The 99 names of God

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Hello everyone!
Is it okay for a Catholic or someone planning on becoming Catholic to pray the 99 names of God?
For those of you who dont know, the 99 names of God are names/ qualities of God as mentioned in the Qu’ran.
Examples of this are “al rahman” which means the merciful, “al malik” which means the king, " al qaddoos" which means the most holy, etc etc…
I was introduced to this prayer as a child ( the prayer itself involves reciting the 99 names of God on Muslim rosary beads ) and i see nothing unChristian in it, since it glorifies God and Him alone ( there is absolutely no mention of Muhammad or any other Muslim figure that might cause a Christian to object to this prayer).
I rather like this prayer.
But is there any official Catholic teaching that disallows this??
 
There’s no official Church teaching against it…

And I see nothing wrong with it.
 
As long as the names listed are adjectives which are taught or approved/believed by the Catholic Church for God, then I cannot see why not.
 
I remember that song. I thought it was rather silly. Was it really about the 99 Names of Allah? It would have been a much cooler song if it was, though I’m not sure about the religious propriety of dancing around some club to the 99 Names of Allah.
 
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Someone said Jesus has many “ side” names …
The Lamb…The gate…The Bread of Life…etc
 
Tis_Bearself said:
The One, the Indivisible” is at odds with the Christian concept of the Trinity, which Muslims don’t believe
Click to expand...
The One, the Indivisible could be understood in an orthodox manner.

So long as by One it us understood the One triune Godhead, then it is perfectly orthodox to say the One God is Indivisible.
 
It kinda reminded me of Deuteronomy 6:4 which in the Douay-Rheims version of the Bible reads, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.”

And the corresponding line of the Jewish Shema Yisrael, “Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God, the LORD is one.”

Of course, the NABRE had to go change Deuteronomy 6:4 to “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!” which to me was just annoying and unnecessary, but whatever.
 
It makes sense for Catholics to refer to God as the Indivisible . One God, three persons. I think the churches that would have a problem with this would be those that believe in three seperate Godheads. (Mormonism)
 
Not at all. I certainly dont believe so. All the 99 names of God can be considered Christian.
The only name i had a problem with myself is “al dharr” which means He who hurts , and this has nothing to do with Christianity or Islam. I just did not feel comfortable referring to God as hurtful also i still did it for the sake of completing the prayer. Then i learned that the Qu’ran means that God is hurtful in the sense of hurting His enemies such as the demons who seek the downfall of his people.
 
This might not work in Arabic but in English saying God hurts can be understood as saying He is injured, which can remind one of the sufferings of Jesus.
 
There are certainly a lot of Old Testament stories where God hurt the enemies of Israel, such as by sending the plagues upon the Egyptians.
 
Yes i suppose it can, and yes you’re right. In Arabic “al dharr” specifically means He who hurts, as in hurts others. If the Qu’ran meant that God is the one who is hurt the word would have been “al mu-dharr” ,He who is hurt.
There any many things that are lost in translation. I was just looking over the English translations of the 99 names of God on wikipedia and i must warn you that there are many subtle meanings that the English translations do not quite capture.
Its the same with the Latin latria, hyperdulia, and dulia, i suppose… They have different meaning in their birth language but in English they all translate to worship.
 
I am sure the 99 names of God in Islam derives from their belief which can be explained theologically, which may be opposed to ours.

However, if we use their 99 names for God, we have to understand them in our context of theology about how we understand God. In other word, we have to understand them according to our version, not from the Islamic viewpoint.
 
There are Catholic lists out there! :pray:t2: And they feature 150 titles of Christ! 🌷

From the Archdiocese of Washington:

150 Titles of Christ from the Scriptures - Community in Mission

As well as three other resources:

Dictionary : CHRIST, NEW TESTAMENT NAMES AND TITLES

CHRIST, NEW TESTAMENT NAMES AND TITLES The following is a list of names and titles of Christ, together with their biblical citations, that appear in the New Testament: I John 2:1 Advocate Revelation 1:8; 22:13 Alpha and Omega Revelation 3:14 Amen Hebrews 3:1 Apostle and High Priest of our...
www.catholicculture.org www.catholicculture.org

www.loyolapress.com

Names for Jesus | Loyola Press

What are the names for Jesus found in Scripture? Discover eleven of them at Loyola Press.
www.loyolapress.com

en.wikipedia.org

Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
I never knew! Thanks for informing me, this is very enlightening. I will go through these lists as soon as i have the time.
 
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