CHAPTER 5: ESSENTIAL ATTRIBUTES AND WHETHER OR NOT THEY SERVE AS NAMES
Christians allege that essential attributes serve as names, as they regard each essential attribute as an essence. But this is not correct, because the attribute, which depends upon something else, cannot be an independent essence that exists by itself. Who could believe that the heat of the fire, which is dependent upon the fire, is an essence like the fire? Such an idea is ridiculous.
If it is correct to say that an attribute can be an essence, then power would also be an essence. If they, i.e., the Christians, mean by ‘essential’ that they are inherent attributes and that the other attributes are related to action; like the Creator and the Provisioner, it is known that His inherent attributes, which include Power and the like, are not limited to that only.
By having three hypostases and claiming that Divine religious laws verify this, the Christians have contradicted their own religious laws. A group of them say that God, “Exists Alive Ali-knower,” while others say, “An Existing Knowing All-powerful,’ and so make the All-powerful replace the Living, and render the Holy Spirit as the Power.
Although this saying is more suitable to the meaning, attributing power to the Holy Spirit is clearly false. They also have to prove the hypostasis of the Word, which they sometimes call the Wisdom. At other times they call it the Word and yet at other times they call it Articulation, just as they mention it in this letter, for what was united with Christ was the Hypostasis of the Word. They sometimes couple it with life and at other times with power. Sometimes they say the father is the Existing, and at other times say he is the existing one by himself, or say he is the self. His existence by himself is called in Syriac language, ‘the entity’ and sometimes, ‘Generosity.’
All these claims are due to their confusion and deviation. They cannot find three definite meanings of the attributes that deserve to be considered essential.
The Christian Claim that the Attributes Serve as Names
If they mean that these names are proper or non-derivative nouns and that the other attributes are adjectives, the name, ‘living’ and ‘Alt-Knower’ are derivatives, which indicate the meanings of knowledge and life. Similarly, ‘All-Powerful’ denotes ultimate power. Moreover, if they mean that He is called by His attributes, we know that Allah, the Exalted, has many attributes. He has His Divine attributes and the All-Powerful is one of them.
Power denotes His dominion over His Creatures more than Knowledge does. The fact that He created all things proves His Power more than it proves His Knowledge. His Omnipotence is more evident than His exclusive Knowledge.
By: Sheikhul-Islaam Ibn Taymiyah
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