I was reading a terrific book by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, a 20th-century Jewish leader of great influence. He started out in a very orthodox Chasidic life, he had to escape the Holocaust with his family, and then when he came to America, he gradually became a radical, mystical new-age hippie. He remained very devout, very dedicated to Jewish practice, praying three times a day, keeping kosher, following as many commandments as possible, and so on, but he was very interested in dialogue with other faiths so he could learn how to be a better Jew. Somewhat like a Jewish Thomas Merton. He ultimately founded a movement called "Jewish Renewal" which is still alive today.
In this book, he describes visiting a Sufi order and asking to pray with them. They were skeptical until he recited the complete Shahadah - including the part where Mohammad is a prophet of God. The Sufis were naturally astonished to hear this from a Rabbi, but Schachter-Shalomi explained that he really did view Mohammad as a genuine prophet, because he had turned so many people away from pagan polytheism and idolatry, and toward proper Abrahamic ethical monotheism. So the Sufis let him pray with them, and eventually, this Rabbi earned the title of shaikh in the Sufi Order of Pir Vilayat Khan.
The 12th-century Yemeni Rabbi Natan'el al-Fayyumi held basically the same position. "Mohammad was a 100% genuine prophet, sent by God to guide another nation to proper faith, but of course, we Jews don't have to listen, we can stick to Judaism, which is just as good."
My question is: what do you think of this idea that Mohammad is a valid prophet, but not a necessary one for Jews? That Judaism and Islam are essentially equally valid paths to communing with God and fulfilling his will? Has this idea ever been expressed by any prominent Imams or scholars?
As a Jew, I find this idea attractive, because it's convenient. We can all get along with our unique orders from the same God. But this does not match my understanding of Islam. I thought the Quran is fairly clear that the differences in our faiths are not national or neutral, that the Torah/Judaism has not been imperfectly transmitted, so that Islam is right where Judaism is wrong.
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