He has sent down upon you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. And He revealed the Torah and the Gospel. Quran 3:3
The more I read the Bible (gasp... can you believe it, a muslim reading the Bible? It's true, we do read the Bible, and why wouldn't we? After all, many of the great prophets' teachings and accounts are inside, as well as God's teachings. As you can see from the ayat above from the Quran, we do believe Allah revealed books to Moses and Jesus.) the more convinced I am of the truth of Islam. (By the way, the meaning of Islam, as I've mentioned before, is submitting to God's Will, so of course it's going to be true. How can submitting to God be anything other than truth?) I would like to share some verses I've found that supports why we as muslims do what we do. Not only is it found in the Quran, but also the Bible.
christmas trees forbidden: Jeremiah 10:2-4
"This is what the Lord says: 'Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs in the sky, though the nations are terrified by them. For the customs of the people are worthless; they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel. They adorn it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not totter.'" It's very obvious here that God is making it very clear to avoid any customs or traditions of other religions. Putting a tree in your house and decorating it was a tradition of the pagans.
women covering their head/hair: 1 Corinthians 11:5-6
"And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head- it is just as though her head were shaved. If a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head."
remembering God constantly: Deuteronomy 6:4-9
"Hear O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates." Because of this decree, many people wrote Bible verses on pieces of paper and placed them inside a wooden box hung by their door. This was called a mezuzah. Upon entering or exiting their homes, they would touch the box as a reminder to obey God. As muslims, we do similar. When leaving we say either silently or in a whisper "In the name of Allah, I have placed my trust in Allah, there is no power or might except by Allah." When entering we say "In the name of Allah, we enter." Also, we remember Allah throughout the day continually, as prescribed in this verse by saying "In the name of Allah" before we eat, drink, sleep, read, etc. We also silently repeat praises to Allah such as "Allah is the greatest, glorified is Allah, praise Allah, there is no god except Allah, and none worthy of worship and praise but Allah" as well as ask forgiveness for mistakes we've made by repeating "forgive me Allah". There are many more phrases repeated. It's just a good reminder for us that Allah is ever present, that we are ever accountable for our actions and words, and that Allah is most merciful and provides for us continually 24/7.
do not eat pork: Deuteronomy 14:8
"The pig is also unclean; although it has a split hoof, it does not chew the cud. You are not to eat their meat or touch their carcasses."
proof of the well/ natural spring zumzum in Saudi Arabia: Genesis 21:19
"Then God opened her (Hagar, concubine of Abraham) eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy (Ishmael) a drink." This is the story of Hagar and her son Ishmael. She was abandoned in the desert with her son, and after the little water they had was gone, Allah provided her with a spring. To this day the spring is still producing water. It's located in Mecca, Saudi Arabia near the Kabba, where all muslims pray in the direction of.
As you can see, Islam, Christianity, and the Jewish religions are very closely intertwined. Please see my previous posting 'Salat/Prayer' for examples about washing before praying, as well as how to pray. I'm sure there are many more scriptural evidences to support Islam's actions and beliefs, but this is what I've found so far.
I want to share an ayat in the Quran revealed to the prophet Mohammad, pbuh, regarding our religions. I think it's about time to focus on the similarities and not the differences.
Say, "We have believed in Allah and in what was revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Descendants, and in what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims [submitting] to Him." Quran 3:840
