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Christians for Mohammed

A news story I read today reminded me of a little fun I had on a message board about 20 years ago.

I used to participate in an echomail network called ILink (sort of an old-fashioned, pre-Internet newsgroup). One of the groups on ILink was a general religion board, and one day, the conversation turned to the subject of "Jews for Jesus," (J4J) a Christian evangelical group that claims that Jesus is the fulfillment of Judaism, that Jews can convert to Christianity without losing their Jewish status -- in fact, they claim, converts will become "fulfilled Jews."

The gentiles on the board, as often happens, perceived J4J as a legitimate form of Judaism, oppressed by their mean Jewish brothers. The Jews on the board were unable to explain to any gentile's satisfaction that J4J is nothing more than fundamentalist Christianity in a yarmulke, that belief in Jesus as G-d is not compatible with Judaism, that the claim that they were "fulfilled Jews" was offensive to us, and so forth.

And then I got a little whimsical....
I wasn't well-known on that board at that time, and I posted a message proclaiming that I was a Christian for Mohammed. I explained that I was born a Christian, and I would die a Christian, but I had come to understand that Mohammed was the fulfillment of everything in Christianity. Accepting the teachings of Mohammed made me feel more Christian, it fulfilled my Christianity. I proceeded to make a bunch of specific points showing how New Testament prophecy and Christian customs all pointed to Mohammed, and had greater, deeper meaning when understood through the Islamic interpretation. It was all exactly the sort of thing you see in J4J literature -- in fact, I think I cribbed some of it directly from J4J literature. (I wish I still had a copy of that thing... it was one of my better works, right up there with The Evolution of Comedy: Homo Erectus, the first stand-up comedian, though some say he was merely the inventor of the dirty joke...)

Not terribly surprisingly, the gentiles on the board, who had only days before been defending the Jewishness of J4J, promptly flipped out. How could I say I was a Christian? they asked. Why couldn't I just accept that I was a Muslim? they asked. Islam is not compatible with Christianity, they insisted.

Well, the board's moderator, who knew I was Jewish, let it go on for a few days and had a good laugh, but eventually let everybody in on the joke. Suffice it to say, we didn't hear much more about how J4J are really Jews on that board, at least not for a long time.

So what suddenly brought this old story into my mind? Well, it turns out that there actually is a woman who claims to be a Christian for Mohammed!

CNN reports that an Episcopalian minister has been defrocked because she converted to Islam. She saw no contradiction, and wished to remain an Episcopalian minister.

See the full story here: Episcopal minister defrocked after becoming a Muslim

Comments

Purl's Page said…
Could you please contact me? My grandmother recently passed (she was jewish) and I found a charm in her jewelry box. Not sure of meanin and hoping you could help me find it.
thank you!!
hassan said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
margaret said…
A friend of mine who was raised a "high days and holy days" Jew got herself involved with J4J and her sole observant sibling phoned me to ask what the heck it was. I explained as best I could. "Okay," he said, "so she's a Christian, I was worried it was something weird." His new name from that day on has been Mr Understatement.
Shane said…
I was wondering what the jewish population was at it peak? How did it compare in numbers to religions of its time?
Zain said…
Why do the jews not believe that Muhammad is a prophet of God?Please read the following information taken from a muslim website and kindly comment on it and express your views on the subject:
MUHAMMAD IN JEWISH SCRIPTURES (THE OLD TESTAMENT):
1) Muhammad (pbuh) prophesised in the book of Deuteronomy:

a) God Almighty speaks to Moses in Book of Deuteronomy chapter 18 verse 18:

"I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him."

b) Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is like Moses (pbuh):

i) Both had a father and a mother.

ii) Both were married and had children.

iii) Both were accepted as Prophets by their people in their lifetime.

iv) Both besides being Prophets were also kings i.e. they could inflict capital punishment.

v) Both brought new laws and new regulations for their people.

vi) Both died a natural death.


c) Muhammad (pbuh) is from among the brethren of Moses (pbuh). Arabs are brethren of Jews. Abraham (pbuh) had two sons: Ishmail and Isaac. The Arabs are the descendants of Ishmail (pbuh) and the Jews are the descendants of Isaac (pbuh).

d) Words in the mouth:

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was unlettered and whatever revelations he received from God Almighty he repeated it verbatim.

Deuteronomy (18:18):

"I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him."

2) Muhammad (pbuh) is prophesised in the book of Isaiah:

It is mentioned in the book of Isaiah chapter 29 verse 12:

"And the book is delivered to him that is not learned saying, ‘Read this, I pray thee’; and he saith, ‘I am not learned’.

"When Archangel Gabriel commanded Muhammad (pbuh) by saying ‘Iqra’, he replied "I am not learned".

3) Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is mentioned by name in the Song of Solomon chapter 5 verse 16:

"Hikko Mamittakim we kullo Muhammadim Zehdoodeh wa Zehrace Bayna Jerusalem."

"His mouth is most sweet: ye, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughter of Jerusalem."

All the prophecies mentioned in the Old Testament regarding Muhammad (pbuh) besides applying to the Jews also hold good for the Christians (H Q. 61:6).
Zain said…
I am also giving you a link that will take you to a book:
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Delphi/7974/deedat/deedat.html


Kindly read this book and also comment on it.
Thank you
Zain said…
In addition,when you go to the above mentioned link click on
"books" and then read the book named: "What the bible says about Muhummed"

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