Apologetics of the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church against Islam

The Christian-Muslim debate

Since the VII century has come out in the near east what we can rightly call an “apologetic against Islam.” Major exponents of this genre were mostly monks and priests of the eastern Church, as the syriac Church, but we don’t lack of examples in the Ortodox and Roman Catholic Church neither, though later exemplars.

The most used typologies of debate were letters or oeuvres written in a dialogical form, probably after the argue.

Here in this blog I want present some examples of these works in defence of the true Christian faith, but they are open to Muslim viewers too (obviously), if they would want to research deeper into their own scripture, and discover things about which they maybe never really thought about.

God bless us.

Saint Francis and the Sultan

Around the year 1220 Saint Francis of Assisi sailed to Egypt to join the Christian army that was besieging Damietta. He did not go to fight alongside Crusaders but to preach Christ to the Infidels.

Saint Francis approached the Papal Legate who was with the army and “requested leave to cross over to the Muslim lines to preach to the Muslims.”

This rattled the Papal Legate, who knew the Sultan had offered a golden ducat for the head of any Christian sent to him. In response, the Papal Legate simply asked Francis not to bring shame on the Christian name. That was all Francis needed. He and some companions struck out at once for the Sultan’s camp. They saw two lambs on the road while on their way. Francis took this as a good sign, saying to his comrades, “Behold I send you forth as sheep among wolves.”

Muslim soldiers apprehended Francis, took him before the Sultan and Francis began to preach. He spoke with power and conviction, zeal and fire. The love of God flowed through him. He was like a blast furnace, infectious, captivating. The Sultan found himself drawn in by the power of Francis’ words, and ordered him to be treated with courtesy while at camp. It appears that Francis stayed for a few days, and the Sultan asked Francis to remain in his court.

“Willingly,” answered Francis, “if you and your people will convert to Christ.”

Francis continued, “If you hesitate as to the merits of the law of Muhammad and the faith of Christ, command that a great fire be lighted, and I together with your priests, will enter the fire that you may know which is the more worthy and true.”

The Sultan replied that none of their Muftis would accept the challenge.

“Then if you promise for yourself and your people, to come to the worship of Christ if I come out of the fire unhurt,” Francis responded, “I will enter the fire alone.” He added, “If I am burnt up, impute it to my sins, but if the Divine Power protects me, acknowledge Christ to be true God and the Savior of all.”

The Sultan dared not accept the challenge from the holy mendicant, but was captivated by Francis nonetheless, and asked him to accept some precious gifts if not for himself, then at least for the poor.

Francis responded this was not the purpose of his visit, and returned to Europe.

What do you notice?

1) Saint Francis preached to the Sultan for no other purpose than the conversion of the Muslims;

2) The Sultan refused to convert, so Francis stopped the dialogue.

Saint Francis of Assisi: No Ecumenist

Saint Francis of Assisi was firmly committed to the truth that “outside the Catholic Church, there is no salvation.” He was an apostle of Christ who preached the Gospel, 

1) for the salvation of those souls who were already Catholic, but had fallen away from the Gospel ideal;

2) for the salvation of infidels and non-believers, whom he knew would be lost if they did not embrace Christ and His one true Church.

On the Triune Nature of God

Fi tathlith Allah al-wahid

(778 A.D., Author unknown)

This earlier written Christian apologetic, which was in Arabic and addressed to Muslims, was produced by an unknown Christian author in 788 A.D. The author of this short text was well aware of Muslim arguments against the Trinity, as well as the Qur'an's vocabulary, which he used to make his points.

We do not say three Gods...but we say that God and His Word and His Spirit are one God and one Creator.....We do no say that God begat His Word as any man begets - God forbid! Rather we say that the Father begat His Word as the sun begets rays, as the mind begets speech and as the fire begets heat.

This, then, is our faith and our testimony in God and His Word and His Spirit: He is the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, one God and one Lord. As for Christ, in him He saved and delivered mankind, and we shall expound that, God willing, how God sent His Word and His Light as a mercy and guidance to men, and favoured them by Him.

XXXVII. SINAI COD. ARAB. 625. Read in AD. 1698. 

Dialogue between an Emir and a Monk.

The Monk: "according to our image and likeness," that is to say, in power and authority and dominion and self-control and will and choice, by way of likeness and approach, and just as a man is like his image which he creates upon the wall, and which appears in the house, and thou seest not himself but something in the way of being like him, thus man approaches God in His image and likeness. And God created man to wish to walk in the commandment of his Creator, and in His ordinance and law; and this is the ordinance and the law and the commandments; and thou must necessarily be akin to the nature of their Founder and Legislator by way of resemblance. For example, if thou hadst a son or a servant, and thou wert in thy disposition compassionate, wouldst thou command him to be…”