Can the Qur’ān be read in the light of Christ? Reflections on some Melkite authors and their use of the Holy Book of Islam

Even Christians’ first Scripture was the Old Testament they read it in the light of Christ. For Christians, in disagreement with the Jews themselves, the prophecies of the Old Testament regarding the Messiah were realized in Jesus Christ. Christians thus read the Old Testament in a different way from that of the Jews as these latter continued to read the Old Testament according to their tradition, refusing to accept Christ as the Messiah. The Qurʾān, however, accepts that Christ was the Messiah, but rejects the Christian doctrine on Trinity and denies the divinity of Christ and that he is the incarnate Son of God the Father. This is, in fact, one of the main differences between the two religions. For their part, Christians, although they did not recognize prophecy in Muḥammad, used the Holy Book of Muslims in their different writings, especially as prooftexting for apologetic purposes. In this paper, I will examine the reading of the Qurʾān by some Christian Arabic writings of the Melkites in Palestine and Syria, namely the Apology for Christian Faith known as On the triune nature of God, the Al-Muğādalah between Abū Qurrah and alMaʼmūn, the Al-Muğādalah between Abraham of Tiberias and ʻAbd al-Raḥmān al-Hāšimī and Paul of Antioch’s Letter to a Muslim Friend. My analysis will include an investigation concerning the exegetical methods and instruments these texts and authors used in their making apology. It will be argued, then, whether these early Christian Arabic texts, although affirm that the Qurʾān remains the Holy Scripture of Muslims, they, at least indirectly, could see a kind of divine inspiration in it, and therefore could read some of its verses in the light of Christ.

Even Christians' first Scripture was the Old Testament they read it in the light of Christ. For Christians, in disagreement with the Jews themselves, the prophecies of the Old Testament regarding the Messiah were realized in Jesus Christ. Christians thus read the Old Testament in a different way from that of the Jews as these latter continued to read the Old Testament according to their tradition, refusing to accept Christ as the Messiah. The Qur’an, however, accepts that Christ was the Messiah, but rejects the Christian doctrine on Trinity and denies the divinity of Christ and that he is the incarnate Son of God the Father. This is, in fact, one of the main differences between the two religions. For their part, Christians, although they did not recognize prophecy in Muhammad, used the Holy Book of Muslims in their different writings, especially as prooftexting for apologetic purposes. In this paper, I will examine the reading of the Qur’ ān by some Christian Arabic writings of the Melkites in Palestine and Syria, namely the Apology for Christian Faith known as On the triune nature of God, the Al-Muğādalah between Abū Qurrah and al-Ma mūn, the Al-Muğādalah between Abraham of Tiberias and ‘Abd al-Rahmān al-Hāšimi and Paul of Antioch's Letter to a Muslim Friend. My analysis will include an investigation concerning the exegetical methods and instruments these texts and authors used in their making apology. It will be argued, then, whether these early Christian Arabic texts, although affirm that the Qur’ an remains the Holy Scripture of Muslims, they, at least indirectly, could see a kind of divine inspiration in it, and therefore could read some of its verses in the light of Christ.