Llull’s apparent neutrality encodes Christian triumphalism through planted arguments
Evidence
The Vita describes how Llull, upon arriving in Tunis, announced that he was prepared to convert to the “sect of Muhammad” if the Saracens were able to prove that it was superior to Christianity; this attracted a number of Saracen wise men who attempted to convert him. Ramon “was easily able to answer their arguments” asserting that the Christian doctrines of the Trinity and Incarnation were provable through recourse to the divine dignities, the attributes that Muslims and Christians alike ascribe to God. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1290 (
#corroborates, via linked claim)
Once the three sages have proved these truths to the gentile, he asks to be initiated into their religion; he learns to his surprise that they have three different religions and are unable to agree about which one is the true one. He then proposes that each of the three sages present in turn his religion, and that he (the gentile) should be able to ask questions, but that the other two sages should remain silent during their companion’s presentation. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1315 (
#complicates, via linked claim)
Categorization
- XREF: connects to: Llull’s apparent evenhandedness masks a strategic defense of Christianity; Llull’s gentile structurally resembles a neutral moderator between the three faiths — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1315; Religious conflict drove Llull to seek a rationally discoverable universal truth — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1312 (+18 more)
Broader Connections
- Llull claimed Christianity provable from theistically shared ground with Muslims
#corroborates(0.95) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1290 - Llull’s gentile structurally resembles a neutral moderator between the three faiths
#complicates(0.90) — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 1315 - The irenic philosopher Llull ended up advocating outright Christian piracy
#complicates(0.90) - Llull’s interfaith dialogue departed strikingly from polemical norms
#complicates(0.80) - Llull proved the Trinity through the dynamic relational structure of divine attributes
#complicates(0.75) - Claims of a Christian founding are strategically deployed to privilege present-day values
#complicates(0.75) — Andrew L. Whitehead, American Idolatry, 203 - Christian Reconstructionism reconceived freedom as submission to hierarchical authority
#complicates(0.75) — Kristin Kobes Du Mez, Jesus and John Wayne, 175 - Schism and dissension signal a faith’s vitality and ongoing evolution
#complicates(0.70) — Robert Irwin, For Lust of Knowing, 348 - Philosophy realizes the subjective freedom that Christian religion first disclosed.
#complicates(0.70) — Catherine Malabou, The Future of Hegel, 616