A major portion of the Quran is dedicated to the exemplary lives of the ancient prophets. Jesus – one such prophet­ – is frequently mentioned in the Quran as “The Messiah,” “A Mercy;” “Prophet,” “Messenger,” “Word from God,” “Spirit,” “A Sign,” “One brought near (to God),” “Upright,” “Servant,” “Eminent,” “Blessed,” “A Witness,” and “A Parable.”

As such, he is honoured everywhere by Muslims. The Prophet Muhammad during his Night Journey to heaven, saw Jesus and described him as “a man of medium height, red complexion, curly hair and broad chest.” He moreover prophesied that Jesus would return to earth before the day of Judgement.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, described as “one exalted above all womankind,” has a whole chapter of the Quran (number 19) named after her, which tells of the miraculous birth of Jesus. The story begins with an angel announcing the birth of a holy son to Mary, who, being a chaste woman, was quite distraught at this news. But the angel reassured her that this was the will of God, that it was not a difficult thing for Him and that it was a sign and a blessing to all mankind.

When Mary gave birth to Jesus and brought him to her people, they all pointed their fingers at her. But she was told by God to remain silent and to point to the baby. As the people were wondering how they could talk to a child in the cradle, the baby Jesus performed his first miracle by saying these fine words: “I am the servant of God. He has given me the Book and ordained me a Prophet. His blessing is upon me wherever I go, and He has commanded me to be steadfast in prayers and give alms to the poor as long as I live, He has exhorted me to honour my mother and has rid me of vanity and wickedness. I was blessed on the day I was born, and blessed I shall be on the day of my death, and may peace be on me on the day when I am raised to life.”

When Jesus attained manhood, God bestowed upon him “scriptures and wisdom, along with the Torah and the Gospel.” He was also given the power to perform a number of miracles, such as creating a bird out of clay; giving sight to the blind; healing a leper and raising the dead to life; he also had the wisdom to inform people what they eat and store up in their houses.

The Quran also mentions the day when his disciples demanded that he bring down from the sky a table spread with good things. Jesus prayed for this, but warned them of God’s wrath, if they disbelieved in Him afterwards, His prayer was then answered and his disciples happily had their feast.

Yet, despite these clear signs, the Israelites rejected him, accusing him of sorcery. They made clear their outright disbelief in him when he said to them, “I am sent forth from God to confirm the Torah already revealed, and to give news of a prophet that will come after me, whose name is Ahmad.” (Ahmad is another name of the Prophet Muhammad, meaning “The Praised one”). They even tried to kill Jesus, but God saved him at the last minute by raising him up to the sky: “They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, but they thought they did.”

The Quran further clarifies that his creation was no different from that of the first human being: “Jesus is like Adam in the sight of God. He created him of dust and then said to him: ‘Be’ and he was.”

Jesus taught no false worship, but only preached the unity of his Creator. On the Day of Judgement, God will question him; “Jesus, son of Mary, did you ever say to mankind: ‘Worship me and my mother as gods besides God?” Jesus will disclaim this, saying: “Glory be to You, how could I ever say that to which I have no right?” And he will add: “1 only told them: ‘Serve God, my Lord and your Lord.”

The Quran also mentions the People of the Book, especially the Christians with great fondness: “The nearest of them in affection to the Muslims are those who say, ‘We are Christians. That is because there are priests and monks among them, and because they are free from pride.”

The Quran goes on to say: “There are among the People of the Book some who are upright, who recite God’s message throughout the night, and prostrate themselves (before Him). They believe in God and the Last Day, and enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong, and vie with one another in doing good works. God knows the righteous.”

The Quran welcomes them to a common faith, saying: “People of the Book! Come to common terms which we and you hold in common: that we will worship only God, that we will associate none with Him, and that none of us shall take human beings as gods besides Him.”