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Disciples The Quran states that Jesus was aided by a group of disciples who believed in His message. While not naming the disciples, the Quran does give a few instances of Jesus preaching the message to them. According to Christianity, the names of the twelve disciples were Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James, Jude, Simon and Judas. The Quran mentions in chapter 3, verses 52-53, that the disciples submitted to the faith of Islam:[non-primary source needed] When Jesus found Unbelief on their part He said: "Who will be My helpers to (the work of) Allah?" Said the disciples: "We are Allah's helpers: We believe in Allah, and do thou bear witness that we are Muslims. Our Lord! we believe in what Thou hast revealed, and we follow the Messenger; then write us down among those who bear witness." — Quran Surah Al-Imran 52-53[48] The longest narrative involving Jesus' disciples is when they request a laden table to be sent from Heaven, for further proof that Jesus is preaching the true message: Behold! the disciples, said: "O Jesus the son of Mary! can thy Lord send down to us a table set (with viands) from heaven?" Said Jesus: "Fear Allah, if ye have faith." They said: "We only wish to eat thereof and satisfy our hearts, and to know that thou hast indeed told us the truth; and that we ourselves may be witnesses to the miracle." Said Jesus, the son of Mary: "O Allah our Lord! Send us from heaven a table set (with viands), that there may be for us—for the first and the last of us—a solemn festival and a sign from thee; and provide for our sustenance, for thou art the best Sustainer (of our needs)." Allah said: "I will send it down unto you: But if any of you after that resisteth faith, I will punish him with a penalty such as I have not inflicted on any one among all the peoples." — Quran Surah Al-Ma'ida 112-115[49]

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Scripture Muslims believe that God revealed to Jesus a new scripture, al-Injīl (the Gospel), while also declaring the truth of the previous revelations: al-Tawrat (the Torah) and al-Zabur (the Psalms). The Quran speaks favorably of al-Injīl, which it describes as a scripture that fills the hearts of its followers with meekness and piety. The Quran says that the original biblical message has been distorted or corrupted (tahrif) over time.[citation needed] In chapter 3, verse 3, and chapter 5, verses 46-47, of the Quran, the revelation of al-Injil is mentioned.

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Miracles Miracles were attributed to Jesus as signs of his prophethood and his authority. Six miracles are specifically mentioned in the Quran, with these six initial miracle narratives being elaborated on over the centuries through Hadith and poetry.[citation needed] Table of food from heaven In the fifth chapter of the Quran, God narrates how the disciples of Jesus requested him to ask God to send down a table laden with food, and for it to be a special day of commemoration for them in the future.[citation needed] "When the disciples said: O Jesus, son of Mary! Is your Lord able to send down for us a table spread with food from heaven? He said: Observe your duty to God, if ye are true believers. They said: We desire to eat of it and our hearts be at rest, and that We may know that you have spoken truth to us, and that We may be witnesses thereof. Jesus, son of Mary, said: 'O God, our Lord, send down for us a table laden with food out of heaven, that shall be for us a recurring festival, the first and last of us, and a miracle from You. And provide us our sustenance, for You are the best of providers!" — Quran surah 5 (Al-Ma'ida) ayah[citation needed] 112-114 Speaking from the cradle One of the miracles mentioned in the Quran is that Jesus, while still in the cradle, spoke out to protect his mother Mary from any accusations people may have placed on her due to having a child without a father. When she was approached about this strange incident after her childbirth, Mary merely pointed to Jesus, and he miraculously spoke, just as God had promised her upon annunciation. "He shall speak to people while still in the cradle, and in manhood, and he shall be from the righteous." — Quran surah 3 (Al-Imran) ayah[citation needed] 46 This miracle is not found in the Bible, but it is found in the non-canonical Syriac Infancy Gospel. "He has said that Jesus spoke, and, indeed, when he was lying in his cradle, said to Mary, his mother: "I am Jesus, the Son of God, the Logos, whom thou hast brought forth, as the Angel Gabriel announced to thee; and my Father has sent me for the salvation of the world."[43] Creating birds from clay God mentions a miracle given to none other in the Quran but Jesus, one which is quite parallel to how God himself created Adam. This miracle was one which none can argue its greatness. God mentions in the Quran that Jesus says: "I create for you out of clay the likeness of a bird, then I breathe into it and it becomes a bird with God's permission." — Quran surah 3 (Al Imran) ayah[citation needed] 49 This miracle is not found in the New Testament, but it is found in the non-canonical Infancy Gospel of Thomas; "When this boy, Jesus, was five years old, he was playing at the ford of a rushing stream. He then made soft clay and shaped it into twelve sparrows; Jesus simply clapped his hands and shouted to the sparrows: "Be off, fly away, and remember me, you who are now alive!" And the sparrows took off and flew away noisily."[citation needed] Healing the blind and the leper Similar to the New Testament, The Quran also mentions Jesus to have healed the blind and the lepers. "I also heal the blind and the leper." — Quran surah 3 (Al Imran) ayah[citation needed] 49 Power over death "...and I bring to life the dead, by the permission of God." — Quran surah 3 (Al Imran) ayah[citation needed] 49 This, like the creation of a bird, was a miracle of incomparable nature, one that should have caused the Jews to believe in the prophethood of Jesus without any doubt. Islam agrees with Christianity that Jesus brought people back from the dead. The first three accounts are mentioned in both Islam and the Bible, save the last, which is only mentioned in Islam. Prescience Jesus has the miracle of prescience, or foreknowledge,[44] of what was hidden or unknown by others. One example is Jesus would answer any and every question anyone asked him. Another example is Jesus knew what people had just eaten, as well as what they stored up in their houses.[13] "I inform you too of what things you eat, and what you store up in your houses. Surely in that is a sign for you, if you are believers." — Quran surah 3 (Al Imran) ayah 49[13] Tabari relates on the authority of Ibn Ishaq that when Jesus was about nine or ten years old, his mother Mary would send him to a Jewish religious school. But whenever the teacher tried to teach him anything, he found that Jesus already knew it. The teacher exclaimed, "Do you not marvel at the son of this widow? Every time I teach him anything, I find that he knows it far better than I do!" Tabari further relates on the authority of Ismail al-Suddi that "when Jesus was in his youth, his mother committed him [to the priests] to study the Torah. While Jesus played with the youths of his village, he used to tell them what their parents were doing." Sa'id ibn Jubayr, according to Tabari, is said to have reported that Jesus would say to one of his fellow playmates in the religious school, "Your parents have kept such and such food for you, would you give me some of it?" Jesus would usually tell his fellow pupils in the religious school what their parents ate and what they have kept for them when they return home. He used to say to one boy, "Go home, for your parents have kept for you such and such food and they are now eating such and such food."[13] As parents became annoyed by this, they forbade their children to play with Jesus, saying, "Do not play with that magician." As a result, Jesus had no friends to play with and became lonely. Finally, the parents gathered all the children in a house away from Jesus. When Jesus came looking for them, the parents told Jesus that the children were not there. Jesus asked, "Then who is in this house?" The parents replied, "Swine!" (referring to Jesus). Jesus then said, "OK. Let there be swine in this house!" When the parents opened the door to the room where the children were, they found all their children had turned to swine, just as Jesus said.[45] Tabari cites the Qur'an in support of this story: "Those of the children of Israel who have rejected faith were cursed by the tongue of David and Jesus, son of Mary, this because of their rebellion and the acts of transgression which they had committed." — Quran surah 5 (Al-Ma'ida) ayah[citation needed] 78 Other miracles Similar to the New Testament, Al-Tabari (d. 923) reports a story of Jesus's encounter with a certain King in the region. The identity of the King is not mentioned while legend suggests Philip the Tetrarch. The corresponding Bible reference is "the royal official's son." With regard to the reason which led Jesus to seek the support of the disciples in Islamic theology, al-Tabari relates the tale on the authority of As-Suddi.[46] Another legendary miraculous story has to do with a Jewish man and loafs of bread. A lesson on greed and truth-telling is weaved into the narration.[47]

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Adulthood The Jordan River, where Jesus was baptized by Yahya ibn Zakariyya (John the Baptist).[34] Mission It is generally agreed that Jesus spoke Aramaic, the common language of Judea in the first century AD and the region at-large.[35] Most Islamic tradition conveys Jesus and his teaching conformed to the prophetic model: a human, as with previous prophets, sent by God to a certain people at a certain time, to present both a judgement upon humanity for worshipping idols and a challenge to turn to the one true God. Tradition believes Jesus' mission was to the people of Israel, his status as a prophet confirmed by numerous miracles.[36] The first and earliest view of Jesus in Islamic thought is that of a prophet; a human being chosen by God to present both a judgement upon humanity for worshipping idols and a challenge to turn to the one, true God, is foundational for all Muslims. From this basis reflected upon all previous prophets through the lens of Muslim identity, Jesus is no more than a messenger repeating the same message of the ages. Jesus is not traditionally perceived as divine, yet Muslim ideology is careful not to view Jesus as less than this, for in doing so would be sacrilegious and similar to rejecting a recognized Islamic prophet. The miracles of Jesus and the Qur'anic titles attributed to Jesus demonstrate the power of God rather than the divinity of Jesus—the same power behind the message of all prophets.[37] A second early image of Jesus is an end-time figure, arising mostly from the Hadith. Muslim tradition constructs a narrative similar to found in Christian theology, seeing Jesus awaiting the end of time when he will descend to the earth and fight the Antichrist, championing the cause of Islam, when after doing so he will point to the primacy of Muhammad and die a natural death.[38] A third and distinctive image is of Jesus representing an ascetic figure; a prophet of the heart. Although the Qur'an refers to the ‘gospel’ of Jesus, those specific teachings of his are not mentioned. The Sufi movement is where Jesus became revered, acknowledged as a spiritual teacher with a distinctive voice from other prophets, including Muhammad. Sufism is a tendency, within Islam, to explore the dimensions of union with God through many approaches including asceticism, poetry, philosophy, speculative suggestion and mystical methods. Although Sufism to the western mind may seem to share similar origins or elements of Neoplatonism, Gnosticism and Buddhism, the ideology is distinctly Islamic since they adhere to the words of the Qur'an and pursue imitation of Muhammad as the perfect man.[39] Preaching The Islamic concept of Jesus' preaching is believed to have originated in Kufa, Iraq, where the earliest writers of Muslim tradition and scholarship was formulated, whom the Kufan, are labeled after. The concepts of Jesus and his preaching ministry was adopted from the early ascetic Christians of Egypt who opposed official church bishopric appointments from Rome.[40] The earliest stories numbering about 85 are found in two major collections of ascetic literature entitled Kitab al-Zuhd wa'l Raqa'iq (The Book of the Asceticism and Tender Mercies) by Ibn al-Mubarak (d. 797), and Kitab al-Zuhd (The Book of Asceticism) by Ibn Hanbal (d. 855). These sayings fall into four basic groups consisting of a) eschatological sayings; b) quasi-Gospel sayings; c) ascetic sayings and stories; d) sayings echoing intra-Muslim polemics.[41] The first group of sayings expand Jesus' archetype as portrayed in the Quran. The second group of stories, although containing a Gospel core, are expanded with a "distinctly Islamic stamp". The third group, being the largest of the four, portrays Jesus as a patron saint of Muslim asceticism. The last group builds upon the Islamic archetype and Muslim-centric definition of Jesus and his attributes, furthering esoteric ideas regarding terms such as "Spirit of God" and "Word of God".[42]

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Childhood The narrative of fleeing from Herod continues similarly to the narrative found in the canonical Gospels and noncanonical sources, with some Islamic narratives having Jesus and family staying in Egypt for 12 years.[31] Many moral stories and miraculous events of Jesus' youth are mentioned in Qisas al-anbiya (Stories of the Prophets), books composed over the centuries about pre-Islamic prophets and heroes.[32] Al-Masudi claims that Jesus as a boy studied the Jewish religion reading from the Psalms and found "traced in characters of light": "You are my son and my beloved; I have chosen you for myself" with Jesus then claiming: "today the word of God is fulfilled in the son of man".[33] In Egypt During the stay in Egypt, several miracles were reported;[when?] Jesus at nine months old explains Muslim creed fundamentals to a schoolmaster; Jesus reveals thieves to a wealthy chief; fills empty jars of something to drink; reveals what parents were eating at home while playing with their children; provides food and wine for a tyrannical king; proves to this same king his power in raising a dead man from the dead; raises a child accidentally killed; and causes the garments from a single-colored vat to come out with various colors.[13]

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Birth of Jesus The account of Jesus begins with a prologue narrated several times in the Quran first describing the birth of his mother, Mary, and her service in the Jerusalem temple, while under the care of the prophet and priest Zechariah, who was to be the father of John the Baptist (Luke 1:5-79). The narrative has been recounted with variations and additions by Islamic historians over the centuries. Ibn Ishaq (d. 761 or 767), an Arab historian and hagiographer, wrote the account entitled Kitab al-Mubtada (In the Beginning), reporting that Zechariah is Mary's guardian briefly, and after being incapable of maintaining her, he entrusts her to a carpenter named George. Secluded in a church, she is joined by a young man named Joseph, and they help one another fetching water and other tasks. Mary is later described as a widow, without mention of a previous husband. The account of the birth of Jesus follows the Qur'an's narrative, adding that the birth occurred in Bethlehem beside a palm tree with a manger.[20] At-Tabari (d. 923), a Persian scholar and historian, contributed to the Jesus' birth narrative by mentioning envoys arriving from the king of Persia with gifts (similar to the Magi from the east) for the Messiah; the command to a man called Joseph (not specifically Mary's husband) to take her and the child to Egypt and later return to Nazareth.[21] The work The Meadows of Gold by Al-Masudi (d. 956), an Arab historian and geographer, reports Jesus being born at Bethlehem on Wednesday 24 December (a detail likely received from contemporary Christians) without mentioning the Qur'anic palm tree.[21] Ali ibn al-Athir (d. 1233), an Arab or Kurdish historian and biographer, reported in The Perfection of History (al-Kamil), a work which became a standard for later Muslims, that Joseph the carpenter had a more prominent role, but is not mentioned as a relative or husband of Mary. Al-Athir writes about how Jesus as a young boy helped to detect a thief, and about bringing a boy back to life which Jesus was accused of having killed. He mentions a version of the birth narrative taking place in Egypt without mention of a manger under the palm tree, but adds that the first version of the birth in the land of Mary's people is more accurate. Al-Athir makes a point believing Mary's pregnancy to have lasted not nine or eight months, but only a single hour. His basis is that this understanding is closer to where the Qur'an says Mary 'conceived him and retired with him to a distant place' (19:22).[22] Annunciation The virgin birth of Jesus is announced to Mary by the angel Gabriel while Mary is being raised in the Temple after having been pledged to God by her mother. Gabriel states she is honored over all women of all nations and has brought her glad tidings of a holy son.[23] A hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah, one of the earliest companions of Muhammad, quotes Muhammad: "Hardly a single descendant of Adam is born without Satan touching him at the moment of his birth. A baby who is touched like that gives a cry. The only exceptions are Mary and her son" [cf. Q 3: 36].[24] The angel declares the son is to be named Jesus, the Messiah, proclaiming he will be called a great prophet, being the Spirit of God and Word of God, who will receive al-Injīl (Arabic for the Gospel). The angel tells Mary that Jesus will speak in infancy, and when mature, will be a companion to the most righteous. Mary, responding how she could conceive and have a child when no man had touched her, was told by the angel that God can decree what He wills, and it shall come to pass.[25] The conception of Jesus as described by Ibn al-Arabi (d. 1240), an Andalusian Scholar of Islam, Sufi mystic, poet and philosopher, in the Bezels of Wisdom: From the water of Mary or from the breath of Gabriel, In the form of a mortal fashioned of clay, The Spirit came into existence in an essence Purged of Nature's taint, which is called Sijjin (hell) Because of this, his sojourn was prolonged, Enduring, by decree, more than a thousand years. A spirit from none other than God, So that he might raise the dead and bring forth birds from clay.[26] Mary, overcome by the pains of childbirth, is provided a stream of water under her feet from which she could drink and a palm tree which she could shake so ripe dates would fall and be enjoyed. As Mary carried baby Jesus back to the temple, she was asked by the temple elders about the child. Having been commanded by Gabriel to a vow of silence, she points to the infant Jesus and the infant proclaims:[27] He said, "Lo, I am God's servant; God has given me the Book, and made me a Prophet. Blessed He has made me, wherever I may be; and He has enjoined me to pray, and to give the alms, so long as I live, and likewise to cherish my mother; He has not made me arrogant, unprosperous. Peace be upon me, the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive!"[28] Jesus speaking from the cradle is mentioned as one of six miracles in the Quran.[29] The speaking infant narrative is also found in the Syriac Infancy Gospel, a pre-Islamic sixth century work.[30]

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Associated relics The total destruction that ensued with the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70 made the survival of items from 1st century Judea very rare and almost no direct records survive about the history of Judaism from the last part of the 1st century through the 2nd century.[431][432][t] Margaret M. Mitchell writes that although Eusebius reports (Ecclesiastical History III 5.3) that the early Christians left Jerusalem for Pella just before Jerusalem was subjected to the final lock down, we must accept that no first hand Christian items from the early Jerusalem Church have reached us.[434] Joe Nickell writes, "as investigation after investigation has shown, not a single, reliably authenticated relic of Jesus exists."[435][u] However, throughout the history of Christianity a number of relics attributed to Jesus have been claimed, although doubt has been cast on them. The 16th century Catholic theologian Erasmus wrote sarcastically about the proliferation of relics and the number of buildings that could have been constructed from the wood claimed to be from the cross used in the Crucifixion.[438] Similarly, while experts debate whether Jesus was crucified with three nails or with four, at least thirty holy nails continue to be venerated as relics across Europe.[439] Some relics, such as purported remnants of the Crown of Thorns, receive only a modest number of pilgrims, while the Shroud of Turin (which is associated with an approved Catholic devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus), has received millions,[440] including popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI.[441][442]