📘 ❞ Tawhid and Trinity A Study of Ibn Taymiyyah’s al Jawab al sahih ❝ كتاب ــ اسماعيل عبد الله اصدار 2006

عن كتاب Tawhid and Trinity A Study of Ibn Taymiyyah’s al Jawab al sahih:
Ibn
Taymiyyah left a considerable body of work characterized by
its rich documentation, sober style, and brilliant polemic. In addition
to innumerable
fatÉwÉ
(legal opinions), two works have received
special attention:
Al-SiyÉsat al-shar
≤
iyyah
(Treatise on Juridical
Politics) and
Minhaj al-sunnah
(The Way of Tradition). However,
his six volume study,
Al-JawÉb al-ØaÍÊÍ li Man Baddala DÊn al-
MasÊÍ
(the apt answer to the one who changed the religion of the
Christ) also deserves equal attention. Ibn Taymiyyah also wrote five
other treatises in response to Christianity.
8
However, this study
focuses mainly on the methodology and the arguments advanced in
Al-JawÉb al-ØaÍÊÍ.
The Contents and the Method
Al-JÉwab al-ØaÍÊÍ
contains rich information on Islam, Christianity,
and such extinct Islamic sects which were attracted to Christianity.
This work was written in 1320 on public demand and in response to
a short treatise of 24 pages entitled “A Letter to a Muslim” by Paul
of Antioch, the Melkite Bishop of Saida.
9
This treatise, written after
due consultation with Church leaders, attempts to establish six points.
They claim that: (1) Prophet MuÍammad (SAS) was not sent to
mankind, but rather to the pagan Arabs; (2) Prophet MuÍammad
(SAS) extolled Christianity as a religion; (3) previous religions and
scriptures bear testimony to the truth and validity of their religion;
(4) Christians are monotheists; (5) their belief concerning the trinity
is demonstrable by rational argumentation; and (6) Christianity as a
religion is perfected by Jesus who came after Moses and hence they
are not in need of any new message or religion.
In response, Ibn Taymiyyah wrote the six volumes published by
DÉr al-
≤
ÓÎimah publication, Riyadh. The first volume analyzes the
Christians’ claim that MuÍammad (SAS) was sent only to the Arabs
of the
JÉhiliyyah
period and argues that Prophet MuÍammad (SAS)
was sent as a messenger for all mankind. The second volume attempts
to prove that the Christians distorted (
taÍrÊf
) their scriptures and
altered (
tabdÊl
) the tenets of their beliefs. The third and fourth
volumes are devoted to the question of trinity explaining the doctrinal
origins of this belief, its theological position, and revelational as
well as rational grounds upon which this belief is based. He argues
that the doctrine of the trinity is an innovation unsubstantiated by
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any authoritative injunctions. In the fifth volume, Ibn Taymiyyah
presents epistemological questions on the Trinitarian concept,
particularly on the logical relationship between the intellectual (
≤
aql
)
knowledge and the knowledge obtained from the revealed tradition
(
naql
). The final volume summarises the arguments and concludes
by showing the superiority and necessity of Islam, which is a perfect
combination of all that is good and just. The book teaches the Muslims
and others how to think when studying Christianity. It presents both
logical and scriptural arguments in its refutation of Christianity.
In the introduction to the volume, Ibn Taymiyyah makes it clear
that his intention is not to list the Christian sects and their historical
background, but to analyse their theological positions and concepts
of God, trinity, incarnation and other Christian beliefs. His main
objective is to substantiate the distinction between the creator and
his creations. Since God is the “Realm Ideal Being” which is totally
other than the realm of actual being or creation, He is really the one
and only Transcendent being. His assessments are based both on
scriptural and theological analyses.
Though
Al-JawÉb al-ØaÍÊÍ
is concerned with Christianity that has
deviated from the original teachings of its Prophet, it also discusses
some heretical practices among the Muslims. He sought to show
that the Christians’ errors in “changing the religion of Christ” was
also prevalent among Muslims of earlier generations as well as his
contemporaries. Ibn Taymiyyah calls them hypocrites and the
innovators. Hypocrites are those who outwardly profess faith in all
the teachings of the Prophet (SAS), but secretly loath his message,
like the renegades (
malÉÍidah
) and the Batinis. Renegades, according
to Ibn Taymiyyah, are in greater error than the Christians, whereas
the innovators are those who profess the generality of the message
of the Prophet (SAS) but are confused about the true teaching of
Islam. Unless Muslims re

Written by Ismail Abdullah, which is an important message to explain to us the error in the doctrine of Trinitarian Trials of the Christians, and in turn highlights the doctrine of Tawheed, and this letter is based on the book of Sheikh Islam Ibn Taymiyah God's mercy, known as the correct answer for those who replaced the religion of Christ, A lot of evidence and mental arguments and the minority that prove the distortion of the Christian religion, and the error and the obvious contradiction in the religion of the current character
.