The legend of Sergius Baḥīrā : eastern Christian apologetics and apocalyptic in response to Islam
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
The legend of Sergius Baḥīrā : eastern Christian apologetics and apocalyptic in response to Islam
(The history of Christian-Muslim relations, 9)
Brill, 2009
- Uniform Title
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Legend of Baḥīrā
Available at 4 libraries
  Aomori
  Iwate
  Miyagi
  Akita
  Yamagata
  Fukushima
  Ibaraki
  Tochigi
  Gunma
  Saitama
  Chiba
  Tokyo
  Kanagawa
  Niigata
  Toyama
  Ishikawa
  Fukui
  Yamanashi
  Nagano
  Gifu
  Shizuoka
  Aichi
  Mie
  Shiga
  Kyoto
  Osaka
  Hyogo
  Nara
  Wakayama
  Tottori
  Shimane
  Okayama
  Hiroshima
  Yamaguchi
  Tokushima
  Kagawa
  Ehime
  Kochi
  Fukuoka
  Saga
  Nagasaki
  Kumamoto
  Oita
  Miyazaki
  Kagoshima
  Okinawa
  Korea
  China
  Thailand
  United Kingdom
  Germany
  Switzerland
  France
  Belgium
  Netherlands
  Sweden
  Norway
  United States of America
Note
Includes bibliographical references (p. [529]-560) and index
Contents of Works
- The legend of Sergius Baḥīrā in the light of Christian apologetics vis-à-vis Islam
- Texts and translations
Description and Table of Contents
Description
From the eighth century onwards, Christians living under Islam have produced numerous apologetic and polemical works, aimed at proving the continuing validity of Christianity. Among these is the Legend of Sergius Bahira, which survives in two Syriac and two Arabic versions, and appears here in edition and translation. Being a counterhistory of Islam, it reshapes early Muslim traditions about a monk recognizing Muhammad as the final Prophet by turning this monk into Muhammad's tutor and co-author of the Qur'an. In response to Muslim triumphalist propaganda, it portrays Islam's political power as predestined but finite and unrelated to its religious message. This feature sets the legend apart from similar Christian accounts of the origin of Islam, East and West, which are reviewed in this study as well.
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
INTRODUCTION
PART I: THE LEGEND OF SERGIUS BAHIRA IN LIGHT OF CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS VIS-A-VIS ISLAM
Chapter One: Muslim-Christian Confrontation and Counterhistory
Chapter Two: The Islamic Bahira
Chapter Three: The Apocalypse of Bahira
Chapter Four: Bahira's Teachings
Breaking Crosses
God's Word and His Spirit- Bahira's Christology
Protection and recognition - Bahira and Q 5:82
The Physics of Heaven
Chapter Five: The Qur'an against Islam
Chapter Six: The legend outside the Legend
Bahira the Source
Bahira the Heretic
Bahira the False Witness
Bahira the Victim
Jewish Traditions about Bahira
Bahira the Forecaster
Chapter Seven: Concluding Discussion
PART II: TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS
Chapter Eight: The Recensions and the Manuscript Tradition
Some Characteristics of the Recensions
Textual Genealogy
Manuscripts
Conspectus Siglorum
Methodological Considerations
Chapter Nine: The East-Syrian Recension
Chapter Ten: The West-Syrian Recension
Chapter Eleven: The Short Arabic Recension
Chapter Twelve: The Long Arabic Recension
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX OF SCRIPTURAL VERSES
GENERAL INDEX
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