Pines’ study is especially important for two reasons: in fact it corroborates our hypothesis about the presence of God-Fearers along the borders of the Arabian peninsula or in the neighbouring regions in the historical period which we are dealing with, and it also supposes – as we do – that a confusion between God-Fearers and Christians could sometimes have appeared. Such a confusion was probably due to some similarities in cult practices between both religious groups, as we have already observed, so that in certain geographical areas and during a certain historical period both communities were perhaps called with an identical name by external observers <ref>The historical and semantic continuity between God-Ferarers and Christians is stressed by LEVINSKAYA, ''The Book of Acts in Its 1 c. Setting'', p.116: “… at least some of these groups [Hypsistarii, ''Caelicolae'', ''Theosebeis'', Massalians] were at one stage or another connected with Christianity. The Coelicolae were condemned as Christian apostates and obliged by law to rejoin the Church. The Massalians were the forerunners of the Christian sect with the same name. The father of Gregory of Nazianzus, a member of Hypsistarii, was readily converted by bishops on their way to the Council of Nicaea in 325 … Finally, if we compare the spread of Christianity among the population of the Bosporan Kingdom with that of the nearby Chersonese, a striking dissimilarity comes to light, which can be explained by the presence of numerous God-fearers who prepared the way for Christianity in the former”. </ref>. If such is the case, passages in the ''Koran ''about the ''Sàbi’ùn ''could be interesting historical testimonies of bilingualism, such as that one showed by the famous Middle- Persian Inscription from ''Kartìr'': here, the simultaneous quotation, among other religious groups, of ''nàcarày ''and ''kristiyàn'', is explained by M.L. Chaumont, who published and translated the document, in the following way: ''Les mots ''nàcarày ''et ''kristiyàn ''se rapporteraient l’une l’autre aux chrétiens orthodoxes sans aucune acception d’hérésie. Leur jusxtaposition serait l’effet d’un bilinguisme qui s’était instauré depuis peu au sein de la chrétienté perse … Il est très frappant que dans les ''Acta ''de Siméon bar Sabba’è les termes ''kristiyanà ''et ''nasorayè ''sont employés comme synonymes. Avec l’inscription de Kartìr, nous sommes peut-être à l’origine de ce double emploi. Le rédacteur du document, s’il connaissait l’un et l’autre vocable, ne savait sans doute pas qu’ils pouvaient s’appliquer à la même religion'' <ref>''La Christianisation de l’Empire Iranien'', ''CSCO ''499, Subs. 80, Louvain 1988, p.117; cf. G. WIESSNER, I, ''Untersuchungen zur syrischen Literaturgeschichte'', p.66 and p.317 ns.249, 251, 252 and 254, where one will find out all the references about the two terms as synonymous in the ''Acta''; II, ''ZurMartyreruberlieferung aus der Christenverfolgung Schapurs II'', ''AAWG'', Phil.-Hist. Kl. III.67, Gottingen 1967, p.70 f. and notes (“in the ‘B’ Life of Simeon bar Sabba’e the term ''nasraya ''is only found in the mouth of Persians”); PAYNE-SMITH, ''Thesaurus'', col.1821, s.v. “Kristiàna”, and col.2444, s.v. “Nasràya”; J.B. FIEY, ''Jalons pour une Histoire de l’Eglise en Iraq'', ''CSCO ''330, Subs. 36, Louvain 1970, p.54 n.44 (on Kartìr’s Inscription and the two names for Christians). Text and discussion of the document by Marie Louise CHAUMONT, “L’Inscription de Kartìr à la Ka’bah de Zoroastre”, ''JA ''248 (1960), pp.339-80 (the words in question are at l.10 of the Persian text). For the alleged Judaeo-Christian background of the term ''nàcarày'' (and its connection with the Aramaean term ''nàsràyà ''= from Nazareth) see H.H. SCHAEDER, art. “Nazarenòs, Nazoraìos”, ''TWNT ''IV [1941], p.879 f.; M. RONCAGLIA, “Eléments Ebionites et Elkésaites dans le Coran”, ''POC ''21 (1971), pp.101-26. For the alleged identity with a heretical group such as the Marcionites see J. De MENASCE, ''Skand-Gumanik Vicar'', p.206 f. (but see also the objections of J.M. FIEY, “Les Marcionites dans les Textes Historiques de l’Eglise de Perse”, ''Le Museon ''83 [1970], pp.183-8); cf. A. VOOBUS, “Celibacy, a Requirement for Admission to Baptism in the Early Syrian Church”, ''ETSE ''1 (1951), p.14 f. (who remarks that in the ''Acts ''of Mar Abà [VI c.] [''Jabalaha'', 2nd ed., p.213] the Marcionites are called Christians); for the equation Nazaraeans – Mandaeans (who really call themselves in such a way, see M. LIDZBARSKI, “Nazoraios”, ''ZS ''1 [1922], pp.230-3), cf. M. SPRENGLING, ''Third Century Iran'', Chicago 1953, p.58. Finally, S. BROCK, “Some Aspects of Greek Words in Syriac”, in A. DIETRICH ed., ''Syncretismus im Syrisch-Persichen Kulturgebiet'', Symposium of Gottingen 4th-8th October 1971, Gottingen 1974, pp.91-5 (with further bibliography), remarks that ''nàcarày ''and ''kristyàn ''denote “two groups of different geographical origin and of different cultural allegiance” (p.92), ''nàcarày ''being the normal term used at that time by the Persian authorities (and more in general by outsiders) for denoting Christians, whereas ''kristìyàn'' was a term introduced into the Persian area only in the mid III century for denoting the Christians of Western origin, namely those who had been settled in the Sassanid empire in consequence of Shapur I’s deportations: as far as the name used by Christians for denoting themselves is concerned, the author tentatively suggests the Semitic term ''msihaya'', because “with the growing influence of Antiochene Christianity in the Sassanid empire in the late fourth, and especially early fifth, century, the term ''kristyana ''came to be used for all Christians, irrespective of their origin, thus displacing ''msihaya''. At the same time, ''nàsrayà ''evidently gained, in Christian eyes, distinctly pejorative overtones that had originally not been present in the word” (p.94 f.). Cf. FIEY, ''Communautés Syriaques en Iran et Iraq'', p.181 f., who records in Iran, namely at Rew Ardashìr, “au moins deux églises, l’une des ‘Romains’ et l’autre des ‘Karmàniens’. Les premiers sont probablement de ces prisonniers que Sapor Ier (241-2) distribua dans toutes les villes de son empire et gràce auxquels il restaura Rew Ardashìr. Les seconds sont de vrais persans christianisés; ceux-ci, déportés de l’interieur [n.33: “je ne sais pas sur quoi se base M.lle Chaumont pour attribuer cette église aux ‘Syriens’ (p.178), ce qu’elle interprète (p.179) par de gens ‘originaires des campagnes de l’Antiochène … parlant syriaque”], célébraient leurs offices en syriaque, alors que les premiers priaient en grec”. It is not at all improbable that Muhammad used ''Nasàra ''and ''Sàbi’ùn ''as synonimes, even if the words had a different origin and possibly did not have a strictly identical meaning: our opinion is that the latter word – though referring like the former generally to Christians without any further implication – kept a close semantical link with the idea of Christians as ''tertium genus hominum ''(cf. above pp.18-22 and n.277) which played an important role also for the Muslim prophetology. [“In the Province of Arabia the baptized … were called ‘initiated’ (''oi memnemènoi'') or ‘enlightened’ (''oi pephotismènoi''), while the catechumens ranked as the uninitiated”, SPENCERTRIMINGHAM, op. cit., p.217; cf. p.103. For the problem of the catechumenate, see in particular above n.198]. </ref>.

===Saba'na, saba'na!===

A third testimony which we wish to discuss here comes from one of the ''Hadìth'' texts concerning the Arabic root ''SB’'', with the meaning ''changing one’s religion for another'', ''to apostatize'', which we already know as a whole. The excerpt comes from to chapter LVIII of al-Bukhàrì’s ''Sahìh'', consecrated to ''al-jiziya wa al-mwàda’ama’a àhl al-dhimma wa al-harb'', namely to the rules which Muslims had to keep when coming in contact with other populations <ref>AL-BUKHARI, ''Al-jàmi’ al-sahìh'', ed. L. KREHL - T.W. JUYNBOLL (1862-1908), II, lviii (''al-jiziyya''), chap. 11, p.296; FT by O.HOUDAS - W.MARCAIS (1903-1914), Titre lviii (''La Capitation''), chap.11 “Du cas où les ennemis vaincus disent: ‘Nous nous faisont Sabiens’, et n’ont su dire correctement: ‘Nous nous faisons Musulmans’ “), p.414. </ref>: in these cases, the problem was whether to consider these persons as being part of ''the People of the Book'', the Monotheistic communities enjoying the right of tolerance (Jews, Christians, Magians and Sabians), in exchange for the payment of a special tax, the ''jiziya'', foreseen in these cases by Islamic law. The title of the paragraph which we are dealing with is ''About the case when the enemies, after having been won, say: ‘We (want to) become Sabians (''sabà’na'', ''sabà’na'')’, without having been able to say correctly ‘We (want to) become Muslims (''aslamna'', ''aslamna'')’'' <ref>The same episode is narrated again by AL-BUKHARI, op. cit., III, lxiv (''al-maghàzi''), chap.58; FT Titre lxiv (''Des Expéditions Militaires''), chap.58 (“De l’envoi fait par le Prophète de Khàlid-ben-el-Oualìd chez les Benou-Djodzima”), p.200; and IV, xciii, chapt. 35 (''ahkàm''); FT Titre xciii (''Sentences''), chap. 35 (''Lorsque lemagistrat rend une sentence inique ou en contradiction avec l’opinion des juriconsultes, ce jugement doitètre repoussé''), p.515; the author, however, does not repeat in these last chapters the information referring to the Persian expression previously given in Book lviii, chapt.11. </ref>, and it narrates a quite strange story, indeed. While Khàlid in such a situation did not hesitate to slaughter everybody, being criticized afterwards by the Prophet who kept a distance from his fierce behaviour, ‘Umar on his side claimed that, when some enemy cried out the (Persian) word ''Matras''! <ref>In KREHL’s edition the Persian word is vocalized ''mataras''; ''matras ''is the vocalization of the FT where, at the relative note (n.2), the translation: “Ne crains pas !” can also be found. </ref>(''Do not fear!''), he had to be saved.

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/extensions/MobileFrontend/includes/diff/InlineDiffFormatter.php:59) in /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/includes/WebResponse.php on line 42

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/extensions/MobileFrontend/includes/diff/InlineDiffFormatter.php:59) in /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/includes/WebResponse.php on line 42

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/extensions/MobileFrontend/includes/diff/InlineDiffFormatter.php:59) in /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/includes/WebResponse.php on line 42

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/extensions/MobileFrontend/includes/diff/InlineDiffFormatter.php:59) in /home/bpilant613/public_html/w/includes/WebResponse.php on line 42
Changes - Wikinoah English