Islam and Christianity

Mawâhib-ul-ladunniyya, it has been proven that the Qur’ân alkerîm
promotes both aspects of medicine as expressed in some
verses.
Our prophet Muhammad (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) had
established close relations with the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius.
They used to correspond with and send envoys to each other. On
one occasion, Heraclius sent him many presents. One of the
presents was a medical doctor. When the doctor arrived he came
to our Prophet and said “Sir! His Majesty has sent me to you as a
servant. I shall treat those that are ill free of charge.” Hadrat
Muhammad (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa sallam) accepted his services.
As ordered, the doctor was given a house. Everyday, they brought
delicious food and drink for him. Days and months passed. No
Muslims came to see him. Consequently, the doctor, feeling
ashamed, requested permission to leave, saying: “Sir! I came here
to serve you. Up to now no sick person has come to me. I have
been sitting idly eating and drinking comfortably. And now I’d
like to go back home.” Our Prophet (sall-Allâhu ’alaihi wa
sallam) responded: “It is up to you. If you would like to stay
longer, it is the Muslims’ primary duty to serve and show honour
to their guests. However, if you would like to leave now, have a
good journey! But you must know that, even if you were to stay
here for years, no Muslim would come to see you. It is because my
Companions do not become ill. The Islamic religion has shown
the way to good health. My Companions pay great attention to
cleanliness. They do not eat anything unless they are hungry, and
they stop eating before becoming fully sated.”
With the words above, we do not mean to say that a Muslim
never becomes ill. However, a Muslim who pays attention to his
health and cleanliness remains healthy for a long time. He hardly
becomes ill. Death is a fact of life. It cannot be avoided. Everyone
will die as a result of some illness. Yet, being able to keep one’s
body healthy until the time of death is possible only by paying
attention to Islam’s commandments on cleanliness.
During the Middle Ages, when Christianity was at its peak,
the great scholars of medicine were only to be found among the
Muslims. Europeans used to come to Andalusia to receive an
education in medicine. Those who discovered a vaccine to
procure an immunity from smallpox were Muslim Turks. Janner,
who learned the vaccine from the Turks, took it to Europe in
1211 (1796) and was unjustly titled “The discoverer of the
smallpox vaccine.” In those days, Europe was a continent of
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