The Trinity — The three forms of Christianity and Islam — The Crusades

You see, gentlemen, that was the religious side of Mohammedanism. But precisely because Mohammed saw everything in man as it is in nature, he was able to absorb all ancient art and all earlier life into himself much more easily than Christianity could. Christianity, after all, mainly saw the way in which human will can be healed. Mohammedanism did not concern itself with that. Why should it? If it is determined that man will become bad, then it is determined by the Father God. In Christianity it has been said: The old pagans, they mainly looked to the Father God; so you have to put the Son of God in contrast. - Mohammed, and especially his later followers, did not say that; they said: The old pagans, even if they had many gods, also worshiped the natural world, in which, of course, the one God also works. Therefore, much of the ancient science and art has continued into Islam. And it was already the case that while, for example, in the ninth century in Europe, Charlemagne ruled in the Frankish Empire, who is known as one of the greatest rulers of the Middle Ages and is mentioned everywhere in history – he had trouble learning the letters, he could not yet write – what he achieved in art and science was a mere trifle compared to what had emerged in Asia under the ruler – his name was Harun al-Rashid – who, during the time of Charlemagne, was active in Islam, in Mohammedanism. There was a great deal of art and science that had remained from ancient paganism. And such art and science then found its way into Europe via the south to Spain.