How Islam is Related to Other Religion

- Mir Ahmed Ali Khan

Islam is a religion that came after Judaism, Christianity, etc. Sometimes people of other faiths ask this question: How is Islam related to the other religions preceding it? In this respect, our response is simple.

Allah, in His infinite Justice and Mercy, sent His Prophets to guide the people to Allah, to show them not only how to worship God but also how to live. This guidance started from the time of Adam. Through the Prophets a Divine constitution was sent that the people could follow and attain salvation. After Adam, five such constitutions were sent by God, through Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Them All). Each of these Prophets abrogated the constitution that had been followed upto his time and presented the world with a new constitution. The other Prophets that came in between had been sent to revive the constitutions. For the example, the Prophets came after Noah revived Noah's constitution until Abraham came and presented the world with a new constitution, abrogating the constitution of Noah.

The abrogation of a previous constitution doesn't mean that that particular constitution was wrong. To make this clear, I would like to use an analogy. Compare humanity from the time of Adam to the present to a student. The physics that a student learns in primary school is way different from the physics he learns in high school. That doesn't mean that what he had learned earlier was wrong. I hope I make my meaning clear.

The religions brought by different Prophets were given different names like Judaism, Christianity, etc., and Islam is the name of the religion that was brought by Prophet Muhammad. Judaism was the path to salvation till the coming of Jesus who brought Christianity. Anyone following Judaism after the coming of Christianity was not on the right path any more. The same way, Christianity was the path to salvation till the coming of Muhammad who brought Islam. Anyone following Christianity after the coming of Islam was not on the right path any more.

Now comes one question: Why do Muslims believe that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is the last Prophet of Allah and Islam is the last path of guidance? The reason is simple. Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, none of the Prophets of God ever declare that they were the last Messengers of God and that the path of salvation shown by them was the last and final path. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) brought Islam, and he did declare that he was the last Messenger of Allah and Islam was the last and final path of salvation.