Totally Off Topic...

I've really enjoyed the history elements that we have brought into Honors this semester, courtesy of Dr. Brekke. To be honest, I knew very little of Islam before I read the assignments this week, and after class realized that there was still so much more I didn't know. The one thing I had gathered prior to this week was that Muslims believe they are descendants of Ishmael, Isaac's half brother. We didn't really touch on this in class, but I've always been amazed at how this feud between brothers that happened thousands of years is still present today. We can blame it all on Sarah, Abraham, or even Hagaar but where will that get us? The point is that we are to love those who believe differently than we do. From what I've gathered, Muslims don't understand true, divine judgment and Jews don't understand true, divine grace. Muslims were taught by Muhammad that if they saw injustice, whether sacrilegious or immoral, they are expected to enforce judgment and punishment as a part of their religious duty. They took it upon themselves to make this happen. But as Christians, we know that God will always enforce perfect judgement on His perfect timing. We are told to rebuke our fellow Christians out of love and to lead by example for the lost, but not to judge them ourselves because we don't have the divine authority to do that. Pick up any book by a Jewish theologian and you will find that the reason they can't make sense of God or His will, or the reason their ideas are different from ours is because their formulas lack grace. They were expecting a heroic, mighty, royal savior (lowercase intended because they sought earthly power and might) and instead found a baby in a manger. They couldn't understand that God came to save us by showing us selflessness and humility. As followers of Christ, we are they only grace and forgiveness they will see. We may worship the same God, but they still need a savior. That is what sets us apart from Judaism and Islam. We serve a loving God who came to save His people by becoming like them in body, and showing them how to live spiritually.

Commented on Tyler's "Unlikely Trinity"