of Mary” (for example, Q 3:45), Muslims believe
that Jesus was born of a virgin named mary and
that he taught the true religion of God, many
aspects of which Christians later misinterpreted
(for example, Q 5:17; 19:16–37). Following the
quranic narrative, they hold that while he was
not crucified, he was raised to heaven and will
return at the end of time to defeat the antichrist
(al-Dajjal). Muslims also believe that Jesus was a
prophet (rasul, nabi) who foretold the coming of
mUhammad. Additional accounts about Jesus were
later included in the hadith, Lives of the Prophets
literature, and Sufi poetry and hagiographies.
One of several mistakes Muslims believe Chris-
tians have made about Jesus is their claim that he
was divine. Because a key belief in Islam is an
absolute monotheism (tawhid), Muslims believe
it is blasphemous to maintain that any human
being can have divine attributes. For Muslims,
God is perfect and holy and as such cannot be
captured in any human form. The idea that Jesus
was human and not divine does not detract from
his important role as a prophet. The message he
preached to humanity was as meaningful as the
prophets who preceded him. Muslims also reject
the Christian notion of the trinity because they
believe it is a form of idolatry that undermines
God’s oneness.
The qUran’s assertions about Jesus suggest
that he and Muhammad had similar experiences,
and, as such, Muslims believe that there were
some parallels between the lives of these figures.
God gave each of them the task of proclaiming
his message to humanity. They both had compan-
ions who attempted to understand their message,
encountered opponents who severely criticized
the ideas they declared, and gave prophecies
about the future. Muslims believe Jesus foretold
the coming of Muhammad, while in the hadith,
Muhammad declared the day of judgment that
would come at the end of time.
Muslims believe that when Jesus’ enemies
attempted to crucify him, God intentionally
deceived them by projecting Jesus’ likeness onto
someone else whom they mistakenly crucified (Q
4:157–158). However, Muslims do believe that
Jesus ascended into heaven. For them, neither
divinity nor crucifixion is necessary to authenti-
cate the enormous value of Jesus’ life and teach-
ings. The Arabic name Isa (Jesus) is used by
Muslims as a personal name, and it is thought
that the mixing of Muslims and Christians in
andalUsia (Islamic Spain) helped make Jesus a
common name among Spanish-speaking Chris-
tians as well.
Followers of one of the branches of the
ahmadiyya sect, unlike the majority of Muslims,
maintain that Jesus survived crucifixion and
migrated to kashmir under the name Yuz Asaf,
where he survived to old age and was buried.
See also christianity and islam; gospel; holy
books; prophets and prophecy.
Jon ArmajaniFurther reading: Kenneth Cragg, Jesus and the Muslim:
An Exploration (London and Boston, G. Allen & Unwin,
1985); Tarif Khalidi, The Muslim Jesus: Sayings and
Stories in Islamic Literature (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard
University Press, 2001); Javad Nurbakhsh, Jesus in the
Eyes of the Sufis (London: Khaniqahi-Nimatullahi Pub-
lications, 1983); Edward Geoffrey Parrinder, Jesus in
the Quran (Oxford: Oneworld, 1995); Neal Robinson,
Christ in Islam and Christianity: The Representation of
Jesus in the Quran and the Classical Muslim Commentar-
ies (London: Macmillan, 1991); Ahmad ibn Muham-
mad al-Thalabi, Arais al-majalis fi qisas al-anbiya, or
“Lives of the Prophets.” Translated by William M. Brin-
ner (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2002), 622–680.jihad
Literally, the Arabic word jihad means to strive
or struggle (in the path of God); it often refers to
religiously sanctioned warfare. The qUran advo-
cates jihad to extend God’s rule (Q 2:192, 8:39),
promising reward in the aFterliFe for those who
are killed in battle (Q 3:157–158, 169–172) and
punishment for those who do not participate (Qjihad 397 J