Islamic Quarterly, 2009, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 185-202.
Abstract
This article aims to achieve three goals. Firstly, having analyzed Aquinas’ Summa Contra Gentiles (SCG) and Reasons for the Faith against Muslim Objections, and the available Aquinas literature on Islam-Christian relations it argues that his knowledge about Islam is limited and not based upon primary sources. Secondly, it has long been accepted that St. Thomas Aquinas wrote Summa Contra Gentiles against Islam and Muslims and had a missionary purpose. However, it is our contention that Aquinas leveled his criticism against some of the views of the several leading philosophers in the Muslim world and not towards Islamic theology as whole. Finally, as is well known, Aquinas divided theological matters into two categories as those that can be explained with the natural reason such as God’s existence, creation, and etc, and those that exceed the natural reason such as trinity, incarnation, sacrament etc. The matters which fall in the former category do not conflict with Islam, and those that exceed the natural reason, according to Aquinas, can only be explained through the Bible. Because the Bible is not binding in the eyes of the Muslims, Aquinas’ arguments and explanations on these matters seem to fall short in convincing the Muslims.
Key Words: Aquinas, Islam, Christianity, Apology, Apologetics, History of Religions
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