Encountering Mongol polytheism shifted Franciscan mission from martyrdom toward debate and Muslim-Christian common ground
Evidence
When it came to debating about the existence of God in front of pagans, it was realised without difficulty that there was community of belief with Islam. William of Rubruck recounted how he had had to point out, ‘the Saracens agree with us in that they say there is one God; they would therefore be on our side against the ¢uims’. — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 265 (
#exemplifies, via linked claim)
These missions represent an important change of strategy: none of these Franciscans, it seems, is keen on getting martyred. William of Rubruck, in particular, seeks to convert various Mongol rulers to Christianity not by insulting the Mongols’ religious traditions but by engaging in debate with the adherents of rival religions. In discovering a world beyond the world of Islam, Muslim-Christian confrontation seems less crucial; indeed, the similarities of the two religions become all the more important when confronted by Mongol polytheism. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1127 (
#corroborates, via linked claim)
It was primarily Franciscan missionaries that Pope Innocent IV and the French king Louis IX sent to negotiate with and preach to the Mongols in the midthirteenth century: one of them was William of Rubruck, whose relation of his mission Bacon put to good use. In 1289 Nicolas IV sent John of Monte Corvino to China; Franciscans continued to voyage east in the following centuries—and west as well, founding missions on the coast of California in the eighteenth century. But few of their missions were to Muslims. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1168 (
#complicates, via linked claim)
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Franciscan missions aimed at martyrdom, not conversion of Muslims.; Engaging non-Muslim Mongols made Franciscans abandon martyrdom-seeking for debate — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1127; Franciscan missions targeted Mongols and China, not Muslims — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1168 (+12 more)
Broader Connections
- Engaging non-Muslim Mongols made Franciscans abandon martyrdom-seeking for debate
#corroborates(1.00) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1127 - Debate contexts revealed Christian-Muslim monotheist community against polytheists
#exemplifies(1.00) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 265 - Franciscan missions targeted Mongols and China, not Muslims
#complicates(0.90) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1168 - Franciscan mission to Muslims prioritized seeking martyrdom over conversion
#complicates(0.85) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1109 - Thirteenth-century Franciscan missionary energy targeted Mongols and China more than Muslims
#complicates(0.85) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1168 - Franciscan missionaries deliberately provoked Muslim authorities to secure martyrdom
#complicates(0.85) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 686 - Seeking martyrdom repeatedly endangered Christian-Muslim coexistence across centuries
#complicates(0.85) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1113 - Christian-Muslim coexistence tensions pre-existed martyrdom and recur wherever the faiths meet
#complicates(0.85) - Martyrdom-seeking missionizing was common, not an isolated medieval aberration
#complicates(0.85) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 684 - Mongol contact revealed Christian-Islamic agreement and unknown eastern Christians
#complicates(0.85) — R. W. Southern, Western Views of Islam in the Middle…, 276 - Medieval missionaries aimed at martyrdom rather than Muslim conversion
#complicates(0.85) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 1465 - Some Franciscan friars courted martyrdom by deliberately blaspheming Muhammad
#complicates(0.85) — Norman Daniel, Islam and the West, 2140