It is not for humans to say how God will judge. Indeed, no guarantee or promise exists that every Muslim will go directly to paradise after death or that every non-Muslim is automatically hell-bound. Islam is the only ancient religion that does not monopolize salvation exclusively to its adherents. Instead, Islam teaches that non-Muslims can and shall attain paradise.
Why is it so important to some believers that people go to hell eternally — or that they go to a heaven that excludes all others? The Qur’an reminds Muslims to leave judgment to God alone. To those who insist on judging, the Qur’an retorts in 2:95-96, “Say: ‘If the abode of the Hereafter, with Allah, is solely for you to the exclusion of all other people, then wish for death, if you are truthful.’ But never shall they wish for it, because of what their own hands have sent on before them; and Allah knows the wrongdoers well.” Qur’an 2:112 adds, “And they say, ‘None shall ever enter Heaven unless he be a Jew or a Christian.’ These are their vain desires.” Ultimately, how God judges someone is between Allah and that person.
(Much) more at the link. I didn't know anything about any of this stuff.
People who are wrong are just as sure they're right as people who are right. The only difference is, they're wrong.
— God@The Tweet of God
Sue--if I remember some of the OT prophecy, there is significant teaching that there will be an ultimate resurrection of the righteous after death. Not a personal salvation, per se, more like the resurrection of the group of righteous person, who I always presumed were jewish (although I don't think any of the biblical verse says this). Is that something Judaism does not now accept?
There's nothing at all about it in the Torah, and maybe a few vague poetic/metaphoric references in a couple of the later prophets (Isaiah, maybe? Not recalling off the top of my head). But to the extent there is anything approaching doctrine at all, it's more like, "At the end of days when the Messiah comes, the dead will live again or whatever; it'll be the Messianic era, so who knows what kind of crazy shit might go down? All bets are off." But most of that kind of stuff is of Persian and/or Greek origin just a few hundred years BCE, with a smidgen of later rabbinic embellishment -- not core religious tradition.
Sue--OK thanks; the passage I was thinking of was from Ezekiel 37:
12 Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.
13 And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,
14 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.
Not sure when that book came into being (I think Ezekiel was supposed to have lived around 600 BCE), but I had always thought this was part of the religious tradition in judaism. Is it intended to be in a post-messianic time, or maybe even metaphorical? I really don't know. Thanks for the info.
In today's world, it is absolutely stunning that anyone would say, "The Qur’an reminds Muslims to leave judgment to God alone."
Half of the fucking wars and conflicts on the entire globe are one gang of Muslims or another killing another gang because they have judged the other gang to be impure or theologically incorrect, or whatever. Even those girls kidnapped in Africa - it's all because one gang of Muslim thugs judges that educating girls is not kosher.
That doesn't change what the koran says, anymore than the crusades or abortion clinic bombings change what the bible says. Jerks perverting the words to their own greedy and violent ends, or to justify anything they want to do are just that, jerks. More blood has been shed in the name of the christian church than probably any country in history, but that doesn't change the teachings of jesus, much as many would ignore them. I don't know islamic teachings well, but I have no doubt those teachings can and have been perverted as well.
But then you are making an argument that isn't there. Paul even gives the Caveat that becoming a christian is the only "sure" way of salvation. In all Judeo-Christian religions judgement is reserved solely for the supreme being.
Okay... There's all kinds of things wrong with what you just said.
Reserved to the supreme being? In theory perhaps, but not in practice.
And let's not forget that the early christian church believed it alone held the "keys t the kingdom", and the church leaders (or at least the disciples) had the power to both forgive and retain sin, which kind of puts a bit of constraint, at the very least, on the supreme being. And I think a lot of that belief has, in one way or another, been carried forward in some of the modern Christian churches, believing they know not the "sure" , but the "only" way to salvation.
You can take it either way; the bible does say some things which at least suggest jesus is the only path to salvation, and that the Christian church (whatever that is defined as) holds the keys to heaven. And some christians take this literally, others, not so much.
