Gospel (Islam)

The Injil (Arabic: إنجيل‎ ʾInǧīl) is the Arabic name for the original Gospel of Jesus, and one of the four Islamic Holy Books the Qur'an records as revealed by God, the others being the Zabur, Tawrat and Qur'an. The word Injil is derived from the Greek word Εὐαγγέλιον (euangelion) which means 'good news' (the term injil is also used by Christian Arabs for their gospels; e.g. Gospel of John, انجيل يوحنا). Muslims believe this original Gospel to have been corrupted over time. They believe that the current Canonical Gospels of Saint Matthew, Saint Mark, Saint Luke and Saint John and lost Gospels, such as that of Saint Peter, contain fragments of Jesus' message but the majority of the original teaching has been corrupted.

Authorship

One frequent confusion is the authorship of the Injil. Although many Western scholars believe that the Injil, in Muslim belief, was a scripture authored by Jesus, the Muslim belief is that the author of the Injil was not Jesus but God, who inspired Jesus and revealed this scripture. Muslims believe that Jesus, who had memorized the revelation, then taught it to all his disciples.

In the Qur'an

The word Injil occurs twelve times in the Qur'an and refers to the Book of revelation given to the Prophet Jesus. God taught Jesus both the Law and Gospel. Muslim scholars generally agree that Injil refers to the true Gospel, bestowed upon Jesus by God. The word Injil is used in the Qur'an, the Hadith and early Muslim documents to refer specifically to the revelations made by God to Jesus. Muslims reject that Jesus or any other person wrote the Injil, instead crediting its authorship to God. Many Muslim scholars believe that the Gospel has undergone alteration, that the words and the meaning of the words have been distorted, with some passages suppressed and others added. The Islamic principle of the oneness and wholeness of God's divinity means that in their view it is impossible for Jesus to be God incarnate or the Son of God, and that the worship of Jesus by Christians is due to later additions. The Qur'an says of the Gospel:

"And We sent in their footsteps Jesus, son of Mary, authenticating what was present with him of the Torah. And We gave him the Gospel, in it was a guidance and a light, and authenticating what was present with him of the Torah, and a guidance and a lesson for the righteous."

The Qur'an further describes the followers of the Gospel, that is the Christians, in a highly positive allegory, saying:

"Muhammad is the messenger of God, and those who are with him are severe against the rejecters, but merciful between themselves. You see them kneeling and prostrating, they seek the blessings and approval of God. Their distinction is in their faces, as a result of prostrating. Such is their example in the Torah. And their example in the Gospel is like a plant which shoots out and becomes strong and thick and it stands straight on its trunk, pleasing to the farmers. That He may enrage the rejecters with them. God promises those among them who believe and do good works a forgiveness and a great reward."

Arab-Christian Injil

Arab Christians use an Arabic Bible that is the same Bible used by other Christians worldwide, but sometimes refer to it as Injil. The first four books of the New Testament in Arabic are named Injil-Matta, Injil-Markus, Injil-Luka, and Injil-Yohannah. In addition, the canon of the book itself is called Al-Kitab-Ul-Muqaddas, which means "The sacred book" or "The Holy Bible."

See also

• Gospels
• Biblical narratives and the Qur'an
• Christianity and Islam
• Islamic view of the Bible
• List of Christian terms in Arabic
• Islamic view of Jesus
• Suhuf Ibrahim
• Zabur
• Tawrat
• Qur'an
• Islamic holy books

External links

• A discussion of the Injil and some other scriptures A non-Muslim site (site is Christian; see articles and other links from its Main Page).
• An additional Islamic view from Ummah.net. A Muslim site.