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CONGRUITIES AND INCONGRUITIES BETWEEN THE BIBLE AND THE QUR'AN |
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James, Jesus' brother, had a very important position in the history of Christianity and in Paul's activity. Mircea Eliade says: “ The Book of Acts scarcely mentions the leader of the first Christian community in Jerusalem, James, 'the brother of the Lord' (Gal. 1:19), whom Paul opposed (Gal.2:12) His relations with rabbinic Judaism are obvious (he did not drink wine, never shaved, spent his life in the Temple, etc.) Since James's party finally disappeared after the war of 66-70, the memor of him faded away. But other documents (the Gospel of the Hebrews, the Gospel of Thomas, the Pseudo-Clementines, etc.) present James as the most important personage in the Church.” (A History of Religious Ideas p. 534.) The Letter of James forms the twentieth book of the New Testament.
There are similarities between the contents of Jesus' address on the Mountain and the contents of this Letter. The Letter stressed the uniqueness of God, the instruction that no discrimination must be made between men, the importance of the good and the bad words, the situation of the rich and the poor, humility and the importance of being patient and impartial. These have their counterparts in the Qur'an.
Quotations from the Letter of James:« If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. (James 1/5) But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves ». (James 1/22) « But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.» (James 2/9) « What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?(James 2/14) For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.» (James 3/2) « For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.» (James 3/16) « Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.» (James 4/7) « Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded». (James 4/8) « Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.» (James 5/10) « Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him»; (James 5/19) « Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.»(James 5/20) James, in his letter, did not eulogize his brother; nor did he deify Him or made any allusion to trinity.
The Nazarenes spread in time over a wide area of the earth including Turkey, Syria, Iran, Egypt, and Russia and as far as India. Of this movement, the Ebionites formed one branch. They were members of an early ascetic sect of Jews who followed Jesus of Nazareth. The Ebionites were one of several such sects that originated in and around Palestine in the first centuries AD and included the Nazarenes and Elkasites. The Roman church accused them of heresy since they accepted Jesus only as a prophet and had not apotheosized Him. Circa 400 A.D. there sprouted many Christian sects in these regions; the foremost among them being the sect of Arius, an Alexandrian priest. The Romans, terrified by these developments, burned in 411 A.D. the Library in Alexandria which contained extremely valuable documents. And in 415, a fanatical mob of Christians stoned to death Hypatia, philosopher and mathematician, the most prominent Alexandrian pagan. Nestorius, early bishop of Constantinople, whose views on the nature and person of Christ led to the calling of the Council of Ephesus in 431 and to Nestorianism, one of the major Christian heresies, was exiled to Egypt in 428 because of his declaration: “Let no one henceforward call Mary as the Mother of God! For Mary was but a human being.”
CONTROVERSY BETWEEN PAUL AND THE NAZARENES