The Struggles of Christ (a.s.)

Disbelief and obstinacy are sometimes only in the heart and sometimes both in heart and action. Those who, after preaching and guidance and after the ranks of the guided and the obstinate become clear, still do not abandon their practical disbelief and obstinacy, are no longer worthy of guidance: “As for the faithless, it is the same to them whether you warn them or do not warn them, they will not have faith”,(463) and to confront them, in the words of Allāma Tabatabai, an organization must be formed.(464)

The Jews, who had previously awaited the appearance of Christ (a.s.), after his mission began, confronted him to destroy him; similar to the Christians who were awaiting the appearance of the Final Prophet (s.a.w.), but denied his message and disbelieved in it, and also like the false awaitors of Imam Mahdī (a.s.) who will fight against him after his appearance, because they think that he will solve all problems without any effort on their part;(465) the same assumption that the Children of Israel had about Moses (a.s.), based on which they said during danger: “Go ahead, you and your Lord, and fight! We will be sitting right here.”(466)

Christ (a.s.), like the Noble Prophet (s.a.w.), showed more leniency towards enemies in the beginning; however, just as one cannot judge Islam solely based on “To you your religion, and to me my religion”(467) without referring to verses such as “Fight them until faithlessness (fitna) is no more”,(468) to judge whether Christianity is a religion of compromise or a religion of struggle and effort, one cannot rely only on a part of the Gospel.

The Qur’an, in its overall examination of Christ’s (a.s.) mission, presents Christianity as a religion possessing both moral and epic characteristics:

1. Some verses of the Qur’an introduce Christ (a.s.) as confirming the Torah of Moses (a.s.): “confirming what was [revealed] before it, and He had sent down the Torah.”(469) This confirmation means endorsing the fight against tyranny, because one of the most prominent aspects of Moses’s (a.s.) prophethood was his tireless struggles against the tyrants of Egypt.
2. Some verses consider the matter of struggle (jihād), victory of fighters, and the position of martyrs in paradise as established principles of the Torah, Gospel, and Qur’an: “Indeed God has bought from the faithful their souls and their possessions for paradise to be theirs: they fight in the way of God, kill, and are killed. A promise binding upon Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur’an.”(470) God is the purchaser of the believers’ lives and wealth, so believers can only dispose of their lives and wealth with the permission of their true owner, God; otherwise, their disposal would be usurpation, because believers who have traded their lives and wealth with God in exchange for paradise must spend it in struggle for God’s cause until either victory or martyrdom (one of the two excellent outcomes) (iḥdā al-ḥusnayayn).
3. The Qur’an, at the height of the Islamic community’s need for war, asks Muslims to be like the Christians and disciples of Jesus (a.s.), as they rose to support God’s religion and God helped them and made them victorious: “O you who have faith! Be God’s helpers, just as Jesus son of Mary said to the disciples, ‘Who will be my helpers for God’s sake?’ The Disciples said, ‘We will be God’s helpers!’”(471)

The conclusion is that Christianity, like other divine religions, begins its mission with preaching, advice, and exhortation, and if these stages prove ineffective, it also engages in struggle and jihād. Of course, the final and deep analysis of jihād returns to defense, meaning the repelling of aggressors.

God, who encompasses all things, commands the believers to support the religion of the Final Prophet (s.a.w.), just as Jesus (a.s.) sought help from a group who supported him and became victorious. The believers of the Prophet’s (s.a.w.) era must be like the helpers of Jesus (a.s.) - striving and steadfast - in order to achieve victory.

Based on this analysis, in this verse four elements are harmoniously aligned with each other: a speaker and an addressee in the Islamic community, and a speaker and an addressee in the community of Jesus (a.s.): The Noble Prophet (s.a.w.) with Jesus Christ (a.s.), and the believers with the disciples. Three of these four elements are mentioned in the verse: the believers; Jesus (a.s.); and the disciples. The fourth element, namely the Prophet (s.a.w.) being the speaker, is not explicitly stated. To explain: Jesus (a.s.) is the speaker and the believers are the addressees and acceptors of his call; however, regarding the Noble Prophet (s.a.w.), God has attributed His Messenger’s call to Himself.

Note: The pattern of verse 14 of Sūrat al-Ṣaff regarding jihād, in terms of its recommendation to be like the believers of previous communities, is similar to the verse about fasting: “O you who have faith! Prescribed for you is fasting as it was prescribed for those who were before you, so that you may be Godwary”(472) which states that fasting was made obligatory upon you, just as it was upon previous communities.