Against the law of the Saracens
By Fr. Riccoldo da monte di Croce, O.P.
Florence; c. 1243-1320
Chapter 15:
What does Muhammad mean in the Quran that he says and repeats about himself so often, writing, "Believe in God and His messenger," "obey God and His messenger," "follow God and His messenger"?
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(208) Fourth question . The fourth question is that because Muhammad very frequently commends the law of Moses, Job, and David in the Quran, and calls the Psalter a “luminous book” [1] , and above all other books he commends the Gospel, in which he says that it is “ salvation and guidance” [2] , he complains why the Saracens do not have and do not read these books, nor do they expound them in their schools? [3] |
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(213) For because Christ commended Moses and the other prophets, and the Christians did not have them, they received them from the Jews and had them translated from various languages, and they hold them authentic and read them in their schools. And the Saracens say that the Jews corrupted the books of the Old Testament and the Christians corrupted the Gospel and the books of the New Testament, and that nothing of truth remained in the world of the Scriptures except as is in the Koran. But it was shown above, in the third [4] chapter, that this is false and contrary to the Koran [5] . |
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(221) Furthermore, how could such a great prophet, as they consider Muhammad, have so commended corrupt copies and said that in them there is " salvation and guidance"? Or how could he not have predicted that they would be corrupted in the future but rather said the opposite?, namely that if the Muslims were in doubt about the Quran, they should ask those who had received the books before them, namely from the Christians and the Jews. And this he says in the chapter on Jonah . But rather he would have said: "Do not believe them because they have corrupted books." |
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(227) Furthermore, in the chapter Amram , he teaches the Saracens to seek the authority of the law of Moses, saying: "Bring the Pentateuch, if you are truthful, and read it" [6] etc. But there is no other reason why the Saracens do not read the aforementioned books than because wise people know that the falsity of the Koran would be easily detected if they read the holy and truthful books. |
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(233) Hence, Alchoran also maliciously provided for himself and set forth four remedies so that he would not be abandoned by his people and so that his falsehood would not be detected. One is that he ordered those to be killed who said anything contrary to the Quran, as was clear above in the tenth chapter. | 214r | Secondly, because he said that they should not dispute with men of another sect [7] . |
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(239) Thirdly, because he forbade them to believe in them. For he says in the chapter Amram : "Believe not except those who follow your law," although he says that in the gospel there is "salvation and guidance." He also says that the Muslims are nothing unless they fulfill the law and the gospel . [8] Therefore they are bound to have them. (244) The fourth is that they should be completely separated from them and say, "My law is with you and your law is with you," etc.; and after that: "You are free from what I do and I am free from what you do," and this he says in the chapter on Jonah . |
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(246) Therefore, if the Muslims were to accept the advice of the Quran well , they would undoubtedly be guided; for they would have the Gospel and the Law of Moses and other holy scriptures, especially since the Quran itself, in commending Moses and David and Solomon and other prophets, very frequently says that it does not prefer one to another [9] . |
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And this is enough about the fourth question . |
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(253) Fifth question . The fifth question is what does Muhammad mean in the Koran, which he so often says and repeats about himself, writing [10] “Believe in God and the messenger”, “obey God and the messenger”, “follow God and the messenger”? [11] For we know that to God alone is due the fidelity of belief, the honor of worship, the work of obedience and the following of life, because he alone is the “beginning and end” of all things. Hence no prophet ever dared to say these things in order to associate himself totally and in such things with God, who can never have any partner or associate. For the Lord said in the law to Moses and to all the Jews “See that I am only one”. And therefore Elijah said: “If the Lord is the Lord, follow him; but if Baal, follow him”. |
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(264) Therefore, Mohammed seems to have not only given God a sharer, but to have made himself a sharer and partner with God; and as is said in the Koranic chapter Elnesa : "God does not spare if anyone gives him a sharer." [12] But Christ alone, who was neither a sharer nor a partner with God, but was true God and true | 214v | man, could say, "Believe in God and believe in me." Yet he never said, "Believe in God and in me," or, "Obey God and me," lest men should believe him to be a sharer and partner with God. |
[1] Cf.Heart3,184 (wa-l-zubûri wa-l-kitâb al-munî r,"avec les Ecritures, avec le Livre lumineux", MASSON, p. 88, et note 184, p. 812). Is there a verse that amené Riccoldo à qualifies le livre des Psaumes de: "luminous book"?
[ 2] Heart 2,97 ( budan wa bushra , "Dircetion et Annonce", BLACHERE, p. 41); 3,3-4.
[3] Nor do they expound in the schools . R marg. yes According to Richard's part d'expérience, there are few Muslims who read the Gospel and know the Bible well.
■ read and explain in schools. La traduzione italiana qui proposa non si prende alcuna licenza. Il medievale Riccoldo fa uso delle nozioni del sistema scholastico in uso al suo tempo (scontato per loro, sconosciuto a noi!), e in particolare all'insegnamento di base denominato lectio o lezione (poco dopo farà mensione della disputatio ) . The didactic area that conveys to the students the knowledge of the base and consolidates the given discipline. Il maestro (o lettore o baccelliere) legge, espone e commenta l' auctor , o meglio il liber textus di quella disciplina, determined dagli statuti degli studi generali o loro tradizioni: curriculum delle arti; regulato dai capitoli generali e provinciali degli ordini religiosi, o dagli statuti delle città e dei loro studia .
Corsi di logica ricavabile dagli atti capitolari OP (ma da articulatere chronologicalmente), e relative libri di testo:
- ancient logic ( old logic ): Isagoge di Porfirio, Divisioni e Topici di Boezio, Categorie e Interpretazione di Aristotele, Trattati ovvero Summule logicales (1230 ca.) di Pietro Ispano;
- logica nuova ( logica nova ), corso avanzato di logica: sui libri Aristotelici Topici, Elenchi sophistici, Analytici primi e secondi .
- philosophy of nature: Physics, On the sky, On generation, Meteorology, On minerals, On the soul, On animals and plants
- metaphysics etc.
[4] in the third ] in .3. cod.
[5] This is what the Muslim scholars conclude about Cor . 15,9; cf. CLS 3, righi 37 -43. Dieu "conserve" les Ecritures et ne les laisse pas corrompre, c'est pour cela qu'Il y renvoie les musulmans ( Cor . 10,94); CLS 3, righi 44 -48; R. MARTIN, Explanation , pp. 452-455.
[6] Cor ., al-'Imrân (3), 93; cf. trad. Marc de Toledo, Bibl. Maz., f. 13r: «Bring the law of the decalogue and follow it if you are truthful».
[7] Cf. Heart 29,46; 4,140. Riccoldo s'est heurté à la difficulty du dialogue. If le Coran n'interdit pas la discussion, il y met certain conditions; CLS 6, rr. 23-24; 9, rr. 263 -265.
■ would not debate = " not to accept a public debate "; qui Riccoldo, instead of "arguing" ( cf. CLS 6, rr. 23-24 ), intended la seconda fascia della didattica medievale, la disputatio , distinguished from complementare alla lectio poco first mentioned.
[8] Cf. Heart 5.68; CLS 3, rr. 118 -121; 17, rr. 26-28.
[9] Cf. GARDET, L'Islam, Religion... , Paris 1967, pp. 67-70.
[10] writing: saying prem. and del.
[11] Cf. Heart 4,136 ( 'âminû , believe); 3,32,132 ( 'atî'û , obey); 47,3 ( 'itba'û , follow).
[12] Cor ., al-nisâ' (4),48,116. Cf. trad. Marc de Toledo, Bibl. Maz., f. 17va: «For God does not spare him who has made him a partner».