Abraham in Two Holy Texts
The story of Abraham in the Bible shares similarities and differences with the story of Abraham in the Koran. In the Bible, Abraham is quite clearly defined as one who resigned himself to a particular religion -- Judaism. According to the Bible, "Then Abraham took his son Ishmael and all the slaves born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him" (Brians para. 8). In other words, Abraham not only converted, but also ensured his entire household's conversion through the symbolic act of Judaism. In addition, the Bible makes it clear that Abraham was intended as a father of a great religion, as God tells Abraham that the man will bear many children, changing Abram's name to Abraham and making "a covenant" with him (Brians para. 5).
In the Koran, on the other hand, Abraham is not treated as a founder of a religion or a Jew. Instead, he was simply one who sought God and was treated as great prophet who brought Muhammad's message. The Koran preaches that "the message of Abraham was the very same as Muhammad's, but it would become corrupted by the Jews" (Kjeilen para. 15). In the Koran, Abraham is a messenger who teaches others about the Islamic God. Kjeilen writes that sources outside the Koran tell many stories about Abraham, one of which includes his circumcision. This is not nearly as significant as it is in the Hebrew texts.
Thus, both religions use the hero of Abraham to evoke their missions. The Biblical Abraham makes a compact with the Jewish God and resigns himself to Judaism. In Islam, however, Abraham is a hero in that he is a prophet, spreading the Islamic message to those who have not heard.
Works Cited
Brians, Paul. "The Story of Abraham, from the Hebrew Bible." Washington State
University. 1998. Department of English. 10 June 2009.
Kjeilen, Tore. "Abraham/Ibrahim." Look Lex Encyclopedia. 2009. 10 June 2009.
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