CHAPTER 5: THE INVALIDITY OF THEIR CLAIM THAT THEY ARE MONOTHEISTS
They, i.e., the Christians say, “We believe that saying so (i.e., the trinity) does not mean we worship three gods, but rather we worship one god. Similarly, we cannot say that the human being, his faculty of speech and his soul are three humans, but rather one human. Moreover, the blaze of the fire, the light of the fire, and the heat of the fire are not three fires. In addition, the disk of the sun, the sunlight and the sun rays are not three suns. If that is our opinion concerning God, may His Names be Holy and His Signs be glorified, we are not to be blamed or to be regarded as sinful, for we have not abandoned what we were given, or rejected what we were granted to follow any other belief.”
The answer has several aspects:
One, you have declared your polytheistic belief of having more than one god within your Creed of Faith, and your argumentation. This is not something which people attribute to you, but it is something that you yourselves admit. It is apparent in your aforementioned saying, “And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds [God of God], Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance [essence] with the Father. And [I believe] in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeded from the Father [and the Son]; who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified.” (Nicene Creed)
This means that you believe in three gods, which is found specifically in your claim that the son is a very god from a very god, in addition to declaring three gods and that this is a very got! from a very god. But you say that these three entities are only one god. This is in fact a declaration of belief in more than one god while saying that it is only one. If you had not said what necessitates another essence, your words may have been interpreted as conjunctive adjectives, but in using such words, you sound blasphemous. You have rendered Christ the same one god, who is also the father that created both the seen and the unseen. These are the most blasphemous words you have uttered, and this is the real meaning indicated by your words. Some of you say that Christ is God, and some say that he is the Son of God. The two sayings are being said by the different Christian sects; such as, the Nestorian church, the Jacobite Church, the Melkite and others, a matter which clarifies your contradiction. If Christ is Allah, he would not be his son whether the son is indicated by an attribute or anything else. For the father is the Being, which cannot be the attribute, even if the son means the Being together with the attribute of speech by which you interpret the hypostasis. This Being is characterized by Life and Speech, whether they mean knowledge or knowledge with manifestation, which are coupled with Life, and which are both dependent upon the father. The attribute is inseparable from the substantive, and it cannot be called its son. None of the prophets (peace be upon them) even hinted at that meaning.
Two, their saying, “This (i.e., believing in the Father, the Son and the Hoi/ Spirit) does not mean that we worship three gods, but rather one god. Similarly, we cannot say that the human being, his faculty of speech and his soul are three humans. Moreover, the fire, its heat and its light are not three fires. And the sun, its light and its rays are not three suns.”
It should be saic that this is not a suitable example in more than one respect:
One, the heat and light of the fire, which are dependent upon it, are not a fire from fire, an essence from an essence, or an equal to the fire. Similarly, the human being’s faculty of speech is neither a human from a human nor is it equal to the human being in essence. The same should be said about the sun, its light and its rays. But you say that the Son is a very god from a very god, and you say in the Canon, “And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds [God of God], Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance [essence] with the Father.”
You also say about the Holy Spirit, “It is a worshipped and glorified Lord.” Thus, you have proved that they are three gods, yet you call yourselves monotheists!
Two, by the light of the sun and the fire they mean the same light that is dependent upon them. It also means the rays that are dependent upon the earth and the walls. This is different from the sun and is independent from it. The word ‘light’ means both: the ray and the light. They are both attributes and nonessential dependents. The word light’ may also mean the fire itself, the sun itself, or the moon itself. Thus, the light will be an independent essence. If so, they will be guilty of rendering the father as an independent essence along with the son and the Holy Spirit.
It is well known that the light and heat of fire and the sun are neither independent in themselves nor an independent essence, if they had proved that Allah’s Life and Knowledge or Speech were two dependent attributes and had not rendered each as an essential independent lord, their saying would have been true and their example would have been applicable. But they did not stop at rendering them as two attributes of Allah only, as they rendered each of them as a lord, an essence and a creator. Rather, they declared that Christ, about whom they alleged that a union occurred between him and one of these attributes, was one creating god. If Christ were the Word of Allah itself or His Knowledge itself, he would not be a creating god because the Words of Allah and His Knowledge are not creating gods. How can this be conceivable while Christ was created with a word from Allah and he is not the same word itself?
Three, the example they set forward about the sun, its rays and its light mean that the light is what is dependent upon it and the ray is what is separated from it, and this is not applicable to the example of the fire, its heat and blaze, as each item in the latter example depends upon the fire. Thus, there is only one dependent attribute of the sun, not two. If they mean that both the light and the ray are dependent upon the sun, or that both of them are separated from it, then both would be one attribute only, not two unlike life and knowledge. Thus, their example of the sun is not applicable.
This example is more correct if it is proved that heat is set off inside the celestial body of the sun. This is not proved by evidence and is denied by many. It is alleged that the sun, the moon and the planets are not characterized by heat or cold. This is the opinion of Aristotle and his followers. The example of the human soul and speech, means the soul is his life, and this is the wrong concept of the soul. And if they mean that it is the soul, which leaves the human body at death, and which is called the speaking soul, it is an independent essence, not one of its nonessential parts. Thus, Allah’s Soul must be an independent essence together with another essence just like the human body and soul, and so the Lord, the Exalted and Glorious, becomes a composition of a body and a soul just like a human being. But this is not the opinion of the people of Divine religions: the Muslims, the Jews and the Christians.
Four, the example may be concerned with the attributes of the sun, the fire and the human being, and it may concern the soul that is dependent on these essences, or it may be concerned with what is different from this. This is similar to the light, which is reflected upon the earth, the walls, and other objects if they face the sun, the fire, the human being or the soul, which are dependent on these essences. If this is the meaning intended, we say that this is a reflected ray and a reversed light not an independent attribute of the sun or fire. If the meaning intended is that which was immanent in Christ, we say that this is called a light, an inspiration and the Light of Allah, just as the Exalted says,
which means, “And thus We have sent to you (O Muhammad) Ruhan (an Inspiration, and a Mercy) of Our Command. You knew not what is the Book, nor what is Faith. But We have made it (this Qur’an) a light wherewith We guide whosoever of Our slaves We will.” (Ash-Shura, 42: 52)
This means that Allah made the inspiration He sent a light wherewith He guides whomsoever He wills.
The Exalted also says,
which means, “… and He will give you a light by which you shall walk (straight).” (AI-Hadid 57: 28)
If they mean that this was what became immanent in Christ, we say that this is not limited only to Christ, for this was immanent in all the prophets and the believers, although they are different according to their ranks. But that which is immanent in them is not the same Attribute of Allah, which is dependent upon Him, even if this immanence is made and caused through this attribute. It is not the Divine Attribute itself, although some people say, “It is the attribute of Allah that became immanent in the servant.” But this saying is false, for the same attribute of a substantive, which is dependent upon it, and cannot depend upon another. if one acquires another’s knowledge and conveys another’s words, it will be said, “This is the knowledge and words of so and so,” because the second person conveyed them from the first. The intended meaning is that the knowledge and words of the first person is not the same as that of the second person, even if in the end they both knew the same things. The conveyance is the words of the conveyer.
We are not referring to the characteristics of the conveyer, such as his movements and voice while speaking. If it is said that the words belong to whom they have been conveyed, the reference is the truth about the words, not the specific qualities of the conveyer, such as his actions and attributes. That is why people likened those who believe in the immanence of Allah’s attribute in His servant, to the Christians who believe in immanence. Both are similar in some respects.
The Christians do not believe in the immanence of an abstract attribute, they believe in the immanence of the hypostasis, which is an entity characterized by an attribute. They say that Christ is a creator and a provision. According to them, he is the creator of Adam and Maryam (Many, may Allah be pleased with her) and also a son of Adam and Maryam; he created them by his divine entity and is a son to them through his human entity.
They also say that he is God’s son and that he is also God by means of his divine entity. They say that he is God in both the divine and human entity because of the unification. Allah declares their disbelief when He, the Almighty says,
which means, “… that Allah is the Messiah, son of Maryam (Mary).” (Ai-Ma’idah, 5: 17)
This is in addition to other similar verses.
They set forth the example of the attributes of the sun, fire and the soul and give them attributes dependent upon them such as: light, life and the faculty of speech, and liken them to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as attributes of God. in answer to this claim, we say,
None of the prophets ever referred to Allah by the attributes of the Father, the Son or the Holy Spirit. If you find in the words of Christ (peace be upon him) or any other prophet any mention of belief in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, it does not mean the attribute of Allah, which is the Word and Knowledge or His Life, for that is not the intended meaning. What is distinct from Allah cannot be His attribute, except for His being the Creator. Moreover, if a human was really united to it, he could never be a creator. Those who adopt the aforementioned claim, have strayed far from the right path because they claimed and believed that the intended meaning of Christ and others, concerning the son and the Holy Spirit, is that they are two attributes of the Lord. Then, they strayed even further by rendering the attribute itself as a creator and a lord. After that, they strayed the third time by rendering the attribute as an object as being united with a human being, ‘Isa (Jesus, peace be upon him), after which he was called Christ who became the Creator, the Lord of the worlds. Such people have believed in three Divine Attributes apart from other Attributes and have rendered them as essences and lords. To top it off, they say that they are only one god, so they have erred in their belief in immanence and unification.
Secondly, it should be said to them that if they rendered those (i.e., knowledge and word) as the Attributes of Allah, just like light, speech and heat are dependent attributes on their objects, it would be impossible that they would be immanent in anything other than those objects. Besides immanence, attributes do not act like fire or the sun or the soul. But they rendered the word and the life immanent in an entity distinct from Allah, and rendered he in whom they were immanent a creating god. No one would ever render the object on which the light of the fire is reflected as being the fire, the object on which the sunlight is reflected being the sun, or the knowledge and speech uttered by a person as the same person. Thus, rendering Christ as the Creator contradicts the example they set forth to justify their belief.
Since your claims are false, contradictory and impossible, any example made by referring to the existing objects, will be inapplicable.
Sometimes Christians liken immanence and unification to water being poured into a container, and sometimes with iron being put into the fire, and at other times with the soul being put into the body and yet at other times that they are two mixed essences just like water and milk. All such examples, set forth by Christians about Allah, are false. Water in any container needs the container, and if it is broken, the water will be wasted. The container surrounds the water but it does not take on any properties of the water. The Lord, Exalted be He, is in no need of His creatures. He is not surrounded by any of the existing objects, for He is the Most High; nothing is above Him.
It is recorded in Al-Bukhari and Muslim that the Prophet {peace be upon him) said (about his Lord), “You are the First, there is naught before You, and You are the Last, there is naught after You, and You are the Most High! there is nothing above You, and You are the Most Near,’ there is nothing nearer than You.” 19 He is free of all needs from anything and all things other than Him are in dire need of Him. Thus, that with which He attributed Himself is different from the attributes of His creation. Similarly, His Being is different from that of creation. He has established Himself on the Throne, as He told us, although He stands in no need of it.
As for their saying, “… for we have not abandoned what we have been given or rejected what we have been granted,” it is similar to the saying of the Jews to Christ, “We will not abandon what we have been given or reject what we have been granted.”
The answer to both groups has two aspects:
One, you have altered and distorted the book revealed for you and the law established for you. There is no doubt concerning the meaning of the words and rulings. The lives of the Jews, after they altered the Torah, were not based on the law established by Musa (Moses, peace be upon him), and the lives of the Christians after they altered the Gospel, were not based on the law established by Christ (peace be upon him).Two, you have believed the other Book and the other Messenger. And whoever belies what is revealed from his Lord and the Messenger sent to him, is a disbeliever who deserves the torment of this life as well as that of the hereafter, even if he thought he was following the religion of Allah and an unaltered book. What then is the case if the words and meanings of the book he is following were altered?
By: Sheikhul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyah
Comments
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.