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of the Old Testament, he even made the history, sanctity, and miracles of Jesus a fundamental part of his belief,[1] and on the conversion of a Jew he was compelled first to acknowledge the Redeemer,[2] and to
- ↑ The following is an epitome of the Mohammedan history of Christ, given by Leland (de Relig. Moham. p. 42) from the Taarich—"Isa (Jesus—عيسي) was the son of Mary (مريم), who was the daughter of Imram of the children of Israel (بنى اسرائيل): and he was a legate sent from the high God, who sent to him from heaven the book of the Gospel. He was also a lawgiver, and called men to the worship of God: and when the Jews endeavoured to kill him, he was carried away to heaven." See Petri Abbatis Epist. in Bibliander, tom. i. pp. 2, 3. Ρικαρδου ανασκευη της κατα του καταρατου Μαχουμεθ, in the same collection, tom. ii. p. 124, 125. In the tract on the Mohammedan religion, edited by Reland, p. 20, is the following account of the canonical books which were acknowledged to have descended from heaven:—"These books are in number one hundred and four, of which the high God sent ten to Adam, fifty to Seth, thirty to Idrisi (Enoch), ten to Abraham, one to Moses, which is the Pentateuch (التورية—תורה), one to Isa (Jesus), which is the Gospel (الانجيل—ευαγγελεαν), one to David, which is the book of Psalms, and one to Muhammed, which is the Koran." In this enumeration he adopted the opinions of the old Sabians, who pretended to possess the books of Adam, Seth, Enoch and Abraham, of the Jews, and of the Christians. He pretended that in his ascent to heaven he saw Yahia (يحي John) and Isa (عيسي Jesus) in the second heaven. Abulfed. Vit. Moham. p. 35.
- ↑ Et si quis Judæus fieri vult Mahumetista, cogitur prius credere Christo: cui talis fuit interrogatio: credisne Christum fuisse flatu dei ex virgine natum, et ultimum prophetam Hebræorum? Quo concesso, fit Mahumetanus. Mart. Alph. Vivaldus, in not. ad Petri de la Cevalleria, Zelum Christi.
