What Are the Seven Major Sins?
- The first sin on most lists of kaba'ir is the sin of idolatry. In Islam, Allah is the highest power and authority and to worship any gods or idols before him is considered an unforgivable sin. Similarly, the first two commandments in Christianity are to have no other gods before God and not to make any carvings or idols for worship. Islam also commands consistent faith in Allah's mercy and awareness of his divine cunning while forbidding persistent transgression. These four sins are known as sins of the heart.
- Islam's sins of the tongue relate to spoken sins and include: bearing false witness, which is also one of the Christian Ten Commandments; defaming a woman of good standing; taking an oath that directly or indirectly undermines or circumvents justice; and participating in black magic or sorcery. In some interpretations of Islam, this final sin against sorcery includes any attempt to change perceptions or harm a person through words.
- Muslims are forbidden by Allah from consuming alcohol or any other intoxicants. Additionally, to consume or take the wealth of orphans or to consume, accept or pay interest (called "riba" in Arabic) is considered a sin. While these sins are largely applied to food (so stealing food from orphans is a sin, and understandably so), interpretations of the Quran usually forbid charging or paying interest on financial loans.
- Islam's sins relating to sexuality have their parallels in Christian beliefs too. Fornication ("zina") outside of marriage as well as anal sex, ("liwat") with either a man or a woman, are forbidden of Muslims. Similarly in Christianity, lust is one of the seven deadly sins and is considered an inordinate interest in the pleasures of the body, and adultery is forbidden in the Ten Commandments.
- Islam's two key sins of the hand are straightforward and are similar to Christianity's sixth and eighth commandments: murder and theft. Both are very serious sins in both major religions with very little or no exceptions to make them justifiable.
- One of Islam's final two major sins, as interpreted by Hendricks, is running from battle when you are confronted by the enemies of Muslims. Many Islam scholars extend this sin to include not just warfare but interpret it as a requirement that Muslims consistently stand up for their faith in the face of nonbelievers.
- The final major sin, the sin of the body, is disrespect for one's parents, a concept many Christians will recognize as the fifth commandment.