A Risālah Of Abū Rā’Iṭah Al-Takrītīs On The Proof Of The Christian Religion And The Proof Of The Holy Trinity

Chapter Summary

Abū Rāʾiṭah's Proof of the Christian Religion and Proof of the Holy Trinity is the most comprehensive and the longest of his writings in defense of Christianity against Muslim criticism. Although he covers many of the topics found in it more extensively in On the Trinity and On the Incarnation, it is his most thorough attempt to give a general overview of many of difficult questions posed by Muslims. The Proof first addresses the issue of conversion, and then moves through the three major topics at issue between Muslims and Christians, the Trinity, the Incarnation, and particular Christian practices. For each of these, Abū Rāʾiṭah offers three types of evidence - analogies, scriptural passages, and parallels found in the Qurʾān or Islamic practice - in order to show the validity, and even superiority, of Christianity.

Keywords: Abū Rāʾiṭah; Abū Rāʾiṭah al-Takrῑtῑ; Christian religion; Holy Trinity; Risālah