Hajj or the Finished Work of Christ?

There is a well-known hadith that says the accomplishment of the Hajj results in the complete wiping away of sin:

"Whoever performs Hajj for Allah and does not have sexual relations, nor commit sin, nor dispute unjustly during Hajj, will return (free from sins) as on the day his mother gave birth to him.” (emphasis mine, as in other citations) (Sahih al-Bukhari 1521, Sahih Muslim 1350a)

I have quoted verses below that counter that thought, but it would be a shame to be heard to say we don't believe in pilgrimage at all. We do, but not in the way Muslims practice hajj. Psalm 84 speaks of the blessedness of pilgrimage to Jerusalem. But note the blessedness of being close to God's altar, that is the place of animal sacrifice.

We do not seek an earthly city but a heavenly one. But Jerusalem as was, with its altar and the shed blood of animals, is a vital picture for us of what we are spiritually 'climbing' towards. We can use the songs of ascent (Psalms 120-134) to stir up our sense that we are journeying towards the heavenly Jerusalem.

The hadith holds out a glorious hope of sins wiped away, but Christians believe that this can only ultimately be achieved through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. God removes sin completely through Christ’s atoning death and resurrection. We don't even have to turn to the NT to see this, though 1 Peter 3:18 makes this very clear. He died for us, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring us to God.

A hajj is hardly a just solution to the problem of our sin. Sin deserves death. Anything less makes God out to be unjust, a god who sweeps our sins under the carpet. I tend to stress the greatness of God (Allah hu Akbar), so that we are starting with their own declaration about God and using that to undermine what they are asserting about the way of forgiveness.

Perhaps the most succinct verse to quote is Jesus' words on the cross: "It is finished!" (John 19)

The beautiful and poetic verses below could also be good ones to share with someone who plans to, or has gone on hajj. 

Psalm 103:10–12 (NIVUK)

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.”

Micah 7:18–19 (NIVUK)

“Who is a God like you,
who pardons sin and forgives the transgression
of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry for ever
but delight to show mercy.
You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.”

Zechariah 3:9 (NIVUK)

“See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.’”

Christians have often seen this promise as pointing forward to the day of Christ’s atoning sacrifice, when God dealt decisively with sin through the cross.

Image: Josefa de Óbidos: The Sacrificial Lamb (Wikimedia)