Say, “Should I seek a Lord other than ALLAH, when He is the Lord of all things?” Each soul is responsible for its’ own actions; no soul shall bear the burden of another. You will return to your Lord in the end, and He will tell you the truth about your differences. {Holy Qur’an / 6:164} Abdullah ibn Umar reported: The Messenger of ALLAH (SalaLLAHU Alayhi Wa Sallam) said, “Everyone of you is shepherd for his flock. The leader of people is responsible for his subjects. A man is the guardian of his family, and is responsible for them. A woman is the guardian of her husband’s home and his children, and she is responsible for them. The servant of a man is the guardian of his master’s property and he is responsible for it. No doubt every one of you is a shepherd and is responsible for his flock”. [Sahih Al-Bukhari 7138 / Sahih Muslim 7138] A core part of Christian doctrine is that they are eternally indebted to Jesus (Peace be upon him), because he died / payed for their sins, that they may be forgiven and earn “eternal life”. Which begs the question, to Whom did Jesus (Peace be upon him) make the payment? Certainly, if forgiveness of all of humanity is the “commodity” that Jesus payed for, then the One “receiving” payment is far superior to Jesus, having the Power to forgive. This Superior Being, is the Supreme Deity whom Christians often refer to as God Almighty. We Muslims call Him ALLAH [AL-ILAH, THE (only) GOD]. The Roman Catholic (Nicene) Creed, which is basically their “constitution” of beliefs, opens with, ‘I believe in God Almighty. Creator of heaven and earth. Of all that is seen and unseen.’ So far so good, but from here onwards, things start going off the rails… But let’s focus on “Creator”, and “seen and unseen”. Every person who subscribes to any “mainstream religion” will certainly agree that there is only one Creator. That would be God Almighty. Everything else is creation, whether seen or unseen. Which raises another Question… Is Jesus (Peace be upon him) the Creator? If not, then, most certainly, he is part of creation, seen during his time on earth, and unseen in the heavens, until he returns to earth, by the command of ALLAH. Muslims also go by the belief that ALLAH, is the God Almighty, sole Possessor of all Might and Power, including the Power to forgive. If we falter / sin / transgress, we cut out any and every “middle-man”, and sincerely turn directly to ALLAH, seeking His forgiveness. Anas bin Maalik (RadhiyALLAHU Anhu) reported: The Prophet (SalaLLAHU Alayhi Wa Sallam) said, “All of the children of Adam are sinners, and the best of sinners are those who repent. [Sunan at-Tirmidhi 2499] A key element of repentance, in Islam, is deep remorse, coupled with the sincere intention of not returning to the sin committed. Even if, due to human weakness, in spite of continued repentance, one commits the same sin over and over again, you should sincerely continue on the path of “remorse-regret-repent”, until someday, through His Divine Mercy, ALLAH accepts your repentance. Quick bonus!!! Moments spent in repentance are moments away from transgression. The doctrine of belief that “Jesus died/payed for your sins”, over two thousand years ago, leaves open a door of questionable sincerity, when it comes to repentance. Sincere repentance would be an act after the fact, and not a “pre-paid” advance, for sins that may be committed in the future. A historical “down payment” for sins that may be committed in the future, until the end of time, does not gel well. It leaves the “system” open for abuse by the spiritually ignorant who may adopt the preposterous notion that transgressing and usurping the rights of others is fine, as long as they repent and “give their heart to Jesus” before they die. What is most disheartening is that several Christian churches do not deem reparations and restitution (restoring of rights the transgressed) as being absolutely necessary for repentance and salvation. They consider efforts towards reparations as highly laudable, but not binding, placing greater emphasis of “reforming the heart”. This is in conflict with Exodus 22:1, a bible verse, which states, “Whoever steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it must pay back five head of cattle for the ox and four sheep for the sheep. Seemingly extreme, but still demonstrating a need for reparations, as mentioned in the Bible. A common escape hatch which Christians use to abandon biblical law is that “the blood of Jesus” ushered in a “New Covenant” which over-rides the laws of old. Most ironic is that this is not what Jesus ((Peace be upon him) preached. In the Bible (Matthew 5:17), Jesus states, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfil them”. Most Christians have adopted the Pauline version of Christianity, espoused by the apostle Paul, who was not even one of Jesus’s twelve disciples. Biblical historians have found that many teachings presented by Paul were intentionally altered to make Christianity more appealing and easier to practice, and are in conflict with some of Jesus’s teachings. By contrast, Islamic teachings from the Holy Qur’an and Ahadeeth have been scrupulously preserved, and remain unaltered since inception. It is the strict adherence to these teachings that has made many, if not most, Muslims constantly cognisant of ALLAH’S Divine Presence. It is through this knowledge that we turn to ALLAH, without any intermediary, seeking His Forgiveness when we falter. The gist of the matter is about our eternal salvation and how it can be attained. This all hinges upon our concept of God. Christians, as has been mentioned, choose to deify one of ALLAH’S Messengers, Jesus Christ (Peace be upon him), hoping for salvation by “giving your heart to Jesus”. Muslims on the other believe that the salvation of all of humanity lays with the One true God, the Almighty, oft-Forgiving and most Merciful. Differing significantly from Christians, the Muslim concept of ALLAH (God) is entrenched deep within how ALLAH describes Himself in Ayaat-ul-Kursi (verse of the Throne), in the Holy Qur’an {2:255}. Interesting to note is that, immediately thereafter, in the following verse, ALLAH states: “Let there be no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clear from error. Whoever rejects evil and believes in ALLAH has grasped the most trustworthy Hand-hold that never breaks. And ALLAH Hears and Knows all things”. {Holy Qur’an / 2:256} The above verse clearly illustrates that, in terms of belief, ALLAH has given man free will to choose, but not a choice that is free of consequences. Every sane, rational human being is fully aware what those consequences are. With this in mind, even though we do not agree with the Christian choice of beliefs, Muslims are obliged to respect their right to choose. Respectfully, as Muslims, we state the following; “Say, O you disbelievers, I worship not that which you worship. Nor are you worshippers of What I worship. Nor will I be a worshipper of what you worship. Nor will you be worshippers of What I worship. For you is your religion, and for me is my religion”. {Holy Qur’an / 109:1-6} In spite of how firm we may be in faith, with a lifetime of good deeds and submission to ALLAH, leave alone a “down payment” for salvation, all this would barely suffice as a gesture of gratitude for ALLAH’S many bounties that we get to enjoy. Truth be spoken, we can only attain salvation through the Mercy of ALLAH. Narrated Abu Hurairah (RadhiyALLAHU Anhu): ALLAH’S Rasool (SalaLLAHU Alayhi Wa Sallam) said, “Follow the right path strictly, and be steadfast, and keep in mind that no person can achieve salvation through his (good) actions”. Someone (RadhiyALLAHU Anhu) asked; “Not even you, o’ Rasool of ALLAH?” He (SalaLLAHU Alayhi Wa Sallam) said, “Not even me, except that ALLAH should cover me with His Grace and Mercy”. [Sahih Muslim] (Riyaad-us-Saliheen, Volume One; Hadeeth 86 /page 104) I C A N (15 Shawaal 1447 / 4 April 2026)