In December, an evangelical college in Illinois suspended a professor on allegations of “heresy.” Her crime? Declaring that Muslims and Christians worship the same God. After discussing Muslim and Jewish arguments to the contrary, which date back to the 1st century CE, Peter Berger argues in favor of the professor’s assertion:
If one steps back from the important theological differences among these three west Asian religions, one may look at them from the perspectives of south and east Asia, especially those of Hinduism and Buddhism. The similarities between the three “Abrahamic” religions stick out more visibly than the differences. To be sure, the religions that emerged from the Indian subcontinent, especially in their most sophisticated versions, also point to an underlying unity beyond the many gods. . . . But this unity, disguised by the illusions endemic to the endless wheel of reincarnations, rebirths, and re-deaths, is far removed from the view of all reality as created by the one God whose promise is eternal glory.
Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God? The present interfaith etiquette answers “yes.” This is certainly useful politically in the confrontation with radical Islamism, and I would not deplore this use against a dangerous and utterly evil movement. But one can also answer the question with a “yes” for analytic rather than political reasons. Muslim tradition has maintained that the Quran reveals 99 names of God. . . . But the 99 names of God do not belong to 99 gods. All of them refer to the one God, whom Muslims, Jews, and Christians worship (even when they don’t like the idea).
Read more on American Interest: http://www.the-american-interest.com/2016/02/24/what-is-gods-name/