Absolute claim
Judaism , Christianity , Islam , but also other religions and religious groups within the religious communities make a claim to absoluteness in different ways .
In its form as an “intensive claim to absoluteness”, it is to be understood as the absolute, exclusive bond with one's own God. In the of Gustav Mensching so-called folk religions is this intense absoluteness. The universal or world religions represent extensive claims to absoluteness, claim for themselves or their teaching to be the only true and valid one.
General
A religious belief includes the conviction to make final statements about the truth . The claim to make final statements about the truth is called the absolute claim. It follows that every religious belief has a claim to absoluteness:
"To rel. In all religions - including Buddhism - belief belongs to the conviction that one participates in the ultimate truth with one's own belief. Whoever does not have this conviction has no part in any religion. As surely as the religions are all convinced to bring the ultimate truth about God , the world and man, they are religions. In this sense, Christians have always represented their faith as the ultimate truth. It is in no other salvation than in Jesus' word, work and person ( Acts 4:12 EU ). The Muslim also represents this conviction, namely in the historical sense that the Koran is the last of the holy books and thus the final revelation. Such constructions are an expression of the conviction to partake of the ultimate truth in one's own faith. No rel. Faith can live without this basic conviction. "
Judaism
In the Chumash of the Torah , in the Sefer Shemot , the Book of Names , it is described how Moses received the Ten Commandments . The first commandment is:
“I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me."
This is to be understood historically as a demarcation of the one, absolute , invisible and almighty God, who revealed himself to the people of Israel on Mount Sinai , from the deities of other cultures.
The Jewish creed, the Schma Israel , emphasizes the uniqueness of God with “alone”. The Lord (the God of the covenant) is “one” (Hebrew אֶחָד “echad” can mean “one” or “alone”); he is unique in his kind and in his being. Thus he cannot be compared or equated with the gods of other peoples:
"Hear, Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone!"
That there is no other God who could save Israel is attested in various places in the Tanakh , e.g. B. in Isaiah 43: 10-11 ELB , Isaiah 45.21-22 ELB and in Hos 13.4 ELB .
And so it says in the prophets :
"Thus says the Eternal, King Jisraël and his Redeemer, the Eternal of hosts: I am the first and the last, and besides me there is no god."
In the overall context of Isaiah 40-46, however, the statement “apart from me there is no God” is put into perspective. Claim and rejection are directed against idol worship (cf. 1st Commandment, Exodus 20 : 2–3 LUT84 ):
Further evidence to relativize the quoted claim to a rejection of idol worship can be found in: Isa 40,18 LUT84 ; Isa 44,9-10 LUT84 ; Jes 44,15 LUT84 ; Isa 44.17 LUT84 ; Isa 44:19 LUT84 ; Isa 45:16 LUT84 ; Isa 46 : 6-7 LUT84 .
Judaism does not regard the Tanakh as the only sacred scripture . Rather, it is believed that other peoples also have their prophets who transmitted scriptures to them. Insofar as their truths do not contradict the Jewish, Judaism's claim to absoluteness is limited. In all Jewish schools, from Orthodox to Liberal , non-Jews are accepted, provided they keep the seven Noachidic commandments . Missionary work among non-Jews is no longer necessary.
Christianity
Christianity developed on the basis of the Jewish religious history and shares the writings of the Old Testament with Judaism . Here it is predicted - binding for Jews and Christians alike - that God will send a savior into the world.
According to the Jewish understanding, this Messiah has not yet appeared. Christian understanding, however, the Messiah has come already in the form of Jesus Christ into the world by God in Jesus Christ became man and revealed himself to himself and to the remission of sins has sacrificed that opens people eternal life. To this extent, there is a source here for Christianity's claim to absoluteness in relation to Judaism and vice versa.
Another sovereign title, that of Kyrios , was also applied to Jesus: “A naive claim to absolute [absolute] is inherent in every religion. In the preaching of the NT there is an obvious claim to absolute absolute insofar as Jesus is the Kyrios, in whom salvation can be found alone . "( Rom 10 : 9-13 EU ; Phil 2:11 EU ; Rev 22, 20–21 EU )
Christianity's claim to absoluteness consists in the “conviction that God finally and bindingly communicated himself in Jesus of Nazareth , that the revelation of Christ is therefore not a religion alongside others, but an absolutely valid reality and truth in which only the human longing for life and search for meaning for fulfillment comes. "
Jesus proclaimed that he alone is the way to salvation (i.e. to God the Father and thus to eternal life ) and that he is truth personified:
“I am the way and the truth and the life; nobody comes to the father except through me. "
Peter said, answering before the Sanhedrin , why he and the other disciples of Jesus would teach the people that salvation and thus ultimate salvation can only be found in Jesus :
“He (Jesus) is the stone that was rejected by you builders, but which has become the cornerstone. And salvation cannot be found in any other. For we humans have not been given any other name under heaven by which we are to be saved. "
In his letter to the Colossians , Paul wrote that Jesus, before his incarnation , was involved in creation and thus gave him a central position, above all other people:
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in him everything was created in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, thrones and rulers, powers and authorities; everything was created through him and for him. He is before all creation, in him everything endures. "
In his letter to the Philippians he wrote about Jesus:
“That is why God exalted him above all and gave him the name that is greater than all names, so that everyone in heaven, on earth and under earth bow their knees before the name of Jesus and every mouth confesses: 'Jesus Christ is him Mr.' - to the glory of God the Father. "
According to Christian belief - as it is understood by many - every person (including all non-Christians) must appear before the judgment seat of Christ after their death ( 2 Cor 5.10 EU ). There it is decided whether he will live in eternal communion with God by accepting the vicarious death on the cross , or whether he will be forever separated from God's presence, i.e. in hell , by denying the grace of Christ ( Mt 25 : 31-46 EU ; Rom. 6,3–5 EU ; 2 Cor 5,21 EU ).
The Catholicism sees the supremacy of Christ's presence in the world, moreover, only as a guarantee of when the spiritual authority of the sacramental authored church is recognized. With the Council Declaration Dignitatis humanae (1965), the Catholic Church was able to defuse the conflicts that arose with its earlier (also secular) claims, but without solving all problems in the relationship between Church and State . Protestants and Anglicans have no ecclesiastical claim to absoluteness.
Islam
The Quran explicitly tolerates various creeds. There is a positive competition to do good in the respective confession:
“For each of you (who belong to different denominations) we have a (own) tradition ... and a (own) path ... determined. And if Allah had willed, He would have made you into a single community. But he (divided you into different communities and) wanted to put you to the test in what he gave you (of the Revelation). Now compete for the good things! You will all return to Allah (one day). And then he will tell you about what you (in this world) disagreed about. "
The Islamic claim to absoluteness is based on the assumption that Islam is the continuation and completion of the two older Abrahamic religions - Judaism and Christianity - and therefore the pure form of the original religion of Abraham .
“The people closest to Abraham are those who followed him (and his preaching at the time), and this prophet (ie Mohammed) and those who believe (with him). God is the friend of the believers. "
Thus Mohammed is the last of all God messengers, the "seal of the prophets" ...:
“Mohammed is not the father of (any) one of your husbands (even if this is his nominal son). Rather, he is the Messenger of God and the seal of the prophets (ie, the authenticator of the previous prophets, or the last of the prophets). God knows everything. "
... and Islam the only true religion:
“Islam is the (only true) religion of God. And those who received the Scriptures became divided - in mutual rebellion - only after the knowledge had come to them. But if someone does not believe in God's signs, God is quick to settle accounts. "
"The peculiarly inclusive claim to absoluteness of Islam towards the OT and NT and its revelation carriers rests on this conviction."
Accordingly, the Koran regards the followers of Islam as the best community of humanity. In sura 3, verse 110 it says:
“You (believers) are the best fellowship that has arisen among men. You command what is right, forbid what is reprehensible, and believe in God. And if the people of the scriptures had believed, verily, it would have been good for them! Among them are believers, but the majority of them are wicked. "
This belief is based on the one hand on the Quranic verse kuntum chaira ummatin above كنتم خير أمة / kuntum ḫaira ummatin / 'You (believers) are the best community' and on the other hand in verses of the Koran, which underpin Islam's claim to rule. For example, sura 9, verse 29:
"Fight against those who do not believe in God and Judgment Day and do not forbid (or: declare it forbidden) what God and his Messenger have forbidden and do not belong to the true religion - from those who received the scriptures - ( fights against them) until they meekly pay tribute out of hand (?)! "
Islam's claim to absoluteness is also legitimized in the principle of Islamic law, the formulation of which as a prophet's saying ( hadith ) can be dated to the first Muslim century ( 7th century AD) and states (after the saheeh of al-Bukhari , janâ'iz 79):
- الاسلام يعلو ولا يعلى عليه / al-islāmu yaʿlū wa-lā yuʿlā ʿalayhi / 'Islam is superior, nothing is superior to it'
As a central principle of classical Islamic teaching, it had - and still does in some parts of the Islamic world - extensive influence on the determination of the relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims, on the determination of the status of interreligious marriages and on the interfaith dialogue .
The Muslim theologian and university professor 'Abid ibn Muhammad al-Sufyani at the Islamic University Umm al-Qura in Mecca used this Islamic principle to justify several legally relevant decisions in his study:
- If a Christian or Jewish woman converts to Islam, the marriage with the Christian or Jewish husband that has existed up to that point will be dissolved, as Islam is superior and nothing is superior to it.
- it is inadmissible for dhimmis' buildings to be taller than those of their Muslim neighbors.
- It is inadmissible for dhimmis' buildings to be as tall as Muslims, because Islam is superior.
- “What is called the ' dialogue of religions ' today ” is not permitted, as all religions are abrogated by Islam . A dialogue presupposes equality and equality between the religions. However, Islam is of higher quality.
The teachings of some Sufis (Islamic mystics ), such as those of Jalal ad-Din Rumi (1207–1273) from Konya , who also recognized other religions as “true”, are an exception within the Islamic tradition .
mission
Christianity and Islam are missionary religions and justify their worldwide activities with their claim to absoluteness. Christianity refers to the mission command of Jesus from Matthew 28:19 LUT :
- "Therefore go and make disciples of all the peoples: baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
In the course of the 20th century, the Christian mission has changed to the peaceful recruitment of believers. Since around 1970, it has generally been associated with diaconal work or humanitarian aid.
Quotes
- “Anyone who says that all religions are the same and want the same thing has not even dealt with them superficially; because if the Islamic and the Christian doctrine are correct, then Jesus would have been risen and not risen at the same time. ”- Jürgen Spieß , in: For a good reason
- “If the religions are true, it is because every time it is God who has spoken. And if they are different, it is because God spoke in different languages according to the diversity of the recipients. And finally, if they are absolute and exclusive, then for the reason that God spoke of "I" in every religion. ”- Frithjof Schuon , in: Understanding Islam
See also
literature
- Gustav Mensching : Tolerance and Truth in Religion, Heidelberg 1955 (new ed. With critical comments by Udo Tworuschka ), Weimar 1996.
- Reinhold Bernhardt : The absolute claim of Christianity. From the Enlightenment to the pluralistic theology of religion, Gütersloh 1993, 2nd edition
- Jürgen Spieß : For good reason. Why the Christian faith is not just a matter of faith. 2nd ext. u. revised Muldenhammer edition: 2010.
- Heinzpeter Hempelmann : God without violence: why truth and tolerance belong together for the Christian faith. Brunnen-Verlag, Giessen: 2009.
- Henning Wrogemann : Theology of interreligious relationships. Religious theological ways of thinking, cultural studies inquiries and a new methodological approach, Gütersloh 2015, ISBN 978-3-579-08143-4 .
Web links
- Herbert Fronhofen: The Absolute Claim of Christianity (Bibliography)
- Peter Knauer SJ: Another absolute claim
Individual evidence
- ^ CH Ratschow: Evangelical lexicon for theology and community . tape 1 . SCM R. Brockhaus, 1992, ISBN 3-417-24674-1 , Absoluteness of Christianity, p. 13 .
- ^ Wilhelm Gesenius: Wilhelm Gesenius' Hebrew and Aramaic Concise Dictionary on the Old Testament . 17th edition. Springer, Berlin / Göttingen / Heidelberg 1962, p. 22nd f .
- ↑ Footnote to Dtn 6.4 EU : "6.4 Other translation options: Yahweh is our God, Yahweh alone." Katholische Bibelanstalt GmbH, Stuttgart: The Bible - Old and New Testament - uniform translation . Herder, Freiburg / Basel / Vienna 1980, ISBN 3-451-18988-7 , pp. 175 .
- ↑ Schm'a Jisrael: The Jewish Creed. In: haGalil onLine. Dr. Andrea Livnat, July 26, 2007, accessed March 1, 2016 .
- ↑ Leopold Zunz: The Holy Scriptures . Victor Goldschmidt, Basel 1980, p. 374 .
- ↑ Eckhard Bieger: Messiah - Christ, Christos, Massiah, anointed. In: Lexicon. www.kath.de Independent Catholic news portal, archived from the original ; accessed on May 30, 2019 .
- ↑ German Bible Society: Christological Highness Title Part 1 - Kyrios. In: bibelwissenschaft.de. Retrieved March 17, 2016 .
- ↑ Absolutness of Christianity, p. 1. Digital Library Volume 12: Religion in Past and Present, p. 334 (see RGG Vol. 1, p. 76) (c) JCB Mohr (Paul Siebeck)
- ↑ Johannes Hanselmann, Samuel Rothenberg, Uwe Sawarat: Specialized dictionary theology . R. Brockhaus Verlag, Wuppertal 1987, ISBN 3-417-24083-2 , Absolute claim of Christianity, p. 8 .
- ↑ G. Rosenkranz: Evangelisches Kirchenlkexikon . 2nd Edition. Volume A-G. Vandenhoeck & Rupprecht, Göttingen 1961, Absolutity of Christianity, p. 38 .
- ↑ Sura 5, verse 48 (koransuren.com).
- ↑ Adel Th. Khoury: Islam and the Western World . Primus Verlag, 2002. p. 112
- ↑ Gustav Mensching : On the phenomenon of the absolute claim in Christianity and in Islam. In: Wilhelm Hoenerbach (Hrsg.): The Orient in Research . Festschrift for Otto Spies on April 5, 1966. Wiesbaden 1967. pp. 444–452; here: p. 448
- ↑ For the interpretation of this verse "until they meekly pay tribute out of hand (?)" See: Uri Rubin: Quran and Tafsīr . The case of "ʿan yadin". In: Der Islam, Vol. 70 (1993), pp. 133-144; Rudi Paret (Ed.): The Koran. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1975, pp. 288-303. See the article: dschizya
- ↑ Majallat ash-shari'a wal-lugha al-'arabiyya . Umm al-Qura. Mecca. Vol. 13, No. 22; see the article in the original ( Memento from August 17, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Henning Wrogemann, Mission Theologies of the Present, Gütersloh 2013; Henning Wrogemann, Theology of Interreligious Relations. Religious theological ways of thinking, cultural studies inquiries and a new methodological approach, Gütersloh 2015, ISBN 978-3-579-08143-4