A Byzantine Anti-Christian Polemic

This Hebrew text is a rare example of a Byzantine Jewish anti-Christian polemic. Surviving in the Cairo Geniza, it is not clear if this document reflects the message of an actual encounter between Jews and Christians or an imagined message intended for internal Jewish consumption. It appears that the fragmentary text was originally part of a larger work, now lost. The author included many Greek words, and the text evinces the influence of spoken Arabic; the work itself may have been translated from Arabic. This work is relatively gentle in its criticisms of Christianity, and the author sounds almost ecumenical when referring to God as “the Lord of Hosts and the Holy Trinity.” He nevertheless argues that Jesus’ incarnation was pointless, as the prophets had already guaranteed individual salvation through repentance. The import of the closing argument about the value of biblical prophecies is unclear, as the text unfortunately cuts off.