http://www.islamcan.com/common-questions-about-islam/why-is-it-that-muslims-do-not-accept-the-doctrine-of-original-sin.shtml
The reason Muslims do not accept this doctrine is that the word of God,
the Qur'an, does not agree with it. The Qur'an teaches that God is ever
willing to forgive anyone who turns to him in sincere repentance. We
find in the Qur'an that God taught Adam and Eve how to seek His
forgiveness. When they did as God taught them, God forgave them (see
Qur'an 20:122).
Adam and Eve were created with the potential to do either good or evil.
They had a free choice either to obey God or disobey Him. They did not
realize how deceptive the devil was, and so prompted by him, they made
the wrong choice. Will God remain forever angry with them over that
one mistake? No! Instead, God taught them how to repair their
relationship with Him by praying for forgiveness. Muslims still often
recite the same prayer, as follows:
Our Lord, we have wronged our souls. If you do not forgive us and have mercy on us, then surely we are lost (Qur'an 7:23).
What we obtain from that incident is not original sin, but original
forgiveness, and an original lesson on how to seek that forgiveness. God
set the precedent that He will forgive those who turn to Him in
sincere repentance. We will all find ourselves in a similar situation
as Adam and Eve. The prophet, on whom be peace, said that every child
of Adam is a sinner, and the best of them are those who turn back to
God in sincere repentance.
This shows that God does not demand absolute perfection from us humans.
That would be an impossible demand, since God alone is absolutely
perfect. To err is human. God wants us to know that he will accept us
as we are, shortcomings and all, as long as we are trying our best to
obey Him. Even in our human situations, it is well understood that
absolute perfection is not to be demanded from anyone. Suppose teachers
were to demand that all students must score 100% on all their tests,
and that if they make even one mistake they will not pass. No one of
sound mind will demand this, for it is clearly beyond human capacity.
Similarly, God does not demand from people what is beyond their
capacity (see Qur'an 2:226).
Some will say that Adam was created perfect and that when he sinned he
ruined that perfection. This suggestion makes no sense. If perfection
meant that Adam had no ability to choose between good and evil, then
how did he exercise that choice which he supposedly did not have? And
if he had the ability to choose, as Muslims believe, then why would God
remain forever angry with him for his first mistake? Humankind was
then in its infancy. We needed someone to pick us up when we fall, not
someone to bulldoze us with a tremendous burden of sin and guilt.
Some will say that God could not forgive Adam even if He wanted to do
so, since God is Just and He must exact justice. This is as if to say
that justice is contrary to mercy, and that God is so fenced in by His
own law that He has no freedom to do what He wants to do. How silly!
The truth is that God warns us of His punishment, but He also promises
forgiveness for those who sincerely repent. If He decides to save
sinners, who is there to say He cannot do what He wishes?
Sunday, 11 February 2024
What is the rationale behind the non-acceptance of the doctrine of original sin by Muslims?
Is death the consequence of sin?
If there is no original sin, then why does everyone have to die? Isn't death the consequence of sin?
IslamCan.com
Muslims have a very positive view of life and death. Life on earth is
temporary. Death is the door through which one enters into everlasting
life. Muslims do not see death as something scary or frightful. Death is
the way one returns to Allah. God says in the Qur'an:
Say: The angel of death, who has been given charge of you, will carry
off your souls. Then to your Lord you shall all return (Qur'an 32:11).
Muslims hopeful of God's mercy look forward to the day when God will address them as stated in the Qur'an:
O peaceful and fully satisfied soul, return to your Lord: you are
well-pleased (with your good end) and well-pleasing (in the sight of
your Lord). Join My (righteous) servants and enter my Paradise (Qur'an
89: 27-30).
Viewed in this way, death becomes a joy for the true believer. This
view of death was further explained in a saying of the Prophet, on whom
be peace. He said:
Allah loves to meet whoever loves to meet Him.
It is true that no one likes to die. But the prophet, on whom be peace, said:
When death comes to a believer, he is given good news of the pleasure
of Allah and his gifts. There is then nothing dearer to him than what
is ahead of him. So he loves to meet Allah, and Allah loves to meet him
(This was reported by Bukhari and Muslim).
This positive view of death should not imply a negative view of life.
Life should be lived to its fullest, and believers should not wish for
an end to their lives. The prophet said; no believer should wish for
death, for, as long as there is life in you, if you are righteous,
perhaps you may increase your good deeds, and if you are sinful,
perhaps given time you may repent (reported by Bukhari).
God in His plan devised this earthly life as a temporary life. The
earth is a testing ground. Those who accept God's guidance in this life
will be given the abundance of God's grace in the next, the
everlasting life. When God decreed for humans to live on the earth, He
declared:
Henceforth there shall come to you guidance from Me now and again;
whoever will follow it shall have neither fear nor sorrow, and whoever
will refuse to accept it and defy Our Revelation, they shall be doomed
to the Fire wherein they shall remain forever (Qur'an 2:38-39).
Again, God says that He "created life and death so that He may try you, which of you is best in conduct" (Qur'an67:2).
God says further:
Indeed We created man from a mixed drop to try him and therefore We
made him capable of hearing and seeing. We showed him the way, whether
to be grateful or disbelieving (Qur'an 76:2-3; see also 90;8- 10).
In this life we should use our God-given faculties to learn and follow
God's message. The Qur'an says that those who end up being punished for
their sins will regret that they neither listened nor used their
brains when God's message had reached them (see Qur'an 67:10).
Incidentally, in the Qur'an it is not said that God warned Adam and Eve
of death if they ate from the forbidden tree. What God actually said
to them was that if they ate from the tree they would become wrongdoers
(see Qur'an 2:35). Given the Qur'anic viewpoint, there is no reason to
consider death as a consequence for sin.
Practical Ills of Original Sin
The notion of original sin implies that all individuals are inherently sinners, yet upon deeper analysis, it becomes apparent that this concept asserts our innate innocence as the sin we bear is not of our own making. It is crucial to note, however, that this concept finds no mention within the pages of the Bible. Instances where this notion is alluded to solely refer to earthly repercussions and do not delve into its essence further. Besides its absence from biblical teachings and its status as an innovation, there exist pragmatic grounds for advocating its prohibition.
---
It blames God which is blasphemy
As per the concept, the main one responsible for the whole of original
sin is God. This is a blasphemy towards God. It attempts to degrade God
by attributing Him a status of being cruel or being helpless, as He has
no power to remove it. Christians believe that sacrifice and blood is
required to remove this curse. This belief states that God cannot take
away what He had done wrong. No wonder Christians are leaving their
religion. This belief also explains the growth of Satanism as they
consider Satan to be a competitor to God both having limited powers.
It degrades Prophet Adam
Prophet Adam (peace be upon him) is a man loved and respected by
Muslims. He is the first man on earth and the father of all human
beings. Attributing to him our sins is disrespect for our father. This
concept makes him the worst man on earth and Jesus to be his complete
opposite. This is also blasphemy as it insults the father of mankind and
indirectly is disrespect of God.
It degrades women
Original sin gives all the blame of the incident of the apple to the
mother of mankind. It degrades not only her but also all women as it
blames womankind for such desires.
Original
sin also degrades women in other ways such as calling motherhood a
curse. In Islam, motherhood is a blessing from Allah but as per the
original sin, it is a curse upon women.
It takes away the blame from the culprit and makes him a victim
Christians
have a saying that is to hate the sin, love the sinner. This is against
humanity. A rapist, killer, holocaust believer and performer etc are
all taken as innocent people who have inherited the tendency to sin.
Instead of hating them, they are loved. Another blasphemy towards God
and the laws of God. The law of God says that such people should be
killed. In the USA,
the punishment for rape is 7 years in prison which is gross injustice
to the rape victim. When Islam declares death to the rapist, the
anti-God ones find it very cruel and barbaric.
It encourages other man-made concepts – One lie leads to the other
Since
this concept is not to be found in the Bible, it’s followers make up
lies to keep it alive and to stay away from exposing themselves. The
concept is an innovation of Paul spread around by Churches. This false
concept has led to other false concepts such as describing the mission
of Jesus. Jesus himself says that he has come for Israel only but Paul
says that his mission is to take away the sins of mankind caused by
Adam. No such thing has been described in the Old Testament but one lie
leads to another. This makes the Bible to be a book full of lies.
It encourages immorality
When a Christian reads that Prophets have raped, performed incest and
what not, they feel that such a thing is morally not too bad. Further,
these self-made acts of Prophets are defended by Christian priests and
preachers who have to make up lies to defend their religion. The sin is
hated and the sinner loved. Holocaust is hated but Hitler loved?
It promotes a culture of blasphemy and complacency
In the western world, we see pictures, idols, statues, movies and
cartoons of religious personalities shown in a negative manner. In many
pictures and movies, Adam and Eve are degraded by being shown naked,
Jesus is degraded and this makes them consider their blasphemies to be
freedom and art and culture. The westerners expect others to adhere to
their blasphemies and when they make silly portraits of the last
Prophet, they expect others to accept it as freedom.
Man-made concepts of forgiveness of sins have been invented. They make
the person complacent as they can sin everyday of their life and come
to Church once a week and get themselves all clean, the meter goes back
to zero. Many priests have been caught taking money for such things. A
totally pathetic culture is encouraged by original sin.
The devil has done careful planning!
Practical Ills of Original Sin
Saturday, 10 February 2024
Original Sin and Atonement
According to the Bible, the devil beguiled Eve who, in turn, made Adam eat the
forbidden fruit. But the real transgressor was woman as stated by St. Paul in his first epistle
to Timothy:
“And Adam was not deceived but the woman being deceived was in transgression” (2:14).
So through Eve, primarily, the Original sin was transmitted to each generation that
succeeded. Even in newly born babies the consequence of Original Sin is so severe that if
they are not baptized they are doomed to burn for ever and ever in the fire of hell (St.
Augustine). Till recently the un-baptized infants were not buried in consecrated burial
grounds because they were believed to have died in mortal sin.
Thus according to this Christian doctrine, mankind became doomed to eternal hell
because of the Original Sin, no matter how good and virtuous a man or woman may
be.
The Rev. W. Goldsek writes in this connection:
“It should be clear as daylight to anyone that God cannot break His own law: He cannot forgive a sinner without first giving him punishment. For if he did so, who would call Him just and equitable”. (Goldsek: Atonement, page 5).
So how was Divine justice satisfied? By the blood of Christ:
“Since Christ, God and man, has taken upon Himself our sins (by his death on the cross) in order to atone for them by giving satisfaction to Gods outraged justice” (Rev. J.F.DeGroot, Catholic Teaching, page 162).
- The Doctrine of Trinity defies reason and is repugnant to it. It is against the testimony of modern science, which has discovered that all of universe is one and is governed by uniform laws, so that its Creator and Ruler is One. The concept of three gods, each equal in every sense of the word and none being complete and perfect on its own casts the biggest slur on the glory, majesty and perfection of God.
- Similarly, the concept of Sonship and atonement of sins through vicarious sacrifice
is defective. Is it justice that the sin, and that too a minor one committed by Adam
and Eve, should make the whole of mankind sinners, so that even an innocent child
who dies without baptism is condemned to eternal hell? Would even a primitive,
backward society; accept such a view of Divine justice?
- Divine justice is supposed to be more just and perfect. Even if it is supposed that
solitary and minor sin committed by Adam and Eve is transmitted throughout
mankind till eternity, who is responsible for this transmission? Why, God of course.
- If so, why should mankind be doomed to eternal hell for an act of God?
- Is it justice again, and that too Divine, that the blood of the innocent Son (the only
sinless person according to the Christian dogma) should absolve and redeem
mankind?
- What would you think of a judge who hangs his own innocent son in place of the
guilty criminals?
- And are those who believe in this doctrine redeemed of sin? In fact it encourages
sin for a life long indulgence in sin can be washed off by confession of faith in
atonement to a priest at the bedside of the dying person.
- To sum up here the story of Christianity in a few words
- Man drowned in sin, and God alienated from him and, in anger. To appease His wrath
He sends His own son to the world through a virgin’s womb. The son is brought to the Cross and pays the penalty for human sin, thus washing away the sins of humanity with his blood. He dies for all, and then through his resurrection brings new life to mankind.
- This is the super- structure of Pauline schism as it was never taught by the Lord of
Christianity. But it is not a new revelation. It has now come to light that Jesus as portrayed by Paul and others as “the new Adam” is only just the last of the virgin-born Sun-gods - Mithra, Apollo’ Bacchus, Horus, Osiris and others; all of them born at the first hour of the 25th of December. They all led a peaceful mission; the first miracle that all performed had some connection with wine; they all declared that they had come to save humanity through their blood; they all went to death at the third hour of Friday some time in March; they all remained in the tomb for two days; they all rose again on Easter Sunday; they all ascended into heaven with a promise to return.
- Thus centuries before the construction of the Christian church, different countries had already evolved a system of religion, which Christianity repeated word by word in the writings of the early Fathers. In the names of these virgin-born incarnates, people were initiated into their cult through baptism. Their votaries worshipped the Cross, and their great festivals were Easter and Christmas. In fact, the Roman Catholic Church, the first Church on Pauline lines after Jesus, is just a replica of the old cult of mystery; and Christian worship remains sun-worship with all its old features.
- How can we stigmatize Paganism as a false religion when all its features did but forestall the official Church in the West? If Paganism is false-hood, the formal Church must be falsehood too. Anyhow, current Christianity is not a religion if by religion is meant a code of life that may help man to live worthily in this world and in hereafter.
- Having briefly discussed the conceptual aspect of the Divine Being according to
Christian dogma, one has to wonder when the upholders of the superiority of
Christian dogma are seeking a genuine relationship with God, which one of the
components of triune divinity do they establish such a connection with? How is
such a relationship established and how does it benefit them spiritually? It becomes quite clear that since the concept itself is flawed, it cannot form the basis of a genuine and spiritually rewarding relationship.
The Bible upholds the concept of REPENTANCE
- 9:After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
11: Give us this day our daily bread.
12: And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and
the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
14: For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
http://www.unveilingislam.org/2Conce...OrigSin12.html
Original sin does not exist and Jesus did not die for sins
Christians say that non-Christians will go to hell for the inherited sins of Adam.
Original sin is not to be found in the Bible. It is a belief that came later into Christian books perhaps by people like Paul [1][2][3].
Ezekiel 18:4
Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the
soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die.
“The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall
the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put
to death for his own sin.” (Deuteronomy 24:16)
These verses make it clear that original sin is not a belief supported
by the Bible and that we don’t need the blood of Jesus (may God bless
him) to enter heaven. Good deeds with faith with the will of God will
do.
Some people still disagree and present the following verses for their claim:
Gen 3:17-19
and others…
Psalms 51:5
If we look at these verses, we see that mankind is suffering due to
the sin of Adam (i.e.toiling on earth). These verses do not say that
mankind is bound for eternal damnation for this sin.
Psalms 52:5 actually speak of the person’s personal sins as he was an illegitimate child.
JESUS DID NOT DIE FOR SINS
Apocalypse of Peter says ‘No crucifixion’
Matthew 26:34-35, 55-57, 69-75
34 Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.
35 Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.
…….
55 In that same hour said Jesus to the multitudes, Are ye come out as
against a thief with swords and staves for to take me? I sat daily with
you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no hold on me.
56 But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.
57 And they that had laid hold on Jesus led him away to Caiaphas the
high priest, where the scribes and the elders were assembled.
69 Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee.
70 But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.
71 And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and
said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of
Nazareth.
72 And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man.
73 And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to
Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee.
74 Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.
75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before
the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept
bitterly.
Now as we clearly see, Peter did witness
the so-called crucifixion event. He was present there. The only thing
that saved him from death is his denial that he knew Jesus. Otherwise,
he would’ve got crucified that night.
Jesus himself says that He was not crucified and another man in place of Him got crucified who looked like Him.
This is written in the apocalypse of Peter. Below is an extract, click to see the complete book:
Extracts from the Apocalypse of Peter
“Come therefore, let us go on with the completion of the will of the
incorruptible Father. For behold, those who will bring them judgment are
coming, and they will be put to shame. But me they cannot touch. And
you, O Peter, shall stand in their midst. Do not be afraid because of
your cowardice. Their minds shall be closed, for the invisible one has
opposed them.”
When he said those things, I saw him seemingly being seized by them.
And I said “What do I see, O Lord, that it is you yourself whom they
take, and that you are grasping me? Or who is this one, glad and
laughing on the tree? And is it another one whose feet and hands they
are striking?”
The Savior said to me, “He whom you saw on the tree, glad and laughing, this is the living Jesus.
But this one into whose hands and feet they drive the nails is his
fleshly part, which is the substitute being put to shame, the one who
came into being in his likeness. But look at him and me.”
…And he said to me, “Be strong, for you are the one to whom these mysteries have been given,
to know them through revelation, that he whom they crucified is the
first-born, and the home of demons, and the stony vessel, in which they
dwell, of Elohim, of the cross, which is under the Law.
Peter then goes on to say what Jesus further said
“These things, then, which you saw you shall present to those of another race who are not of this age (i.e., the Arabs who then became Muslims).
Original sin does not exist and Jesus did not die for sins | Invitation to Truth
The Doctrine of Original Sin
"Say (O Muhammad): 'O people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians)! Exceed not the limits in your religion (by believing in something) other than the truth, and do not follow the vain desires of people who went astray in times gone by, and who misled many, and strayed (themselves) from the Right Path.'" [Qur'an 5:77]
The
doctrine of original sin is one of the tenets of
Christianity which was established in the 5th century
A.D., under the influence of Augustine, by the Roman
Catholic church. It must be understood from the
beginning that this doctrine, is at best, only a theory!
Christians
believe this theory to be a Bible doctrine. They
reason that, since theologians and preachers teach this
doctrine, then it must be true! This theory is not a
Bible doctrine and nowhere in the Bible can there be
found verses which give credence to it! Where, in the
Bible, is it written that , "All men are guilty and
condemnable for the depraved nature with which they are born"?
The
fact that mankind has the boldness to propagate this
(and other) theories as 'Bible truths', whilst being
warned by God not to tamper with His Holy Word, by
neither adding to or taking away from it, is surely one
of mankind's greatest crimes!
"You
must not add anything to my charge (to command, assign
responsibility to), nor take anything away from it."
(Deuteronomy, chapter 3, verse 4.)
"Verily,
We did send down the Tauraat (to Musa), therein was
guidance and light, by which the Prophets, who
submitted themselves to Allah's Will, judged the Jews.
And the rabbis and the priests (too judged the Jews by
the Tauraat after those Prophets) for to them was
entrusted the protection of Allah's Book, and they were witnesses
thereto. Therefore fear not men but fear Me (O Jews) and sell
not My Verses for a miserable price. And whosoever
does not judge by what Allah has revealed, such are the
disbelievers." [Qur'an 5:44]
Church
history records that from the 2nd and 3rd century A.C.
onwards, both the practices and doctrines of Christ
were increasingly corrupted by heathen philosophies
complete with their pagan superstitions and sense of
morality. This influence was extensive. On the one hand
there was unrestrained sexual lust, and on the other extremes
in asceticism; the veneration and worship of saints, relics,
images, and pictures; the development of a priesthood
with priestly rituals and ceremonies; magical and
spiritual powers ascribed to water, sacred words, and
signs; water baptism for the remission of sins; and the
baptism of infants. Heathen mythology was introduced and
branded 'Christianity'!
Many
of the early theologians were converts from
heathenism, who wedded their pagan philosophical
concepts to Christianity. These were educated men who
gave the concepts of their heathen beliefs to
Christianity, thereby corrupting the purity of the teachings of
Jesus. They believed, especially Augustine, that unbaptised
infants are damned because of inherited sin and guilt,
and that saints and martyrs could intercede in our
favour.
It
was from this soil of religious ignorance and
superstition that the Augustinian theory of original
sin arose. The Augustinian theory declares that since
all of mankind is descended from Adam, then on that
basis the morality of Adam was transferred to his
descendants, and therefore, all of mankind is intrinsically corrupt.
In
the Bible of today we can find nothing to substantiate
the doctrine of the original sin, infact we are able
to find denial of such a doctrine!
"Fathers
shall not be put to death for their children, nor
children for their fathers; a man shall be put to death
only for his own sin." (Deuteronomy, chapter 24, verse
16.)
"It
is the soul that sins, and no other, that shall die; a
son shall not share a father's guilt, nor a father his
son's. The righteous man shall reap the fruit of his
own righteousness, and the wicked man the fruit of his
own wickedness." (Ezekiel, chapter 18, verse 20.)
Allah explains in Al Qur'an:
"Say:
'Shall I seek a lord other than Allah, while He is the
Lord of all things? No person earns any (sin) except
against himself (only), and no bearer of burdens shall
bear the burden of another. Then unto your Lord is your
return, so He will tell you that wherein you have been
differing.'" [Qur'an 6:164].
Insha'Allah,
we as Muslims are able to continue with our Da'wah
towards those who are misled and misguided and
Insha'Allah, those who mislead and deceive bear the
burden of their own sin.
http://www.missionislam.com/comprel/origsin.htm
Did Jesus Die for Our Sins?
Idris Tawfiq
Answer
Thank you for your question and your comments, which are inspired by your desire to speak the truth about Islam.
It
seems that the one you quote has a rather unusual and complicated
understanding about the Christian teaching of Jesus dying on the cross
for sins.
I have certainly never come
across the idea before that people are actually obliged to sin in order
to show their gratefulness for the forgiveness which Jesus has brought
them.
This is certainly not within the
scope of Roman Catholic belief, although it comes nearer to a more
Evangelical belief, whereby there is nothing more that anyone can do or
say because Jesus has already done it all.
Such
a belief would lead some to say that even doing good deeds was not
necessary, since Jesus' death on the cross had decided once and for all
who had been saved in baptism. The idea of sinning on purpose, though,
goes even beyond that belief and I know of no Christian Church that
would subscribe to such an idea.
Understanding Christian Belief
It
is a central tenet of Christian belief that Jesus died on the Cross to
atone for the sins of mankind. Let us try and understand what this
means.
According to such a belief, God
created Adam and Eve, the first man and woman, and He placed them in
the Garden of Eden, giving them everything they needed to enjoy perfect
bliss. They could do anything they wanted, but were forbidden just one
thing: they could not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of
Good and Evil.
Satan tempts Eve into
eating of the fruit, and she in turn persuades Adam to do the same. As a
result, the two are punished by being expelled from the Garden of
Eden.
And so the Christian version of
the story ends. Adam and Eve are condemned for their sin and their
descendants will share forever their sin, since there is nothing they
can do to make up for it.
In the Muslim
account of this episode, to be found in the Qur'an, on the other hand,
the couple is indeed found guilty, but they return to Allah and are
forgiven. There is no inherited guilt for all eternity. Future
generations come into the world sinless. In the Christian version,
however, all human beings are born with Original Sin.
The Concept of Original Sin
This
Original Sin is inherited because there is nothing anyone can do to
make up for what Adam and Eve did. It cannot be forgiven, because this
sin was committed against God, and only God Himself could forgive such a
sin. Only someone equal to God could atone (or make up) for the sin.
Throughout the centuries, then, men and women tried to make up for the debt they owed to God.
At first, they offered sacrifices to their gods to please them and to stop them from harming them.
They
later began to believe in only one God, but still wanted to offer
sacrifice to Him to make up for the debt they owed. The problem was that
they could not find anything to offer which was equal to the debt they
were trying to make up for. Offering a sheep was no good, since it was
God who made the sheep.
According to
this doctrine of Atonement, it really needed someone superhuman, equal
to God, to offer sacrifice for that first sin. Many saw in Jesus just
that superhuman, equal to God Himself.
The
way Saint John's Gospel describes the crucifixion of Jesus is as
though Jesus mounts the cross willingly. He is not so much caught by
the Jewish authorities as he is seen to be sacrificing himself. If
Jesus is God's Son, then, his sacrifice is equal to the one who was
offended.
Christians believe that
Jesus' death on the cross meant that the Original Sin could be forgiven
if people became Christian and were baptized. The act of baptism would
wash away the Original Sin.
No Automatic Forgiveness
According
to mainstream Christian belief, though, Jesus' death on the cross did
not automatically forgive every one of the sins people would commit in
the future, although it did make it possible for them to be forgiven if
the sinner was truly sorry.
Your
friend is mistaken, then, in thinking that mainstream Christian belief
includes the idea that all of the sins he is ever going to commit will
automatically be forgiven.
It is certainly outside the scope of Roman Catholic belief that he is obliged to sin in order to be grateful.
Dramatic Crucifixion
The
second part of your friend's argument is flawed also. Lurid films have
made the crucifixion of Jesus exceptionally cruel and brutal. Artists
through the ages have shown very graphically the blood and the cruelty.
Orators have appealed to the guilt of sinners by suggesting that they
were responsible for Jesus' death.
For
him to say that "every one of my sins represented a crack of the
centurion's whip or a thorn being pressed into (Jesus') temples" is
certainly very dramatic language.
Christian
belief, though, teaches that Jesus died for Original Sin, which had
already been committed. He was making up for something wrong that had
been done, not anticipating future wrongs that might be done by
individuals. These future wrongs would be forgiven in so much as the
sinner was sorry.
Even though all of this doctrine is very complicated, there is still another aspect which we could mention.
There
are certain Evangelical and Protestant groups which make it seem as
though Jesus' death revolves around individuals: What Jesus did for me
is what counts. That he is my personal savior is what is important.
Muslims Submit to Allah Alone
Islam,
on the other hand, puts it the other way around. It is God (Allah) Who
is important. Humans are His creatures and all they do should revolve
around His will.
Muslims submit to the
will of Allah, and therein find peace and fulfillment. It is not the
individual who is important, but Allah alone.
On Judgment Day, each one will have to give an account for his actions, taking personal responsibility for what he has done.
Almighty Allah, who is both Merciful And Compassionate, will in sha' Allah forgive the wrong we have done.
I hope that this rather technical answer helps with your question. Please keep in touch.
Salam.
http://www.onislam.net/english/ask-about-islam/faith-and-worship/islamic-creed/167318.html