What Are the Criteria for Choosing the True Religion?
When a person searches for the true religion, they must rely on clear and logical criteria that help them distinguish between religions. These criteria must be compatible with sound innate nature (fitrah) and reason, and they must answer the major questions in life. We will discuss these criteria while highlighting Islam and Christianity, with a comparison between them based on sacred texts and logic.
A Purely Monotheistic Religion That Contains No Polytheistic Elements or Human Deities
The true religion must call for the worship of God, the One and Only, without a partner or intermediary.
Islam: Emphasizes the absolute oneness of God:
“Say, ‘He is Allah, [who is] One. Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born. Nor is there to Him any equivalent.’” (Surat Al-Ikhlas)
Christianity: Presents the concept of the Trinity (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit). However, we find texts in the Bible confirming the oneness of God:
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” (Mark 12:29)
“I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.” (Isaiah 46:9)
A question for reflection: If God is one, as the texts confirm, why is He presented in Christianity as three persons (hypostases)? And is this consistent with innate nature and reason?
Compatibility With Reason and Innate Nature and Direct Worship of God
The true religion must be compatible with reason and logic and contain no contradictions or intellectual impossibilities.
Islam: Its teachings are clear and understandable, and they harmonize with sound innate nature and reason.
Islam clarifies that God is close to His servants, and a person does not need intermediaries in worship:
“And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me—indeed, I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me.”
(Surat Al-Baqarah: 186)
Christianity: Relies on concepts such as Original Sin and Atonement, which raise questions about God’s justice and mercy.
It also relies on the mediation of Christ and the saints in worship, which raises a question: If God is close to His servants, why does a person need intermediaries?
A question for reflection: Do you find things in your current religion that are difficult to believe or that contradict reason?
Preservation of Sacred Texts From Alteration
The true religion must have its sacred texts preserved from alteration and change.
Islam: The Noble Qur’an is preserved by the protection of God Almighty:
“Indeed, it is We who sent down the Message, and indeed, We will be its Guardian.” (Surat Al-Hijr: 9)
Christianity: The Bible has been subject to change over time. For example:
Different versions of the Bible contain differences in the number of books and texts.
Texts such as “the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit” in the First Epistle of John (5:7) are not present in the oldest Greek manuscripts.
A question for reflection: If the Bible is the word of God, why are there differences between its versions? And how can a text that has been subject to change be trusted?
Religion Is Built on Verifiable Proofs and Evidence
The true religion must provide clear evidence that it is from God, whether rational, scientific, or historical.
Islam: The Noble Qur’an contains scientific, linguistic, and historical miracles that prove it is from God.
Scientific miracle: The stages of embryonic development:
“Then We made the sperm-drop into a clinging clot, and We made the clot into a lump [of flesh].” (Surat Al-Mu’minun: 14)
Historical miracle: Mentioning events that were not known at the time the Qur’an was revealed.
Rhetorical miracle: The Noble Qur’an challenged the Arabs in their eloquence and rhetoric, and they were unable to produce anything like it:
“Say, ‘If mankind and the jinn gathered in order to produce the like of this Qur’an, they could not produce the like of it.’”
(Surat Al-Isra: 88)
Christianity: It does not contain scientific or linguistic miracles in the Bible.
A question for reflection: If the Bible is from God, why does it not contain miraculous signs that prove it?
Universal Message
The true religion must be a universal message directed to all human beings, regardless of race, language, or time.
Islam: A universal message:
“And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds.” (Surat Al-Anbiya: 107)
Christianity: It began as a message directed to the Children of Israel only. Christ, peace be upon him, says:
“I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24)
“Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
(Matthew 10:5–6)
A question for reflection: If the message of Christ was directed to the Children of Israel only, how can it be considered a universal message?
Answering Existential Questions
The true religion must provide clear answers to the major questions of life:
Where did we come from?
Why are we here?
Where are we going?
Islam: It provides clear answers:
“And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.”
(Surat Adh-Dhariyat: 56)
“So whoever does an atom’s weight of good will see it, and whoever does an atom’s weight of evil will see it.”
(Surat Az-Zalzalah: 7–8)
Christianity: Relies on the idea of Original Sin and Atonement, which raises questions about the justice of God.
A question for reflection: If God is just, why does He hold humanity responsible for a sin they did not commit?
The Messenger and the Role Model
The true religion must provide a messenger or prophet who represents a good role model in morals and behavior.
Islam: The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ is a complete role model for humanity:
“There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern.”
(Surat Al-Ahzab: 21)
Christianity: Christ, peace be upon him, is considered God or the Son of God, which raises questions about the possibility of following his example as a human being.
A question for reflection: Can God be a role model for humans?
The Importance of These Criteria
These criteria help a person distinguish between true heavenly religions and earthly religions made by humans.
Islam fulfills these criteria with excellence, which makes it the true religion that accords with innate nature and reason.
Conclusion
When comparing Islam and Christianity based on these criteria, we find that Islam provides clear and convincing answers to all these points:
Pure monotheism
Compatibility with reason and innate nature
Preservation of sacred texts
Verifiable proofs and evidence
Universal message
Answers to existential questions
The messenger and the role model
A final question for reflection: If you found a religion that fulfills these criteria clearly and logically, would you be ready to follow it?
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