The Image of Islam in Early Christendom

Dante (d. 1321) placed Muhammad and Ali in the ninth circle of hell, reserved for “sowers of scandal and schism,” reflecting his condemnation of them. The first notable Byzantine figure to mention Muhammad and address Islam was the chronicler Theophanes the Confessor (ca. 758-818). Theophanes, who founded a monastery and later received canonization, included references to Muhammad in his work ‘Chronographia.’ Without citing specific sources, Theophanes followed the teachings of St. John and referred to Muhammad as “the ruler of the Saracens and a pseudo-prophet.” It was a natural progression from this characterization to associate Muhammad with the antichrist figure. During the same period, a Dominican contemporary of Dante, who had visited Baghdad, put forth a theory. According to this theory, Satan, unable to halt the progress of Christianity in the East, devised a scripture as a hybrid between the Old and New Testaments. He used a man with a diabolical nature as his instrument, and that man was Muhammad. The scripture in question was the Koran. Abd al-Masih bin Ishaq al-Kindi authored the earliest comprehensive polemic that gained popularity in Spain. It was purportedly written during the Abbasid court of alMamun (r. 813-833), although it likely emerged a century later. The context of this polemic was a written invitation to al-Kindi, extended by a descendant of the Prophet who was in close proximity to the caliph, to convert to Islam. This