> Well, much less than, say fashion.
You are on very shaky grounds here. I made no relative comparison and you made absolute statements.
> Because it is not supposed to change.
I am not concerned with what the "true believers" think, but what is.
> I am saying that branching in time does not mean changing in time.
Firstly, branching is changing. No matter how you look at it, when Islam branched into various sects Islam DID change. Yes everyone of those sects believes they are the correct one. This difference of opinion is what set them apart. The only way you can say Islam did not change, is if you believe Islam ceased to exist and was replaced with several sects.
> Perhaps a useful analogy is the Tree of Evolution
Fine, let's use evolution. How many DNA markers do you have in common the the white mice? I once read it is 80+%. So you are over 80% mouse. Which means you contain perhaps all of the DNA from your common ancestor with the mouse. IT lives inside you.
Branching aside, the same religion also changes in time. A quick look at the history of Roman Catholic Church should make this obvious.
> Which word are you referring to?
The original meaning of the word "Melat" means religious followers. I suspect this is the inspiration behind the word "nation" in "Nation of Islam".
> I am sorry but you have said this several times now and I still don't know what you mean...
Well, I don't know if I can describe it any better than I have. Perhaps if you made an analogy between the US Constitution and Koran and looked to see how they have lend themselves to various interpretations through time to inspire various Legal and Fiqh rullings, you see the similarities.
> In which way has Judaism changed "according to the needs", in your opinion?
Oh Boy! Are you in for a surprise now. I was researching my answer to Brumar on Mithraism-Christianity connection and came across its relationship with Judaeism. The changes have been so drastic I don't know if you can even say this is the same religion that it was way back then. Here is a little sample:
Fohrer 21 after a careful analysis concludes that all the sections relevant to the advent of Messiah have entered the holy book during the postexilic era, and IInd Isaiah is the prophet who in particular refers to the end of the world and coming of the Messiah. 22 It is generally accepted that the prophets of Israel after liberation from the Babylonian captivity, in order to generate hope and confidence among the demoralized Jews, introduced the Persian concepts of future hopes such as victory of good over evil, resurgence of Israel, resurrection, future life, heaven and hell and the Kingdom of God. Particularly as the Israelites in this era longed for the reestablishment of Kingdom of David, they developed the notion of Messiah and in effect envisioned the Kingdom of Yahweh in the form of the promised Messiah that was different from the earthly Kingdoms. 23 In other words the political hope of restored Jewish Kingdom headed by a "Meshiach Yahweh" came to be associated with the prophetic and apocalyptic vision of a Kingdom of God in the End of Days. 24 The prophets Heggai and Zechariah saw in Zerubbabel the possible fulfillment of this hope. 25 Thus, the concept of Kingdom of God, originally professed by Zarathushtra as "the chosen government", was eventually transferred through Judaism to Christianity and transformed into the "Kingdom of God". In Isaiah 42: 1-4, "the savior has the spirit of God and will not rest until he has established justice all over the world". Isaiah 11:6 after discussing the above adds after the coming of the Savior "world will live in peace, wolves will live in peace with lambs, and leopards will lie down to rest with goats". This notion is also reflected in Isaiah 62:25. Zechariah 4:14 even speaks of two saviors who are standing before Yahweh. Von Gall suggests that the writers of the book should have had the knowledge of two Zoroastrian saviors, of the later Avesta. Hoshidar and Hoshidar-mah.26 Some Authors contend that the three Magi who visited Jesus Christ at birth, were following the call for the future Saoshyant.
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