Was Jesus Crucified?

Trinitarian Christians believe that Jesus was God himself, or part of God; came to earth, and was crucified on the cross to purify our sins; then resurrected and ascended to heaven until the day he will come back again to earth. 

Muslims believe that Jesus did not die on the cross at all. Allah saved him, and someone else was crucified in his place. The Qur’an states: “That they said (in boast), ‘We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah’; but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow, for of a surety they killed him not: rather, Allah raised him up unto Himself; and Allah is Exalted in Power, Wise.” (Nisa, 4/157-158)

There is a difference of opinion as to the exact interpretation of this verse with regard to the following statement: “They (the Jews) killed him not: rather, Allah raised him up unto Himself.” Some hold the view that Jesus did not experience the usual human death, but still lives in body and flesh in heaven. This is the widely accepted view by Muslims. Others believe that he died, but not on the cross, and being “raised up” to Allah means that Allah saved him from the hands of those who wanted to kill him.

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Did Jesus Die for Our Sins?

Most Christian denominations hold the belief that the sin of Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God is passed on to their descendants and thus the whole of mankind is accursed with that Original Sin, from which no salvation is possible unless one believes in the atoning death on the cross of the Son of God.

Muslims believe that Jesus did not die for the purification of our sins and for our forgiveness. In contrast to the Christian teaching that human nature is basically evil (due to the original sin), Islam teaches that all humans are innocent by birth and they become sinful only when they consciously commit a sin. Therefore, there is no original sin in Islam.

The Islamic concept of sin is grounded on the belief that one man’s sin cannot be transferred to another; nor can the rewards of good deeds. Every individual is responsible only for his or her actions, for Allah is never unjust. The Qur’an (17/15) makes clear that every individual is an independent person who is responsible for his or her actions alone. There is no need for salvation from the original sin for there is no original sin.

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