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Theology of religions Theology Proper

“Allah,” the God of Arab Christians

In recent discussions such as the one aroused by tensions at Wheaton College last year, one question often arises: “Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God?” Because of the important differences between the God of Islam and the God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit, many Christians instinctively answer “no.” I have argued […]

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Theology of religions

Witherington ponders hopefully what might happen at the wailing wall when Messiah returns

In a Lenten meditation, Ben Witherington posts some interesting and hope-generating thoughts, as he reflects on his experience at the wailing wall in Jerusalem, where he observed Jews, Muslims, and Christians, all praying, as best they know how, to the God of Abraham. Witherington shares with us a poem prompted by his experience at the […]

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Evangelism Theology of religions

Mission experts speak to the “same God” issue

I was delighted to hear voices from the missionary world speaking to the issue that has become serious in the procedure begun by Wheaton College to terminate the employment of Lrycia Hawkins, because the school thinks that her statement that Muslims and Christians worship the same God conflicts with the school’s faith commitment. In a […]

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Theology of religions

Jerry Walls on worshiping the same God

In an interesting and helpful post, Jerry Walls asks: “Wheaton, Allah, and the Trinity: Do Muslims Really Worship the Same God as C. S. Lewis?” He gets into the critical work of distinguishing questions which might be in people’s minds when the basic one is on the table. I have addressed that problem in an […]

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Theology of religions Theology Proper

Paul Helm on the question of worshiping the same God

I have learned a good deal from Paul Helm through the years, and frequently I find that he and I are on the same page. Such was the case when I read his post today, entitled “Getting into Hot Water.” It is tempting to just republish his whole post, and I’m going to reprint much […]

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Theology of religions

Document posted: “Irenaeus and Modern Responses to the Challenge of Religious Pluralism.”

In 1993, I read a paper at the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society in Washington, DC, Nov 19, 1993, entitled “Irenaeus on the Salvation of the Unevangelized.” It summed up my findings from my doctoral dissertation. A couple of weeks ago, I was notified by Academia.edu that a person in Malaysia had requested […]

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Theology of religions Theology Proper

“We Palestinian Christians say Allahu Akbar”

In regard to the question whether Muslims and Christians worship the same God, an important factor to consider is that Arabic speaking Christians also call God Allah when they speak of the one whom we worship as the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. This point is made in a rather sobering interview […]

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Theology of religions

Christians, Jews and Muslims: Confusion about the question on the table

The discussion continues about how we answer the question: “Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?” I keep opening items that come my way which address this issue, and I’ve become convinced that serious confusion is being created because people often purport to be answering that question but they are, in fact, addressing a […]

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Theology of religions

Melchizedek, Abraham, Muslims and worship of the One True God

The question of whether Muslims and Christians worship the same God is still being much talked about. My earlier post, drawing on the work of John Stackhouse, had made an analogy between the Jews and Muslims as people who worship one God but do not understand him to be tripersonal. That analogy has been troubling […]

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Theology of religions

Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?

One of my alma maters, Wheaton College, has placed tenured professor Larycia Hawkins on administrative leave. This was done, not because she has chosen to wear a hijab during Advent, in solidarity with Muslims, but because the College has “significant questions regarding the theological implications” of her explanation of why she is doing this. Particularly […]