Review SARA LEILA HUSSEINI: Early Christian-Muslim Debate on the Unity of God: Three Christian Scholars and their Engagement with Islamic Theology (original) (raw)
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2017
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Barthian dialog on Islamic unity of God
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Manuscript article can be either in English, Malay or Arabic using software Microsoft office (Word, and Excel), Font 12 Times New Roman. Only tables, figures and appendix can be written using Font 10, Times New Roman. Letter of Publication-editorial board will send a letter by e-mail to the author if the article has been judged, repaired, and corrected to be published in the college's journal. Certificate of Appreciation-editorial board will send a certificate of appreciation by mail to the authors who have sent their articles.
Early Christian explanations of the Trinity in Arabic in the context of Muslim Theology
2011
This doctoral thesis examines the works of Theodore Abū Qurra (d.c.829), Abū Rā'iṭa (d. c.835), and 'Ammār al-Baṣrī (d.c.850); three of the earliest known Christian theologians to explain and defend their beliefs in Arabic, under Islamic rule. In particular, it focuses on their respective explanations of the doctrine of the Trinity: assessing each individual author's writings; investigating the tools and arguments they employ; and considering the extent to which they engaged with Islamic theological thought (kalām), primarily through their borrowing of concepts and structures from an internal Islamic debate concerning the divine attributes of God. This study asks to what extent these Christians were essentially translating their traditional doctrine into Arabic, and to what extent they developed a new expression of the Trinity, conceptually influenced by Islamic thinking. To my mother Mary Elizabeth and my father Rafiq Haidar Husseini For their unwavering love, unending support and utter faith. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to begin by thanking my grandmother Leila al-Khalidi and my aunt Tima al-Husseini who, through hours of assisting me with painstaking translations, now know the lives and works of Abū Qurra, Abū Rā'iṭa and 'Ammār al-Baṣrī more than they would perhaps care to. Their help has been more valuable than I can express in a few short words. I would also like to reiterate my thanks to my mother and father, to whom I dedicate this work, and without whose emotional, practical and financial support I simply would not have been able to undertake such a project. I am also grateful for the good humour and support of my siblings, Tariq, Serene, and Talal, and particularly our surrogate family member, Troy, who has made it his vocation to point out the 'odd' act of procrastination over the past three years. Further acknowledgment goes to my wonderful friend and fellow PhD candidate Gemma Knowles for being there at every stage of this process: from the study sessions and reassuring cups of tea through to the final proof reading of the work. By vi the same token my thanks goes to Dr. Emily Scmidt who, having been through this process recently, gave me the wise words of encouragement that only someone who has been there can. My appreciation also extends to Vivienne Gorman, whose calm and rational presence has been invaluable; to a soon-to-be Dr. James Green for helping me to express my ideas a touch more eloquently in the final stages; and to the ladies and gentleman of Edgbaston Hockey Club for providing regular doses of much needed human contact and respite from the challenges of this undertaking. I would also like to take the opportunity here to express my gratitude to the AHRC, whose generous funding allowed me to spend three years studying a subject of my own choosing and passion. Finally, and most importantly, my heartfelt thanks go to my supervisor, Professor David Thomas, who has supported and encouraged me throughout this whole process; and who has put up with messy drafts, ridiculous questions and painfully slow Arabic translation attempts. His erudition and infectious enthusiasm for this subject are truly inspiring. I will very much miss our supervision meetings. vii CONTENTS ix 4. 'Ammār al-Baṣrī (d.c.840) 4.1 Background 4.1.1. Biography 4.1.2. Historical Context 4.1.3. Intellectual Context 4.1.4. Works relating to the Trinity 4.2 Setting the context 4.2.1. What can be known about God 4.2.2. Criticism of the teaching that God has no 'Word' or 'Life' 4.2.3. God's relationship to His Word and Life 4.3. Explanation of the Trinity 4.3.1. Four categories 4.3.2. 'One and three' is not a numerical issue 4.3.3. 'Al-uqnūm' and the relationship between substance and hypostases 4.3.4. Biblical proofs 243 4.4 Response to Muslim questions 4.5. Discussion: 'Ammār's understanding of the nature of God PART TWO: THE ROLE AND FUNCTION OF CHRISTIAN EXPLANATIONS OF THE TRINITY IN ARABIC 5. The tools of Christian Arabic Apologetic 5.1. Analogy and metaphor x 5.2. Scriptural Proofs 5.3. Terminology 5.4. Rational and Logical Proofs 5.4.1. 'The unity of species' 5.4.2. 'A Question for the Muslims' 5.4.3. 'The Headship of God' 5.4.4. 'Three is the perfect number' 5.5. The "Attribute-apology" 6. Christian theologians employing Muslim theology 6.1. Priorities, emphases and engagement with Islamic thought 6.1.1. Abū Qurra 6.1.2. Abū Rā'iṭa 6.1.3. 'Ammār al-Baṣrī 6.2. The role of Christian Arabic works 6.2.1. Audience and purpose 6.2.2. The place of Christian theology in Arabic and the question of the "Christian mutakallim" Conclusion Bibliography xi Library of Congress and the American Library Association Transliteration Scheme Initial Medial Final Alone Romanization 'Against the Trinity' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992) 10 Périer, Augustin. (ed. and trans.) 'Un traité de Yahyā ben 'Adī: défense du dogme de la trinité contre les objections d'al-Kindī', in R. Graffin (ed) Revue de l'orient Chrétien, vol. 2, no. 22 (1920-21) 11 In particular Abū al-Ḥasan 'Alī al-Ash'arī's Maqālāt al Islāmiyyīn, H. Ritter (ed.), Die Dogmatischen Lehren der Anhänger des Islam, 3 rd edition (Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag GMBH, 1930); Abū Bakr al-Bāqillānī's (d. 1013) Kitāb al-Tamḥīd and 'Abd al-Jabbār al-Hamdhānī's (d.1025) al-Mughnī fī Adwāb al-Tawḥīd wa-al-'Adl, both in Thomas, D. (ed.) Christian doctrines in Islamic theology. History of