The Attributes of God in Medieval Islamic Thought

The conception of the Omnipotence of God between the Qurʾānic verses and the islamic theology

Resumo

As part of research on the omnipotence of God in Islam, it should be remembered that this object is a subject of a great debate on the conception of God, which has occupied the thoughts of both philosophers and medieval theologians since the 2nd century AH/ 8th century AD. Christ. In fact, The main theological problem in this period can be summarized in questions such as these: is it possible to know the Essence of God through His attributes? Can God be known through His attributes? Are the attributes of God logically and ontologically identical to His Essence or rather complementary? Therefore, can omnipotence be conforming or identifying attributes with the Essence of God? How do Muslim theologians discuss these names and attributes, especially divine omnipotence? In the context of these controversial issues, this paper focuses on the treatment of the Omnipotence between the Qurʾān (the sacred text of Islam) and medieval Islmaic theological schools, notably the Ash’arite and the Mu’tazilite.