Through Force or Faith? — Page 84
?— A Reply to Pope Benedict XVI 84 directly. The rest of the objections are made obliquely by using the words of others as follows: 1. Kaiser Manuel’s words are quoted, ‘Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman,’ and that… 2. He enjoined spreading the faith through violence. Then, using this specious assumption as the foundation, he pre- sents this precept that spreading faith through violence is some- thing unreasonable, and not acting reasonably is contrary to the nature of God. Moreover, to convince a reasonable person, what is needed is the ability to speak well and not the use of force. This contention is correct in principle but the Pope draws this conclu- sion from it, in the words of Professor Khoury, that: 3. For the emperor, as a Byzantine shaped by Greek philosophy, this statement is self-evident. But for Muslim teachings, God is absolutely transcendent. His will is not bound up with any of our categories, even that of rationality. In other words the insinuation and the innuendo is that the Kaiser had studied Greek philosophy, and for him, it was axi- omatic that God’s dictates are not against reason. Therefore, in matters pertaining to faith, coercion cannot be permissible. But since the God of Muslims is not bound by rationality, therefore, He taught the use of coercion in matters of faith. God forbid, this