Group+3.1+Mary+in+Islam+(Mother+of+Jesus)

The History By: Yasmine Al-LahiqAl-Naimi In Islam there are four women recognized as being righteous because of their piety, but Mary, or Maryam in Arabic, the mother or Jesus, or also known as the Virgin Mary, is the only women mentioned by name in the Qur’an. As well as the only women to have a sura, which is a chapter in the Qur’an, dedicated to her. The nineteenth sura is named after her and her life. In Islam she is referred to as Maryam, Umm Isa; which means Mary, mother of Jesus, or Syeda Maryam, which means Lady Mary. In the Quran the story of Mary starts off with her as a child born in Galilee, Nazareth in 20 B.C from her father, Aal Imran, and her mother, Hannah (in Arabic or Saint Anne in Christianity). According to the Qur’an Hannah was expecting the child to be a boy who would one day grow up to be scholar or religious leader, but God gave her a girl whom she named Mary and when she saw the child was a girl Hannah asked God to protect her from Shaytan (Satan in Arabic) and that is what made Mary a pious person. Mary was then given to a priest and prophet named Zechariah, who took care of Mary. The Qur’an states that Mary spent most of her pregnancy alone and gave birth to Jesus (Isa in Arabic) in a distant place; this story is so miraculous because Mary was a virgin and there no man was the father of Jesus. However even though this is a miraculous event Mary is not considered as a divine character, or the mother of God, she is seen as an honorable woman for her purity, in other words “a woman of truth.”

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 Another story told in Qur’an about Mary is the miracle of the palm-tree, which is the most important miracle for Muslims. In this story Mary is alone next to a withered palm-tree in the wilderness, and she is wishing that she is dead. Then a voice came from beneath her and it said “shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee” (Qur’an 19:25). In this instance Mary is nourished by Allah, although in the first case the fruits come to Mary without her having to do anything but remember God in the prayer. However in the second case she participated in the miracle by shaking the tree. =====

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 Some people believe that after Jesus’ death Mary was taken to the city Ephesus, which is now turkey. A small structure called the “House of Mary” stands in Ephesus, and Muslims believe that this is the place where Mary lived in the city. Mary died in 45 A.D at Mount Zion, Israel. ===== 





Sources: " Islam's View of Mary" []# "Mary in Islam" [] " The Story of Mary in Brief" [] =Differences and Comparisons between Mary of Islam and Mary of Christianity. = By: Johnele Chapman

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Muslims and Christians both believe in Mary, the mother of Jesus. Mary is a very important figure in both religions, but are looked at differently. Muhammad said that "the most honorable woman of all time was Mary, the mother of Christ Jesus (Saahir, Mikal). In Islam, Mary is seen as a “prophetess”. She was a human and couldn't perform any Godly traits. Muslims believe that she was blessed by God which is how she was able to give birth to Jesus, the prophet of the messenger, and still be a virgin. In the Quaran, it states, “And Mary the daughter of Heli, who guarded her chastity, so we breathed into her through Our Spirit (Gabriel).” (Quran 66:12). Through the angel Gabriel, God blew Jesus as a spirit into Mary (Abdulsalam).  In Islam, Mary had no husband. This allowed for rumors of Mary having relations outside of wedlock. To get away from all the talk, she went away to have the birth of Jesus near a palm tree. The birth of Jesus wasn't easy. She felt all the labor pains that any woman would feel during child birth. Muslims believe that Mary should not be idolized. "Some religious societies have lifted up Christ Jesus and his mother Mary to worship status. Such recognition is forbidden in Al-Islam because Muslims strongly believe that nothing - no one -- is to be worshipped except for G-d, alone" (Saahir, Mikal). They believe that this is wrong because it allows for people to worship Mary and not God. =====

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Mary in Christianity is different than Islam. Christians believe that Mary performed miracles as a child. (Sered). Muslims don't believe this because they believe that Mary was human and couldn't do anything Godly. Christians also believe that Mary was born of original sin and so was Jesus. (Abdulsalam).This is also a God like characteristic which is why Muslims do not believe it. In Christianity, Mary had a husband named Joseph. Although they were married, they stayed chaste. Mary was told that she was going to give birth to the son of God, Jesus, by an angel named Gabriel. She gave birth to him in a stable and laid Jesus in a manger. It is said that the birth was painless. Mary is praised in Christianity through many forms. One form is through the prayer, "The Hail Mary". ===== 

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There are many similarities between Mary in Islam and Mary in Christianity. =====

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Both religions believe that:

 * =====<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Mary gave birth to Jesus a virgin. =====
 * =====<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">The angel Gabriel told Mary that she was going to give birth to Jesus. =====
 * =====<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Mary went away and gave birth to Jesus privately. =====
 * =====<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Christians and Muslims both acknowledge Mary's importance =====

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<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none;">Galvan, Juan. “Jesus and The Virgin Mary in Islam”. [] =====

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<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">M. Abdulsalam. " Mary in Islam". 04 October 2009. [] =====

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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Saahir, Imam M. "AL-ISLAM IN AMERICA; Jesus and His Mother Mary." Recorder, sec. 109: B3. Ethnic NewsWatch. 2004. Web. 9 Mar. 2011 <http://ezproxy.msu.edu/login?url=http: //search.proquest.com/docview/367454114?accountid=12598>. ======

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<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">Sered, Susan. “Cultural Anthropology: Rachel, Mary, and Fatima”. May 1991. Vol. 6, No 2, pp 133-146. [] =====

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">**Mary in the Quran**
<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Times New Roman,serif; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">By: Asma Ali The story of Mary (Maryam in Arabic) is told in the 19th chapter of the Quran (Sura Maryam). According to the Quran, Mary was born to Imran and his wife Hannah. Hannah was having trouble carrying a child, and asked Allah for guidance. **"Remember when the wife of 'Imran said: "My Lord, I have vowed to You whatever is in my womb, to be devoted [to Your service]. Please accept it from me. You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing." When she gave birth, she** **said: "My Lord! I have given birth to a girl"-and Allah knew very well what she had given birth to, male and female are not the same-"and I have named her Maryam and placed her and her children in Your safekeeping from Satan, the accursed." (Surah Al 'Imran: 35-36)"** Mary was then known as a miracle child to her family. The Prophet Zakariyya was put in charge of giving Mary her education. Seeing her kindness, purity and devotion through this education, Allah had chosen her to carry the prophet Isa (Jesus). Mary was approached by the Angel Jibril (Gabriel) in the form of a man, who had given her the news that she would become pregnant with a baby boy. **"And when the angels said: "Maryam, Allah has chosen you and purified you. He has chosen you over all other women. Maryam, obey your Lord and prostrate and bow with those who bow." (Surah Al 'Imran: 42-43**)". At Allah's will, Mary became pregnant and remained a virgin. However, the Quran does not state that Jesus is the son of God in anyway. Jesus came into Mary's womb because it was Allah's creation and was considered at miracle. Mary gave birth to Jesus in a secluded area with no help of a nurse or a midwife.** "So she conceived him and withdrew with him to a distant place" (Surah Maryam: 22)".** While people judged her because they did not believe in the miracle that she had just performed, Mary kept her faith in Allah and continued to care for her child. Jesus grew up to defend his mother, and helped his mother Mary's reputation return to have nothing but good things said about her. Through the Quran, Mary is known as a role model for all women. She sets an example for how all women should act in their daily lives. She is also known as the "one that Allah preferred" over all the other women.