Peace and Harmony: A Religious Essay on Islam and Christianity

This essay explores the core messages of peace and harmony within Islam and Christianity, drawing on key religious texts such as the Holy Quran and the Holy Bible. It highlights the emphasis on love, compassion, and tolerance as central tenets in both faiths. The essay discusses how Islam advocates for peace through unconditional submission and the importance of living by moral standards, while Christianity emphasizes inner peace, honesty, and respecting others. It also examines the role of key figures like Prophet Muhammad and Jesus Christ in conveying these messages. The essay concludes by underscoring the shared goal of attaining peace and harmony in society and the importance of religious tolerance for a better understanding of God. The paper also references relevant academic sources like books and journals to support its arguments.

Running head: RELIGION
Religion
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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The following essay aims at discovering the message of peace innate in the two most
significant religions in the world, Islam and Christianity. It has been recorded that both these
religions have almost same roots and they have advocated for peace in their religious texts. The
religious text of Christianity is the Holy Bible whereas for Islamic people their religious text is
the Holy Quran. The messages of peace and love have been delivered in these two religious texts
widely. People following these two religions are advised to follow this message so they can live
happily and in harmony.
At first the context of Islam will be discussed in this essay. In the Holy Quran the theme
of love has been discussed through the message“O You who believe! Submit to peace, the
religion of Islam, fully and unconditionally”. The Holy Prophet of Islam Muhammad has
discussed the message of love and peace in his teachings widely through this message. Followers
of Islam are asked to follow this advice since peace is the only element that can bring harmony to
their lives (Tibi 2017). Quran has always taught of love and peace for every human being
through showing compassion on others.
Islam has also given the message that Muslims should be tolerant to all other religions in
the world thus showing their broad minded approach to world. However, there has been a
problem in this scenario. He is of the opinion that some Muslim groups have followed some
traditions and superstitious psychology that were invented many centuries after Quran came into
practice (Tibi 2017). These superstitions have changed over time in a radical manner. The root
meaning of the word Islam is peace in Arabic. Islam has always been protective of peace and its
followers should keep peace in their lives so their lives can be meaningful. The main intention or
purpose of this peaceful life was to consider a life where no violent activities and crime could be
a part of (Robinson 2013). Compassion and mercy are two of the central themes in Islam as their

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Holy Prophet had asked them to submit to peace in an unconditional manner. God or the Holy
Prophet Muhammad has asked them to live their lives by their moral standards that would be
beneficial for them to live in harmony with people from other religions (Mirbagheri 2012).
God had asked followers to practice some most crucial elements in human life like
compassion, peace, love and mercy as mentioned earlier. The Holy Prophet has also advised not
to follow Satan who is a complete enemy to human beings (Robinson 2013). Islam calls for a life
in which divinity and absolute obedience to God is highly solicited. Apart from, that moral
sincerity and honesty are also needed as well (Boase 2013). If an Islamic follower always stays
true to God and honest in his life, his desire to go to heaven or ‘jannat’ would be surely fulfilled.
As told in Islam, everyone will get their dues on the fateful Day of Judgment. Apart from that
one thing is also very important that no person should be led forcefully to believe in the faiths of
Islam (Boase 2013). Rather, Islamic views should view everyone in an equal manner. In Islam,
Hajji is an example of peace through which human beings can thrive to attain peace.
The next scenario will be concerned on Christianity and its message of peace delivered in
the Holy Bible. In their religious text, it has been mentioned that: “Make every effort to live in
peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord”. The only way to
see or get the blessings of God is to observe peace and honesty in their everyday life. Inner peace
of human beings will only lead to greater aspects of global peace. This is how human beings
could attain satisfaction of their minds (Johnson 2012).
In the Bible, many verses have been found where messages of peace have been delivered
to establish peace of mind. This can be gained only through believing in truth, honesty and
respecting other people. A harmonious life can only be gained through this prospect. The

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followers of Christianity have suggested that when anyone is suffering from anxiety and worries,
they should sit at a quiet place. Next, they should read out the Scripture or listen to music of
worship (Johnson 2012). This will calm down their minds and give them solitude. This would
relieve them of their stress. God has always promised human beings about peace and he always
keeps all his promises. True wisdom of Christianity would always keep human beings tolerant
about other religions.
Both the Old Testament and New Testament have conveyed messages of peace in its
workings. The Holy Trinity (God the Holy Father, Lord Jesus and Holy Spirit) has conveyed
messages of peace and grace. Every human beings should be peace loving and this should be
presented through their behaviours (Thompson 2015). Peace, just like creation is designed by
God in the human psychology. Both internal and external peace can be achieved when human
beings would be able to know Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ sacrificed his life to save human beings
from damnation because of their sins and restoring peace in society (Cochrane 2015). It has been
also expressed in the Bible that human beings should be liable to share peace among all others.
All the good deeds of human beings would be evaluated on Doomsday and they will achieve
peace through heaven.
On a concluding note, it can be stated that both Christianity and Islam have supported
peace to attain heaven after death. Human beings always need to establish peace in their society
and live with all the people in harmony. The verses of both these religious texts, Bible and Quran
have supported the viewpoint that peace should be there in society human beings can have a
knowledge of God or Allah in their minds. Thus followers of these two religions would be
tolerant of other religions as well.

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Reference List
Boase, R. ed., 2013. Islam and global dialogue: Religious pluralism and the pursuit of peace.
Ashgate Publishing, Ltd..
Cochrane, C.N., 2015. Christianity and classical culture. Ravenio Books.
Johnson, P., 2012. history of Christianity. Simon and Schuster.
Mirbagheri, S.F., 2012. War and Peace in Islam: A Critique of Islamic/ist Political Discourses.
Springer.
Mirbagheri, S.F., 2012. War and Peace in Islam: A Critique of Islamic/ist Political Discourses.
Springer.
Robinson, N., 2013. Islam: A concise introduction. Routledge.
Thompson, M.J., 2015. Justice and Peace: A Christian Primer (Second) Edition. Orbis Books.
Tibi, B., 2017. War and peace in Islam. In The Use of Force in International Law (pp. 47-64).
Routledge.