Title | : | Arabic Christian Apologetics Within The First Hundred Years of Abbasid Caliphate (750-850 CE) |
Author | : | Christian Paulus Sidenden (CRCS, 2005) |
Keywords | : | Arabic-Christian Apologetics – Theological Language – Interreligious Dialogue |
Abstract | ||
This research aims at remapping the theological language of Muslim-Christian interreligious dialogue in Indonesian context. It takes two of most important believes of Christianity, Trinity and Christology as the discussed problems. This is a referential research of some philosophical and theological books, journals of religious traditions, and some of websites data. As its examples, apologetical works had been chosed three of notoriously Arab-Christian apologets, which are : Theodore Abu Qurrae (740-825 CE), Catholicos Timothy I of Assyrian Church (727-823 CE), and Abd al-Masih al-Kindi (c. 9th century CE). The data obtained by analysing it in quantitative models of dialogue. The models would be in polemics, interviews or correspondence form between Mulim and Christian representatives. The research finding show that there are two factors that would benefit the recently and future interreligious dialogues between Muslim and Christian believers, i.e., the internal Christian external Muslims readiness hearing Christians explain their divine doctrines, factors. The internal factor dealings with how exactly Christians understanding who God they worshipping and how their God performs the salvation in human’s language of thought. The external factor dealings with how deeply Muslims’ understanding of Islamic unitive God that necessarily not be entrapped into philosophical reasonings (contra Mu’tazilite doctrines). The general strategy to overcome these two faiths are in hindrance to acknowledge each beliefs idea of one and the same God is by accustomed the believers used Arabic terms and idioms of theology. The terms of dhat, shifat, and uqnum can be useful to catch each of faith unique beliefs on God. |