Helping Muslims understand the Trinity

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By Mark Ellis and Abd ul-Masih

Father, Son and Holy Spirit

Most Muslims consider the idea of the Trinity to be grossly idolatrous, but there is a way to handle their objections.

First of all, make sure they understand the Trinity doesn’t consist of God, Mary, and Jesus. It may sound inane, but it’s a misconception that’s more widespread than you might believe.

A conceptual understanding of the Spirit isn’t much of an issue for Muslims. They’re usually comfortable talking about God’s Spirit. They understand him differently, to be sure, but it isn’t a stumbling block per se.

The biggest stumbling block is Jesus. The idea that “in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell” is so jarringly antithetical to the Muslim conception of God that it’s nearly impossible for a Muslim to agree with or comprehend.

But here’s how to approach a conversation about it. Say to your Muslim friend, “Let me ask you a question. The Qur’an—is it created or uncreated?”

Usually they will say “uncreated.”

“So the Qur’an is God?”

“No, of course not!” they reply.

“But only God is uncreated.”

“Yes, but the Qur’an is different. It isn’t God, but it’s his Word … the perfect revelation of his will, which has always existed.” (Can you see where this is going?)

“That’s precisely who Jesus is! Jesus is the Word of God—the Qur’an itself says so. Jesus fulfilled God’s will and revealed it perfectly. So if you can have this belief about the Qur’an, can you have the same belief about Jesus?”

If he understands, good. If he agrees with you — fantastic!

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11 COMMENTS

  2. Maybe I missed something but how does this help Muslims understand that Jesus is God i.e. a person of the Trinity, the “Godhead”?

  3. My comment is not on the article itself but on the accompanying icon used as illustration in this article. I think the picture contributes little to help anyone understand the Godhead more clearly. Firstly of all, there is only one God, the Bible says. Secondly, God commands his followers not to make images of him. Why? Since no one has seen God , chances are that our human-conceived ideas of how he looks like might turn out to be quite silly at the very least. Like in this example, why are there two humans in the icon? This gives a false image of God because Christ is the only human element of the Godhead. The Father is not a man. He never was human and he never grows old. God is forever fresh and vibrant. Jesus described Him as Spirit (who must be worshiped in spirit and in truth). And, of course it is the same with the Holy Spirit by which the Godhead interacts with the spirit of man at this age.

  4. If only it were this simple! As the jc points out, understanding how Jesus can be God – and how God can be a triunity (an indivisible nature in three persons) – will take more than this simple analogy, helpful though it might be. For an excellent discussion of this doctrine see, Who is the Lord, that I should obey him? Studies in the Character of God, by Barry E. Horner. The chapter “The Personal Being of God” has a 23 page section on God’s triunity of persons. The entire book is free as a pdf online.

  5. My daughter gave me a very simplistic explaination of the Trinity. She simply reminded me that she is my daughter. She is also a wife. And she is also a mother. Three in one. Works for me!

    • It is impossible !
      Your Daughter in the SAME TIME, right now IS NOT YOUR WIFE OR YOUR MOTHER.
      She is not your WIFE.
      She is not your MOTHER.

      it is very SIMPLE. TRINITY IS A PAGAN CONCEPTUAL.

      PLEASE READ THE TRANSLATION OF HOLY QUR’AN (ISLAM HOLY BOOK) THAT OFFER SCIENCE AN ACCURATE ANSWER ABOUT GOD.

  6. In principle Trinity is the pagan conceptual.

    Please, read The Holy Qur’an (Chapter 112, The Unity) say bellow:

    In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
    Say: He is Allah, the One and Only,
    Allah, is He on Whom all depend
    He begets not, nor is He begotten
    and none is like Him

  7. WHO IS THE CREATE pictures of Father, Son and Holy Spirit above ?
    WHEN, WHERE THE PICTURES CREATED?

    PLEASE THE HOLY QUR’AN SAY ABOUT YOUR PAGAN CONCEPTUAL:
    (SEE AL-QUR’AN: CHAPTER MARY,19: 88-95

    88. and they say: The Beneficent has taken to Himself a son
    89. Certainly you make an abominable assertion !
    90. The heaven may almost be rent thereat,and earth cleave asunder, and the mountains fall down in pieces
    91. That they ascribe a son to the Beneficent
    92. and it is not worthy of the Beneficent that He should take to Himself a son
    93. there is none in the heavens and the earth but come to the Beneficent as a servant.
    94.Certainly He comprehends them, and has numbered them all
    95. and every one of them will come to him on the day of resurrection, alone.

  8. Are not elements in the periodic table theoretically able to exist in three different states? Take the compound water. Water exists as solid (ice), liquid (water) and gas (water vapour), yet they are all the same substance H2O.

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