Common Themes For Peaceful Co-Existence: The Concept of God - See more at: vanguardngr/2014/06/concept-god/#sthash.hAs0S8DC.dpuf THE QUR’ANIC CONCEPT The Existence of God ISLAM teaches the doctrine of tawhid, i.e. the oneness of God to be worshipped and obeyed (Hasan, 2012:82). The existence of God is unambiguously declared by the Qur’an in many Surahs including the following: 1: 1 3:1796: 136-137 31: 22-38 2: 28 4:1367: 158 64: 1-4 2: 255 4:17111: 123 96: 1-5 3: 18 6:21-23 24: 35 112: 1-4 Principally, the Qur’an attempts to prove the existence of God with creation. The verses of the scripture bearing testimony to this claim are preponderant as will be brought to light shortly. The reference to creation as a proof of divine existence by the Qur’an perhaps influences a scholar like Abdel Haleem Mahmud (1978:35) to propose three proofs of divine existence based on creation viz: the proof in the purpose of creation; the proof in God’s caring for creation and the proof in the composition of creation. While the first two are substantiated with Qur’anic references, the last is based on reason. Other proofs of God’s existence contained in scripture are drawn from human experience and divine revelation. Purpose of creation as a proof of God’s existence The argument drawn from the purpose of creation attempts to prove that the universe was not created in vain. Mahmud argues that the universe is a complex creation with so many components, depending on one another to form a unity. The components are, therefore, complementary and mutually bound together. In his view, such a structure presupposes that the universe must have a maker thus repudiating any theory of creation derived from “blind nature” or “coincidence and chance.” The interdependence of the universe components is brought to light in Surah 39:21 thus:M O Opeloye Seest thou not that God sends down rain from the sky and leads it through springs in the earth? Then He causes to grow therewith produce of various colours then it withers; Thou wilt see it grow yellow; Then He makes it dry up and crumble away. Truly, in this, is a message of remembrance to men of understanding (cf Surah 80:28). We can observe from this verse, the connexion between the heavens and the earth and between water and plants on which man depends. The inherent connexion between the different components of the universe is termed by the philosophers as ‘the teleological proof or design argument’. The teleological proof derives from the belief that everything in the universe is intended while coincidence contributes nothing to its purposefulness. Purposeful inter-connexion The purposeful inter-connexion is made crystal-clear in Surah 16:65-69 which reads: And God sends down rain from the skies, and gives therewith life to the earth after its death: Verily in this is a sign for those who listen. And verily in cattle (too) will you find an instructive sign. From what is within their bodies, between excretions and blood. We produce, for your drink, milk, pure and agreeable to those who drink it. And from the fruit of the date palm and the vine, ye get out wholesome drink and food: behold, in this also is a sign for those who are wise. And thy Lord taught the Bee to build its cell in hills, on trees and in (Men’s) habitations, then to eat all the produce (of the earth) and find, with skill, the spacious paths of its Lord: there issues from within their bodies a drink of varying colours, wherein is healing for men. Verily in this, is a sign for those who give thought (Surah 50. 6-11). We can deduce from this Qur’anic passage that nothing is created in vain. The rain which emanates from the sky serves a purpose. It enlivens the earth and facilitates the growth of green vegetation and provides man means of sustenance. Even from the Bee, man derives some advantages. Everything is created on purpose and the purposes overlap. This could not happen by chance or mere coincidence. The expression “in this is a sign” repeated several times in the passage is meant to draw man’s attention to the reality of God’s existence. This argument, therefore, means to show that the universe is a manifestation of divine unity. According to Ali Khamene’I (1984:57) Tawhid as a world outlook implies the unity, coherence, and harmony between all parts of the universe. Since the system of creation is one and everything in it related to the same origin and source, there being no multiplicity of gods or creation, every constituent of the world is a part of the same whole and all parts constitute one unity and they are parts of the same whole. Besides, the fact that God creates the universe purposefully, he exercises control on it. He holds in His hand the interconnected structure of the universe at every moment, for if He were to abandon it, it would disintegrate. Exercise ofcontrol In this regard Surah 35:41 asserts: It is God who sustains the heavens and the earth, lest they cease (to function), And if they should fail, there is none – not one – can sustain them thereafter. Verily, He is most Forbearing, Oft-Forgiving (Surah 16:79). The Qur’an asserts that due to His control, the universe has never experienced disorder in the functioning of the things He has created in it. Several verses of the scripture testify to this fact. For instance, Surah 67:3 declares: He (God) created the seven heavens alike, Thou seest no incongruity in the creation of the Beneficent. Then look again, can thou see any disorder? Then turn thy eyes again and thy look will return to thee confused while it is fatigued. Apart from lack of disorder mentioned in the above quotation in the works of creation, Al-Qurtubi (1949:208) points to the completeness and beauty ol creation as further proofs of divine existence. According to him, the universe is deficient in nothing and there is no superfluity in it. Everything in it is wonderful. The orderliness and smooth running of the universe claimed by Surah 67:1 above is further explained in Surah 36: 37-40 which reads: And a sign to them is the night, we draw forth from it the day- then lo! they are in the darkness; And the sun moves on to its destination. That is the ordinance of the Mighty, the Knower. And the moon, We have ordained for it stages till it becomes again as an old dry palm-branch. Neither is it for the sun to overtake the moon, nor can the night outstrip the day, all float on in an orbit. The only plausible deduction which can be made from the two Quranic quotations above is that orderliness in the running of the universe despite its variety of conflicting conditions is an evidence of divine existence. Care for creation as a proof of God’s existence The Quran is full of declarations calling man’s attention to God’s care for the universe and especially for him. This is one of Mahmud’s three proofs of divine existence. This argument is based on many verses of the scripture including Surah 17:70 which reads: “We have honoured the sons of Adam, provided them with transport on land and sea, good and pure, and conferred on them special favours above a great part of our creation”(cf Surah 28:71-73). According to Surah 16:18, if man would count up the favours of God, he would never be able to number them. The favours bestowed on man are often recounted in the Qur’an in order to encourage the corresponding duties and responsibilities of man to prepare him for his real life in the hereafter. God’s care for creation (and for man specifically) as a proof of His existence is a fact recognised by natural philosophers as evidenced by the argument between Socrates and Aristodemus recorded by Mahmud in his book The Creed of Islam. The Biblical Concept The Existence of God The Bible, in many of its passages, assumes and affirms the existence of God without making an attempt at proving that existence. A typical example of the assumption is found at the very first sentence of the scripture which declares: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Reminiscent of this declaration is the one found in Jn. 1:1, which reads: “In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God.” None of the Biblical verses that talks about the existence of God says how He came into existence or how He is existing. However, creation as a whole is referred to in the scripture as an evidence of God’s existence as contained in Rm.1:19-21: What can be known about God is plain to them because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world, His invisible nature namely His eternal power and deity has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse, for although they knew God they only refuse to honour Him as God. Arguments for divine existence The existence of God, it must be admitted, is incapable of direct proof. The quotation cited above is only an indirect proof. There are five arguments which Christian theologians normally use to justify divine existence. Though these arguments belong more to the sphere of philosophy than Christian dogmatics the Christian theologians have adopted and adapted them because they illustrate the paths over which the mind travels in the confirmation of its belief in the existence of God. These arguments are listed by G. P. Pardington (1926:64), as follows: the cosmological argument, the teleological argument, the anthropological argument, the ontological argument and the christological argument. A Comparative Appraisal of the Qur’anic and the Biblical Concepts of God The Existence of God There is no gainsaying the fact that the existence of God is affirmed in the Qur’an and the Bible. The passages of the two scriptures are filled with the descriptions of divine works which are used as proofs of the divine existence. We can compare Surah 88:17-24 with Is. 40:21-26 in this regard. Surah 88: 17-24 reads: Do they not look at the Camels how they are made? And at the sky how it is raised high? And at the mountains how they are fixed firm? And at the earth how it is spread out? Therefore, give admonition for you are to admonish, you are not to force. But if any turns away and rejects God, God will punish Him a mighty punishment. For to us will be their return. In like manner, Is.40: 21-26 declares: Have you not understood from the foundation of the earth? It is He (God) who sits above the circle of the earth. Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them like a tent to dwell in…To whom then would you compare me that I should be like him. Lift up your eyes on high and see who created these. The two quotations have one thing in common and this is the ascription of divine works of creation to God as a proof of his existence. Further proofs of divine existence, apart from reference to the divine works, according to the two scriptures, are the recognition of man’s intuitive knowledge of the divine and the authenticity of the scriptures. The Attributive Names of God Close examination of the two scriptures reveals that the nature, work and power of God are indicated by His attributive names which are essentially similar in the two. Thus the descriptions of God found in the Qur’an ` are also found in the Bible. For instance, God in the two scriptures is: the Creator: Surah 11:7; Gn. 1:1, the Custodian of Mercy: Surah 7:151; Ep. 2:4, the Possessor of Wisdom: Surah 31:97 Rm. 16:27, the Lord of Power: Surah 31:9; Ps. 62:11, the Foundation of Knowledge: Surah 5:97; I Sm. 2:3, the Eternal: Surah 2:255; Dt. 33:27. Muslims though talk of ninety-nine divine names, the Holy Book does not specifically mention that God has ninety-nine names. All that we read in Surah 7:180 is: “to Him belong the beautiful names.” Despite the similarities in the divine attributes contained in the two scriptures, there exists an important point of contrast. There are instances in the Bible where divine works and attributes are ascribed to Jesus who is believed to be one of the persons in trinity. Such instances are found in Mt. 8:2; Mt. I 28:18; Heb. 13:8; Jn. 1:3 and Col. 1:16. The Qur’an, on the other hand, believes that divine works and attributes can only be ascribed to God and nobody else. The reasons for this conflict is not far fetched. It arises from the Christian doctrine of trinity which teaches that Jesus is of the same substance with God. The Oneness of God Divine oneness is taught in explicit terms in both the Qur’an and the Bible. Surah 2:163, for instance, declares: And your God is one God, there is no god but He. The same message is contained in Dt. 6:4, which reads: “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord…” Several other Qur’anic and Biblical verses as listed below reaffirm the oneness: Surah 6:19 Dt. 4:39 Surah 16:22 Is. 43: 10-12 Surah 23: 91-92 Is. 45:22 Surah 37: 4-5 Ps. 36:10 Surah 33:65 Surah 112: However, divine oneness as taught by the Bible is understood in terms of divine trinity especially by the Trinitarians whose view had become the official view of the Church since the Nicene Council of 325 C.E. Here lies the difference between the Qur’anic and the Biblical concepts of God. While the Quran teaches that God is one, indivisible and unique with none sharing from His divine essence as taught by Surah 112: 1-4, the Nicene Creed asserts that there are three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, all of whom are co-etemal. It is often admitted by Biblical scholars that trinity cannot be explained satisfactorily. This is why Onaiyekan (1980:77) opines that Christ is a mystery who reveals the Father in a way that cannot be fully grasped. God’s function as Creator With regard to creation, the major area of agreement between the Qur’anic and the Biblical accounts is their attribution of the work of creation to God in contrast to the belief that the earth was formed from the primordial matter or ether. Thus the two scriptures reject all types of theories which do not recognise God as the Creator of the universe. These include the materialistic theory, the Pantheistic theory, the theory of natural evolution, and the theory of continuous creation as enumerated by Orton Wiley and Paul Culbertson (1946:132). In point of fact, the two scriptures regard creation as a proof of God’s existence as can be deduced from Rm.1:2 and Surah 2:164. Due to the Christian doctrine of trinity, however, the Bible, particularly the NT, views creation Christologically. This is the belief that Christ is a participator in the work of creation as the word of God. Important areaof similarity Another important area of similarity is that man in the two scriptures is believed to have been created from dust as we read in surah 23:12 and Gen. 2:7. The Quran, however, elaborates on this by highlighting the biological process of formation of man through the six stages viz: clay, sperm, clot of blood, foetus, lump and bones clothed with flesh. Moreover, man occupies the pride of place in creation. While the Qur’an describes him as God’s vice regent on the earth as evident in Surah 2:30, the Bible in Gen.1:26 describves him as God’s image. In consequence of his position, the entire creation is brought under his control as evident in Ps 8:50 and Surah 14:32-34. The two scriptures agree that God spent six days to complete the work of creation as evident in Surah 7:54 and Ex. 20:11. Moreover, they understand the length of day as an indefinite duration of time as can be inferred from Surah 22:47, Surah 70:4 and II Pt. 3:8 ,32 As earlier mentioned, the Biblical concept of day as described in the creation account conflicts with modern scientific data because the mechanism for light production had not been created. McKenzie(1965:158) realises this absurdity and interprets the light to be cosmic light and not the light given by the sun or moon. However, thinking religiously, it could be argued that God Himself is a source of light and the light therefore signifies His presence. According to the Biblical account, God is believed to have rested on the seventh day after completing the work of creation but this does not, in any way, mean that God has stopped working. The seventh day rest as already noted is the basis for the Sabbath day. The Qur’an, on the other hand, recognizes no Sabbath. God is seen as working everyday to oversee the affairs of the universe (Surah 32:5). Another major point of conflict, relates to the sequence of creation. The Bible lays down a sequence for the creative works as evidenced by the first account of creation in Genesis in which the creation of the firmament precedes the creation of the earth. The Qur’an, on the other hand, does not lay down a sequence for creation of the heavens and the earth, rather, we learn from the scripture the interlocking nature of the creation stages. Surah 21:30 which describes the heavens and the earth as one unit of creation joined together before they were split asunder is an attestation to this assertion. The inference we can draw from the foregoing analysis is that God is a reality in the two scriptures. He possesses similar attributes and performs the same functions. - See more at: vanguardngr/2014/06/concept-god/#sthash.hAs0S8DC.dpuf
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 10:50:02 +0000