Defending Christian Faith: The Fifth Part of the Christian Apology of Gerasimus

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Managing Editor: Katarzyna Tempczyk. Language Editor: David Huisjen. The book by Abjar Bakhou presents Medieval Christian author Gerasimus and his discussion with Islam. His aim was to show that Christian teachings are not irrational, but rather subtle and complex. As a Christian philosopher and theologian, Gerasimus used the experiences of those of the past to facilitate his own response to critics. However, two important differences separated him from earlier apologists, which demand his own insight and innovation. First, the new language of intellectual discourse was Arabic, which was not accommodating for expressing traditional Christian doctrine, and required the development of a vocabulary out of terms already heavily influenced by the Qur'anic worldview. Second, the new religion challenging Christianity was one of absolute monotheism, which shared neither a common scriptural nor cultural heritage, and rejected the very possibility of a Trinity and Incarnation. Gerasimus was also a mutakallim in his own right, the Christian counterpart to those Islamic scholars who sought to defend their faith through rational arguments. In an effort to argue the legitimacy of Christianity, Gerasimus attempts to create a common language that influences the meaning of terminology and concepts of intellectual development in Muslim - Christian debates. Such language would set the stage for centuries to come. This is certainly his greatest contribution. Acknowledgments VI Foreword VII General Introduction 1 1. Author and Manuscripts 5 2. An Overview of the 'Apology' 11 3. Analysis of the Analogies Used in the 'Apology' 28 4. An Analysis of Part 5 41 The Text in Arabic 67 English Translation 103 General Conclusion 141 Index of the Most Important Words in Arabic 148 Bibliography 161