ABSTRACT
The superiority of the Quran as the final and direct Word of God was a fact for the Muslims, who took the successes of Islam as proofs of its veracity and legitimate dominance over Jews and Christians. By the end of the seventh century and less than seventy years after Muhammad's death, Islam was already the "dominant religious-political force" in the medieval Near East. In the Quran and at many occasions, the Prophet provided the guidelines to define the spiritual and political status of Islam in relation to Christianity and Judaism. Translations from classical Greek texts into Arabic were made by non-Muslim scholars who were mostly clergy. One of the most prominent figures of Islamic polemical literature was Abu Bakr Muhammad Ibn al-Tayyib al-Biqillini. The traditional apologetic/polemical styles of the East shaped western polemical literature too, even though the circumstances and objectives were very different.
