Dhimmi Christians faced a profound spiritual crisis of identity under Muslim rule

Evidence

It was not so easy for a Christian. A triumphalist vision of history was excluded: the careful constructions of Isidore (and of other Christian thinkers like him) seemed to crumble into dust. What did it feel like to be one of the dhimmi? To be tolerated and disdained, viewed as a relic of a bygone era? How could a Christian of Syria construct a vision of theology and of history that would comfort him in his decision to refuse to join the tide of converts? — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 280 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

  • XREF: connects to: Christian conquest by Islam forced a painful theological reworking for the dhimmi — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 280; Dhimmi bishops mediated between Christian flocks and Muslim rulers for mutual gain.

Broader Connections