The Theological Deadlock: Why Semitic Faiths Cannot Reconcile

Each of these faiths claims exclusive access to absolute truth.

Judaism declares itself the covenantal religion of the “Chosen People.” Christianity universalizes that claim through the “Son of God,” demanding faith in one historical redeemer. Islam then reclaims finality by announcing Muhammad as the “Seal of the Prophets.” Every one of them accepts earlier revelations only to supersede them. Each, therefore, negates the others. This creates a permanent contradiction built into their theologies: truth cannot be both exclusive and universal.

Philosophically, this rivalry is insoluble because the foundations are revelational, not empirical. Reason can arbitrate between hypotheses; revelation cannot. You cannot “prove” the Qur’an’s divine origin to a Christian or the Trinity’s truth to a Muslim by logic. Thus, reason is excluded from the negotiating table, and without reason, there is no neutral ground.

Religiously, the three faiths share one God but deny each other’s version of His revelation. Their prophets compete for finality. Their scriptures compete for divine authorship. Their ethics overlap, yet each asserts the monopoly of salvation. Therefore, the very structure of monotheism — one God, one truth, one people — guarantees permanent theological conflict.

Sociologically, these rival absolutes became political empires. Rome enforced Christianity. The Caliphate enforced Islam. Israel reasserted Jewish nationhood. Each fused theology with sovereignty, converting metaphysical claims into geopolitical wars. When religions claim ownership of truth, they inevitably claim ownership of territory and souls.

The world cannot resolve this because these faiths define identity, not opinion. A human can change ideas, but not easily change inherited identity without social death. Hence the stalemate: reason cannot arbitrate revelation, and revelation cannot coexist with rival revelation.

In short: the rival Semitic claims remain unresolved because each demands total obedience, forbids verification, and punishes dissent — the very opposite of philosophy’s spirit of doubt and inquiry.