Quote:
Originally posted by ADSigMel
Not to bash you or anything (I actually agree with most of what you said), but, just so you know, "Allah" is just the Arabic word for "God." It means exactly the same thing and is exactly the same entity. Just like Dieu and Dios and Deo mean "God" in French, Spanish, and Latin, respectively. So, if you're a Christian, you do serve Allah, you just call it something else. Just FYI.
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A statement that requires some caveats, I think.
True that "Allah" is Arabic for God (kin to the Hebrew "El"/"Elohim"), so Christians who speak Arabic will use "Allah" where we would say "God."
But to say it is "the same entity" -- a la "Christians and Muslims worship the same God" is a different matter, I think. That falls more under "PC - can't we all get along" that accomplishes little. In my opinion, it actually hinders healthy dialogue that might lead to better relations because it minimizes honestly-held differences in the name of getting along.
Yes, the Christian and Muslim (and Jewish) understanding of God derive from the same sources -- all can be considered Abrahamic faiths. But, just to give one example (albeit a major one) -- Christians believe that Jesus Christ
is God. Muslims, while they honor Jesus as a prophet, consider the Christian belief unacceptable. I worship Jesus Christ, along with God the Father and God the Holy Spirit -- one God in three persons, but all completely God. My Muslim neighbor, I do not believe, would consider that he worships the same God I do.