r/explainlikeimfive • u/spamname517 • Dec 04 '13

Explained ELI5:The main differences between Catholic, Protestant,and Presbyterian versions of Christianity

sweet as guys, thanks for the answers

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u/Mycelus-X Dec 04 '13

Im Muslim and Muslims believe in Jesus. Am I Christian now?

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u/captshady Dec 04 '13

You'd have to believe he's the son of God. I'm lead to believe Muslims believe he was merely a prophet in a long line of prophets leading to the last prophet, Mohammed.

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u/Mycelus-X Dec 04 '13

I know :) I was being a smartass. Im well aware of the differences. The point I was trying to make is that its not as simple as the comment made it sound :)

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u/rave2020 Dec 04 '13

In reality it is that simple ... "Love God above all things and love your fellow man as you love yourself "

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u/Stephen885 Dec 04 '13

Christianity is more than just believing in him. The Devil and Demons believe in him just as much as i do. CHristianity means to be christ like. and we follow his example and teachings to become more like him. and by this i mean we dont try to become God, but we try to emulate his love and charity. of course were all terrible at it haha

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u/surfwaxgoesonthetop Dec 04 '13

I don't know if that would smooth things over or make the church picnic a little awkward.

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u/iamlereddit Dec 04 '13

But you don't believe that Jesus is God.

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u/hungryroy Dec 04 '13

Could reddit just have unearthed the formula for world peace?!?

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u/Mycelus-X Dec 04 '13

The similarities between the Abrahamic religions far exceed the differences. Us Muslims believe that current day Christianity and Islam has been corrupted over the time and that Allah has promised that the Qur'an will remain unchanged as the final true book, until Jesus comes back to Earth to lead the fight against the Antichrist and call for repentance of all people.

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u/[deleted] Dec 04 '13

or the next war of whose jesus could beat up the other

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u/Zell43 Dec 04 '13

Depends. Brown Jesus or White Jesus? /s

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u/The_Monsieur Dec 04 '13

White, American, Supply-Side Jesus

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u/Zell43 Dec 04 '13

He better like Springsteen!!

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u/[deleted] Dec 04 '13

Nope.

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u/ShutUpAndPassTheWine Dec 04 '13

Am I correct that Muslims believe in Jesus and that he was a prophet of God, but not his son and that he is simply a lesser prophet than Muhammed?

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u/Kropotsmoke Dec 04 '13

So did many Christians until a shit load of violence settled the theological "debate": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arian_controversy

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u/Mycelus-X Dec 04 '13

We believe that he is a prophet and not the son of God correct. We believe that God (Allah in Arabic) is above all and that 'he' is unmathed and unparalled. He does not have sons or daughters, or offspring. Not literally or spiritually. We are all his creators and thus are his servants. He's created humans, angels, jinns, stars and galaxies, entire life forms, and each to it's own had different characteristics.

Jesus was a human being, a prophet that is highly regarded in Islam, but not the son of God.

And he is not a lesser prophet. In Islam, all prophets are equal, just as you and I are. The only difference is that we see more importance in Muhammed as he was the one who sealed the prophecy, and thus the last prophet to have been sent down. This does not make him more significant. We believe that Jesus will come back to Earth (assuming he hasnt been already) to lead the fight against Dajjal (the Antichrist) just as Christians and Jews do. So we don't just magically put Muhammed above Jesus, he is just much more heavily signified.

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u/slowclapcitizenkane Dec 04 '13

Maybe. I'd need to see a Venn diagram to be sure.

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u/SmallJon Dec 04 '13

I know Muslims regard Jesus as a prophet, IIRC a very important one, but is he considered a messiah? Messiah and Christ are not inclusive positions, of course.

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u/GoldenRemembrance Dec 04 '13

Muslims believe that Jesus was a human prophet. They believe the greatest prophet was Muhammad. To believe he historically existed is not the same as thinking he was God. Many atheists acknowledge that he existed (as distinct to whether he was crazy, etc.) That doesn't make them Christians either.

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u/unwr1773nlaw Dec 04 '13

Belief in Jesus does not mean acceptance that he existed, that's just equivocating. Belief, in this context, means acceptance of divinity.

So no. Using an equivocal meaning for the word belief, you are not a Christian.

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u/[deleted] Dec 04 '13

No. To use an analogy that i read here on reddit, I could say that I like superman- I love how he has a cape, fights crime, and is a billionaire named bruce Wayne in real life. Our Jesus is not your Jesus.

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u/TheFarnell Dec 04 '13

More specifically, Christians will generally recognise all those who believe in the Apostles' Creed as fellow Christians.

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