Who is Allah?

By Abu Iman Abd ar-Rahman Robert Squires. (Muslim Answers)

Some of the biggest misconceptions that many non-Muslims have about Islam have
to do with the word "Allah". For various reasons, many people have come to believe
that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews. This is totally false,
since "Allah" is simply the Arabic word for "God" - and there is only One God. Let
there be no doubt - Muslims worship the God of Noah, Abraham, Moses,
David and Jesus - peace be upon them all. However, it is certainly true that
Jews, Christians and Muslims all have different concepts of Almighty God. For
example, Muslims - like Jews - reject the Christian beliefs of the Trinity and the
Divine Incarnation. This, however, doesn't mean that each of these three religions
worships a differentGod - because, as we have already said, there is only One True
God. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all claim to be "Abrahamic Faiths", and all of
them are also classified as "monotheistic". However, Islam teaches that other
religions have, in one way or another, distorted and nullified a pure and proper belief
in Almighty God by neglecting His true teachings and mixing them with man-made
ideas.

First of all, it is important to note that "Allah" is the same word that Arabic-speaking
Christians and Jews use for God. If you pick up an Arabic Bible, you will see the
word "Allah" being used where "God" is used in English. (Click here to see some
examples of the word "Allah" in the Arabic Bible.) This is because "Allah" is the only
word in the Arabic language equivalent to the English word "God" with a capital "G".
Additionally, the word "Allah" cannot be made plural or given gender (i.e. masculine
or feminine), which goes hand-in-hand with the Islamic concept of God. Because of
this, and also because the Qur'an, which is the holy scripture of Muslims, was
revealed in the Arabic language, some Muslims use the word "Allah" for "God", even
when they are speaking other languages. This is not unique to the word "Allah",
since many Muslims tend to use Arabic words when discussing Islamic issues,
regardless of the language which they speak. This is because
the universal teachings of Islam - even though they have been translated in every
major language - have been preserved in the Arabic language.

It is interesting to note that the Aramaic word "El", which is the word for God in the
language that Jesus spoke, is certainly more similar in sound to the
word "Allah" than the English word "God". This also holds true for the various
Hebrew words for God, which are "El" and "Elah", and the plural form "Elohim". The
reason for these similarities is that Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic are all Semitic
languages with common origins. It should also be noted that in translating the Bible
into English, the Hebrew word "El"is translated variously
as "God", "god" and "angel"! This imprecise language allows different translators,
based on their preconceived notions, to translate the word to fit their own views. The
Arabic word "Allah" presents no such difficulty or ambiguity, since it is only used for
Almighty God alone. Additionally, in English, the only difference between "god",
meaning a false god, and "God", meaning the One True God, is the capital "G". In
the Arabic alphabet, since it does not have capital letters, the word for God
(i.e. Allah) is formed by adding the equivalent to the English word "the" (Al-) to the
Arabic word for"god/God" (ilah). So the Arabic word "Allah" literally it means "The
God" - the "Al-" in Arabic basically serving the same function as the capital "G" in
English. Due to the above mentioned facts, a more accurate translation of the
word "Allah" into English might be "The One -and-Only God" or "The One True God".

More importantly, it should also be noted that the Arabic word "Allah" contains a
deep religious message due to its root meaning and origin. This is because it stems
from the Arabic verb ta'allaha (or alaha), which means "to be worshipped". Thus in
Arabic, the word "Allah" means "The One who deserves all worship". This, in a
nutshell, is the Pure Monotheistic message of Islam. You see, according to
Islam, "monotheism" is much more than simply believing in the existence of "only
One God" - as seemingly opposed to two, three or more. If one understands the root
meaning of the word "Allah", this point should become clear. One should understand
that Islam's criticism of the other religions that claim to
be "monotheistic" is not because they are"polytheistic" in the classic sense, but
because they direct various forms of worship to other than Almighty God. We will
discuss the meaning of worship in Islam below, however, before moving on it should
be noted that many non-Muslims are unaware of the distinction between simply
believing in the existence of only One God and reserving all worship for Him
alone. Many Christians are painfully unaware of this point, and thus you often find
them asking how Muslims can accuse the followers of Jesus, peace be upon him, of
being "polytheists" when they were all "monotheistic Jews". First of all, it should be
clarified that the word "polytheist" doesn't really sound right in this context, since to
many it implies simply believing in the existence of more than one God. So in an
Islamic context, "associators", "man-worshippers" or "creature worshippers" might
be more accurate and appropriate terms - especially since Christians believe Jesus to
be both "100% God and 100% man", while still paying lip-service to
God's "Oneness". However, as we're previously touched upon, what is really at the
root of this problem is the fact that Christians - as well as the members of other
religions - don't really know what "monotheism" means - especially in the Islamic
sense. All of the books, articles and papers that I've read which were written by
Christians invariably limit"monotheism" to believing in the existence of "One
Sovereign and Creator God". Islam, however, teaches much more than this.

Suffice it to say that just because someone claims to be a "monotheistic" Jew,

Christian or Muslim, that doesn't keep them from falling into corrupt beliefs and
idolatrous practices. Many people, including some Muslims, claim belief in "One
God" even though they've fallen into acts of idolatry. Certainly, many Protestants
accuse Roman Catholics of idolatrous practices in regards to the saints and the Virgin
Mary. Likewise, the Greek Orthodox Church is considered "idolatrous" by many other
Christians because in much of their worship they use icons. However, if you ask a
Roman Catholic or a Greek Orthodox person if God is "One", they will invariably
answer: "Yes!". This lip-service, however, does not stop them from being "creature
worshipping" idolaters. The same goes for Hindus, who just consider their gods to
be "manifestations" or "incarnations" of the One Supreme God.

Everyone should be aware of the fact that throughout the long history of
the "Abrahamic Faiths", there have people who, while believing in "One God", have
adopted beliefs and practices that completely nullify their claim to "monotheism".
This is the Muslim view of Christians. We're well aware of the fact that they claim
belief in "One God" with their lips, but this doesn't mean that they don't nullify their
claim in other ways. This is because many people simply haven't been taught
everything that Pure Monotheism entails. From an Islamic point of
view, "monotheism" can be nullified in many ways. For example, simply believing
that it is permissible to rule by Western "liberal" and "democratic" laws in lieu of the
Divinely Revealed Law of Almighty God makes one a "polytheist". Certainly, a person
who does such a thing, whether Jewish, Christian or Muslim, doesn't ever believe
that there is another Almighty Creator and Sovereign Lord. However, for all practical
purposes, such a person has take another"god", whether they choose to admit it or
not. In this way they are associating partners with Almighty God (Arabic: shirk), and
thus become a "polytheist" in a practical sense, regardless of their lip-service
to "monotheism". This holds true even if the person doesn't believe what they are
doing is "worship". For example, Roman Catholics who pray to the Virgin Mary will
staunchly deny that they are "worshipping" her. They instead call it "adoration" or
some other watered-down term. However, from an Islamic point of view, what is
worship if not this? Islam teaches that prayer and supplication are the marrow of
worship, so if one directs their prayers to an intermediary (even if the pray
is "ultimately" meant for God), then what is left of worship? Additionally, how can
someone who believes in Almighty God follow man-made laws instead of God's Law,
without admitting that they've begun worshipping other than God? Do they know
better than God?

Additionally, the Old Testament makes it perfectly clear that making a "graven
image" of any created thing (not to mention ones which are supposed
to "represent" Almighty God) is prohibited. Please see Exodus 20:4-6, Leviticus 26:1
and Deuteronomy 4:16, 23, 25, 5:8 and Nehemiah 9:6 for some statements in
regards to this point. Without addressing the issue that Christians commonly violate
the unambiguous commandment not to even "make" representations of anything
that is in the "heavens above or on the earth beneath", these verses not only teach
that worshipping idols is prohibited, but also that Almighty God is eternally distinct
from His creation and thus nothing in His creation can represent Him. To believe
otherwise is to be a de factoidol worshipper - even if one claims belief in one, and
only one, "True God". In Exodus 20:4-6 and Deuteronomy 4:16, Almighty God - who
is a "Jealous God" - makes it perfectly clear that He is distinct from His creation.

By giving such clear and merciful guidance to human beings, God is establishing a
universal and eternal Truth for the benefit of mankind. This eternal Truth is the
bedrock of religious guidance, since once people begin to believe that Almighty God
mixes with or can be represented by His creation, they can be duped into believing
almost anything. Once someone accepts that God has become "incarnate" in His
creation, or that someone or something is a "manifestation" - and thus
representation - of Him, the floodgates are open and "Truth" becomes a matter of
subjective guesswork. Once the first and most basic concept is violated - regardless
of how complicated and sophisticated the rationale for it might be - it is very easy to
fall further and further away from the Eternal Truth of Pure Monotheism. In the final
analysis, it is not a question of whether God is capable of becoming a man, but
rather a question of whether one bases their beliefs about God on clear,
unambiguous and authentic guidance. Once it is left up to the human mind to decide
what Almighty God can and cannot do, the stage is set for misguidance to take root.
Human speculation about God only ends up leading to misguidance and despair,
since no clear conclusions can ever be reached. For example, is God capable of
creating an object so heavy that He is incapable of moving it? If not, does that mean
that He is incapable? It is because of misguided questions like this that Islam clearly
teaches that mankind should only say about God what He has said about Himself.
This means all of our ideas about God must be based on Revelation - not human
speculation. In short, the final prophet of Islam - Muhammad - was sent by Almighty
God to preach the same Pure Monotheism that was practiced by Noah, Abraham,
Moses, David and Jesus - peace be upon them all. This Pure Monotheism means not
only believing that there is only One God in existence, but realizing that He is
transcedent above His creation and that all worship is due to Him alone.

Before concluding, we should probably address the practice of those Muslims

who insist on using the Arabic word "Allah" even when speaking English. Even
though this practice certainly is not to be condemned when it is done around those
who understand the meaning of the Arabic word "Allah", it is my experience - both
during my years as a non-Muslim and my years as a Muslim - that such a practice
can (and usually does) breed misunderstanding. It seems that often times, many of
the Muslims who use the word "Allah" in lieu of the word "God", even when trying to
attract people to Islam, are unaware of the severe misunderstandings that many
non-Muslims have about Islam (and the distorted way which Islam has been
portrayed in the West). Insisting on using the word "Allah" only fuels the flames of
misunderstanding - so there's no good reason to do it. I've often wondered
what value some Muslims think that using the word "Allah" adds to the Pure
Message that they are trying to convey. ( . . . and I'm still waiting for an answer!)
Unfortunately, those Muslims who insist on using the word "Allah" even when
addressing non-Muslims who are unfamiliar with Islam and the Arabic language, do
both a disservice to themselves and their religion. Unfortunately, this practice is
usually based on the false assumption - by a non-native speaker of English - that the
word "God" in English is incapable of expressing a pure and proper belief in Almighty
God. This is certainly false. If someone says that the English word "God" cannot be
used to express the Pure Islamic Belief in Tawhid, they are wrong not because they
don't understand Tawhid, but simply because they don't understand the English
language. Many people who insist on using the Arabic word "Allah" usually don't
realize this, because in reality, they are not so much affirming the word "Allah" as
they are rejecting the word "God" as unsuitable - based on incorrect assumptions.
For someone to assume that the word "God"presupposes a certain theological point-
of-view (such as the Trinity) is simply Wrong - and that's Wrong with a capital "W".
To say the word "God" should be rejected because it can be changed
into "god", "gods" or "goddess" is illogical because each of these words has
a distinctive meaning and a distinctive spelling - at least to someone who knows how
to speak English correctly. Using the same logic, I can demonstrate that the root
letters "ktb" can be used to form the Arabic
words "kitab"(book), "maktabah" (library), "maktab" (office) and "kaatib" (writer),
but does that mean that these words have the same meaning? Do Arabic-speaking
people go through life confusing libraries with writers and offices with books (both in
conversation and in reality)? I think not! This is not to mention the fact that if the
Arabic "Al-" was put in front of these words in order to make them definite, confusion
would be even less likely! So the logic in both cases is the same, and this is because
even though the same letters are used in "God" and "god", these two words have
two different meanings in the English language. The capital"G" implies something
different than the small "g" - and anyone who denies this simply doesn't know how
to speak the English language.

In concluding this point, it should be mentioned that Arabic-speaking Muslims who

believe in Pure Tawhid, Arabic-speaking Christians, the idol worshippers of Mecca
and (so-called) Muslims who believe in "Wahdat al-Wujud" all use the word "Allah".
However, does this guarantee all of them proper belief in "Allah"? Certainly not,
because if they have a corrupt concept of"Allah" it doesn't matter what word they
use!

This brings us to a more important point: It should be clearly understood that what
Islam is primarily concerned with is correcting mankind's concept of Almighty God.
What we are ultimately going to be held accountable at the end of our life is not
whether we prefer the word "Allah" over the word "God", but what our concept of
God is. Language is only a side issue. A person can have an incorrect concept of God
while using the word "Allah", and likewise a person can have a correct concept of
God while using the word "God". This is because both of these words are equally
capable of being misused and being improperly defined. As we've already mentioned,
using the word "Allah" no more insinuates belief in the Unity of God than the use of
the word "God" insinuates belief in the Trinity - or any other theological opinion.
Naturally, when God sends a revelation to mankind through a prophet, He is going to
send it in a language that the people who receive it can understand and relate to.
Almighty God makes this clear in the Qur'an, when He states:

"Never did We send a Messenger except (to teach) in the language of his (own)
people in order to make (things) clear to them."
(Qur'an, Chapter 14 - "Abraham", Verse 4)

As Muslims, we think that it is unfortunate that we have to go into details on such

seemingly minor issues, but so many falsehoods have been heaped upon our
religion, that we feel that it is our duty to try to break down the barriers of
falsehood. This isn't always easy, since there is a lot of anti-Islamic literature in
existence which tries to make Islam look like something strange and foreign to
Westerners. There are some people out there, who are obviously not on the side of
truth, that want to get people to believe that "Allah" is just some Arabian "god", and
that Islam is completely "other" - meaning that it has no common roots with the
other Abrahamic religions (i.e. Christianity and Judaism). To say that Muslims
worship a different "God"because they say "Allah" is just as illogical as saying that
French people worship another God because they use the word"Dieu", that Spanish-
speaking people worship a different God because they say "Dios" or that the
Hebrews worshipped a different God because they sometimes call Him "Yahweh".
Certainly, reasoning like this is quite ridiculous! It should also be mentioned, that
claiming that any one language uses the only the correct word for God is tantamount
to denying the universality of God's message to mankind, which was to all nations,
tribes and people through various prophets who spoke different languages.

Before closing, we would like everyone to be aware of the fact that some Christian
missionary organizations print English literature intended to teach Christians about
Islam which say such things as: "Allah is the god of the Muslims" and
that"Muhammad came to get people to believe in the god Allah" - implying
that "Allah" is some sort of false "god". However, when these same organizations
print literature in the Arabic language, hoping to lead Arabic-speaking Muslims "to
Christ", they use the word "Allah" for God. It seems that if they were on the side of
truth, they would not have to resort to such inconsistencies. And on an even more
ridiculous note . . . there are also missionary organizations that exceed this in
ignorance (or deceit) by writing books that call on Muslims to give up their belief
in "Allah", and instead worship the "Lord" Jesus, "the Son of God". Besides making it
abundantly clear that they are outside the community of Pure Monotheism, the
people who write such material don't even realize that if they wrote such a pamphlet
in Arabic, it would be self-contradictory. This is because in an Arabic Bible Jesus is
the "Son of Allah"! If an Arabic-speaking person gave up the worship of "Allah", they
would have no God to worship, since "Allah" is simply the Arabic word for God!

Before we conclude, however, we would like to ask our readers to ask themselves
what they think the reasons are behind all of these lies? If Islam was just some false
religion that didn't make any sense, would so many people, from Western scholars to
Christian missionaries, have to tell so many lies about it? The reason is that the
Ultimate Truth of Islam stands on solid ground and its unshakable belief in the Unity
of God is above reproach. Due to this, Christians can't criticize its doctrines directly,
but instead make up things about Islam that aren't true so that people lose the
desire to learn more. If Muslims were able to present Islam in the proper way to
people in the West, it surely might make many people reconsider and re-evaluate
their own beliefs. It is quite likely that Christians, when they find out that there is a
universal religion in the world that teaches people to worship and love God, while
also practicing Pure Monotheism, would at least feel that they should re-examine the
basis for their own beliefs and doctrines.

Ref:
http://www.islamawareness.net/Allah/whois.html