Cultural and Ethnic Studies [Birth of John & Jesus]

Cultural Studies – Comparisons of the Birth of Jesus and John in Quran and the Bible
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Comparison of the Birth of John and Jesus in Quran and the Bible
The Quran quotes that Zechariah, a trusted servant of Allah, prayed in seclusion and asked Allah to grant him an heir to inherit him. Unfortunately, the wife was barren, and the couple was aging. Therefore, Zachariah could not bear a child. Allah answered Zechariah’s prayer and said, ‘I created you when you were nothing. Hence, nothing is impossible to me.’ (Clear Quran, 2018). Zechariah doubted God’s words and asked for a clear sign of giving birth. The Lord told Zechariah that he would not speak for three nights’ straights – and this promise was fulfilled since Zechariah was unable to speak and only talked by signs and gestures. The birth of Jesus as stipulated in the Quran occurred after the Lord’s spirit was sent to Mary after she excluded herself from her people and escaped to a far Eastern location. As an immaculate human, Mary was chaste and she had never been with any man. She doubted that she would give birth. However, shortly after being informed of a possible childbirth, Mary had labor pains at the bottom of a palm tree. She was informed to shake the trunk of a palm-tree and feed on the dates that would drop (Clear Quran, 2018). Further, in the Quran, Mary was warned not to speak to anyone and was told to keep that promise until she gave birth.
In the Holy Bible, Zechariah was a chosen priest of the Highest and was chosen by Lot to burn incense in the temple.

As he was burning the incense, an angel appeared and informed Zechariah that his prayer had been answered and he will bear a child with Elizabeth. However, the angel warned that John the Baptist is not to consume wine or anything fermented since he was anointed as the chosen one (Bible Gateway, 2018). The angel further promised that John’s birth will be a blessing to many Israelites for he will bring many people back to God. The birth of Jesus occurred in the sixth month when God sent angel Gabriel to Nazareth a city named Galilee. The angel was to inform Mary that she will conceive. Although Mary was skeptical, she believed that she would deliver even in her immaculate state. However, after giving birth in an empty room, she wrapped the baby boy and placed it in a manger. This analysis reveals there are no glaring differences in the Quran and the biblical account. The only difference is that according to the Quran, Mary gave birth under a palm-tree and was told to shake the tree and eat on dates. However, the biblical account states that Mary gave birth in an enclosed and empty room and placed Jesus in a manger. Hence, both accounts are similar but vary in very subtle forms.
References
Bible Gateway. (2018). Luke 1: 5 – 10. The Birth of John Foretold. The Bible Gateway Official. Retrieved from https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A5-25&version=NIVClear Quran. (2018). Quran 19: Mary Am. The Clear Quran Official. Retrieved from http://www.clearquran.com/019.html