel Gabriel (an angle which Christians also recognize), who appeared to the Prophet Mohammed giving him the Quranic text. Jewish people say the spirit is not a distinct person, but a divine power which for example, was given to the Prophets. In short answer yes, however there are great variations on the definition of the Holy Spirit.

Is there an afterlife, a heaven or hell? Christians believe salvation is granted by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9) and that damnation is a place of everlasting punishment for the unrighteous (Matthew 25:46).  Muslims believe it is achieved through good works, thus personal righteousness must outweigh personal sin (Quran 23:101-103). They also believe that Jahannam (hell) is a place of torment and fire (Quran 25:65, 104:6-7). In Judaism it is believed that one is brought to heaven through good works, prayers and the grace of God. While hell is the concept of Gehinnom - those who die in sin may suffer temporary punishment, but certain sins merit eternal punishment.

Because Islam and Judaism share a common origin in the Middle East through Abraham, both are considered Abrahamic religions. Christianity comes from Judaism in the fact that their prophet Jesus was Jewish, and also that The Hebrew Tanakh has many of the same passages as the Christian Old Testament. There are also many other similarities between the three, such as; the existence of Jesus Christ, the belief in the Ten Commandments, and recognition of the same angles. The three religions probably can’t be defined as “the same” but it is easy to see that there are many shared aspects between Judaism, Islam and Christianity. Islam and Christianity were strongly influenced by Judaism in their fundamental religious outlook. Because of this similarity, there has been considerable and continued theological, and political overlap between the three faiths in the last almost two thousand years.

Sources:http://christianityinview.com/
http://www.holybookonline.com/
http://www.quranexplorer.com/quran/