Attitudes of Christianity and Islam

Christianity and Islam had different attitudes toward merchants. While early Christianity disapproved of merchants, Islam thought very highly of them, overtime both gradually changed to moderate opinions. Historical documents reflect the attitudes of the religions.

When the religions originated, Christianity disapproved of merchants, while Islam thought highly of them. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, the early profit Matthew warns followers it is extremely difficult for a rich man to get into heaven (document 1). If you assume a profitable merchant would become rich, then the early Bible says the merchant would have a difficult time going into heaven. In contrast, the Muslim Qur’an of Islam states an honest and truthful Muslim merchant “will take rank with the martyrs of faith.” (document 2) As heaven is the ultimate goal of both religions, their opinions concerning a merchants chance of going to heaven is a key indicator of the religions’ early attitude towards merchants.

Overtime both religions’ attitudes gradually changed to moderate opinions of merchants. In the 1100s a monk writes about a twelfth-century British merchant. The monk describes a rich, well traded merchant that ultimately only yearned for the solitude of a monk (document 3). It must have seemed ironic to the monk. The rich merchant finds a path to heaven in this monks 1100s Christian attitude.. The Islamic religion also displays a more moderate attitude toward merchants in the writings of a leading 14th century Muslim scholar, instead of only honest and truthful merchants going to heaven, the scholar states merchants must use “flattery, and evasiveness, litigation and distribution” in their business. These characteristics will “affect the soul.” but seem to be more accepted by the 14th century original attitudes became more moderate over time.

In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries both Christianity and Islam