One of the
striking differences that I found in the Qur’an versus Genesis is the nature of
God’s power. In Genesis, God’s power is much more passive; he “sees” that his
creations are good, implying that his knowledge of their success comes only
after their creation (Genesis 1:3). This concept of sight versus knowing
contrasts with the omniscient and all-powerful nature of God proposed in the
Qur’an. In Sura 35, the capacity of God is specified early stating that, “He
adds to creation as he will: God has power over everything” (Qur’an 35:1). God’s
attitude towards the people who he destroys in the flood suggests that he feels
his creation is a mistake in that he “saw the evil of the human creature was
great on the earth and that every scheme of his heart’s devising was only
perpetually evil” (Genesis 6:5). If this God were to be the same, all-knowing
entity found in the Qur’an, he would not make the mistake of creating evil
throughout the world. In contrast, the “One who is all wise, all knowing” never
falters and makes no mistakes (Qur’an 27:6). I felt that this juxtaposition of
the roles of God in each plays a large part in the interpretation of each
religious text. The ambiguity of God’s role in Genesis allows for interpretation
by the believers, while the straightforward God set forth in the Qur’an leaves
no room for elucidation, or distortion, by its followers.
Another
significant difference in the texts is the relationship between God and Adam.
Genesis addresses the betrayal of Adam and Eve in a retributive manner, cursing
and ousting them from the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:14-16). In this version of
the story, there is a serious punishment for violating the rules of God. In the
Qur’an, “the Lord brought [Adam] close, accepted his repentance, and guided
him,” which shows the differing relationship of God and his creation (Qur’an
20:122). Unlike in Genesis, the God of the Qur’an seems to be more forgiving of
those who admit to their sins. This also
illuminates the differing roles and duties of God throughout the Qur’an and
Genesis.
In the Qur'an, at least from all the passages that we have read, I did not see any mention of humans being made in God's image.This is explicitly stated in Genesis 1:27 as "And God created the human in his image, in the image of God He created him, male and female He created them." God in Genesis seems to be imperfect just as humans are, whereas the the God of the Qur'an is intentionally perfect.
ReplyDeleteIslam redefines the role of God, by cutting out, as you say, the interpretation of the believer, by taking out the part about humans being made in God's image.
Along the lines of what Lauren was saying, I think it's really telling that in the Qur'an, God raises himself onto a Throne after six days of creating, whereas in Genesis, God rests. The God of Genesis seems much less assertive, which contrasts with the imperial and straightforward (like you said) God of the Qur'an.
ReplyDeleteI think it is interesting that the Qur’an does not explain the drastic changes in the role of God. As Lauren said the God of Genesis is substantially different than that of the Qur’an. That being said, is it possible that God himself goes through some sort of transformation or maturation process over time? Or is the Qur’an claiming that the writers of Genesis had the wrong interpretation of God?
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