The Relation Between the Druze Faith and OtherReligions
By
Sheikh Anwar F. Abi-Khzam
Ph.D.Prof. at The Lebanese University
What is the Druze's evaluation of Christianity ?
The answer to this question is quite special. The Druze believe in Jesus and his four disciples, who wrote the Gospels. According to their classification, Jesus Christ is the Greatest Imam and the incarnation of Ultimate Reason (Akel) on earth and the first cosmic principle (Hadd). He is directly second to God. His four disciples are considered as the four cosmic principles(Houdoud). The Gospels are Holy Books.With Christianity, the development of Monotheism was decisive. God promised the Christians the salvation of the tortured souls, and made it clear that Jesus had come to lead his followers to the safety shore. As for the crucifixion of Jesus, the Druze believe that he was not crucified but another person who resembles him was crucified in his place. Such a belief may seem very queer to a traditional Christian,but we have to remember that the Druze follow also the koranic verses and the Koran made it clear that Jesus Christ was not crucified. Nevertheless,the Druze maintain a great value to the meaning of sacrifice. John the Baptist is considered next to Jesus and he personifies the Ultimate Sacrifice.
[b]One of the Druze manuscripts reveals a fascinating idea by mentioning that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are one identity. This idea is very near to the concept of the sacred Trinity in Christianity. The Druze's manner of thinking enabled them to accept the idea of the all in one. The diluted pantheism of their faith leads to such a conclusion.
Another remark that shows a close relation with Christianity is the Druze refutation to polygamy unlike the traditional Muslim sects. It is true that the Druze refer to their refutation to certain Koranic verses, but their attitude gives them a special character and brings them close to the Christian opinion about marriage. What is more remarkable about the Druze with respect to the matter is the adoption of Monasticism by some Druze Sheikhs. This conduct is highly praised in the Druze community and it is considered as the highest degree of chastity. A sheikh may ask his fiancee to agree to marry him without conjugal relations, and there are many cases in which a Druze priest has remained single for all his life.Sex is not an aim in itself; it is only stressed for the sake of reproduction.A part of that sex maybe considered as a sin. Such a belief proves beyond doubt that the Druze have inherited much of the Christian dogmatics with respect to marriage and to the sincere mutual relations between man and woman. The general outlook on marriage in the Druze community is quite similar to that of the Christians and has the same pious spirit.
