This letter contains the oath given unto
them, and he who disobeys that which is
therein will be considered a disobeyer and
a transgressor to that whereunto he is
commanded. He will be regarded as one who
has corrupted the oath of God, disbelieved
His Testament, rejected His Authority,
despised His Religion, and made himself
deserving of His Curse, whether he is a
Sultan or any other believer of Islam .
Whenever monks, devotees and pilgrims
gather together, whether in a mountain or
valley, or den, or frequented place, or plain,
or church, or in houses of worship, verily we
are [at the] back of them and shall protect
them, and their properties and their
morals , by Myself, by My Friends and by My
Assistants, for they are of My Subjects and
under My Protection.
I shall exempt them from that which may
disturb them; of the burdens which are
paid by others as an oath of allegiance.
They must not give anything of their
income but that which pleases them—they
must not be offended, or disturbed, or
coerced or compelled. Their judges
should not be changed or prevented from
accomplishing their offices, nor the monks
disturbed in exercising their religious
order, or the people of seclusion be
stopped from dwelling in their cells.
No one is allowed to plunder the pilgrims,
or destroy or spoil any of their churches,
or houses of worship, or take any of the
things contained within these houses and
bring it to the houses of Islam . And he who
takes away anything therefrom, will be one
who has corrupted the oath of God, and, in
truth, disobeyed His Messenger.
Poll-taxes should not be put upon their
judges, monks, and those whose
occupation is the worship of God; nor is
any other thing to be taken from them,
whether it be a fine, a tax or any unjust
right. Verily I shall keep their compact,
wherever they may be, in the sea or on
the land, in the East or West, in the North
or South, for they are under My Protection
and the testament of My Safety, against
all things which they abhor.
No taxes or tithes should be received from
those who devote themselves to the worship
of God in the mountains, or from those who
cultivate the Holy Lands. No one has the
right to interfere with their affairs, or
bring any action against them. Verily this
is for aught else and not for them; rather, in
the seasons of crops, they should be given a
Kadah for each Ardab of wheat (about five
bushels and a half) as provision for them,
and no one has the right to say to them this
is too much, or ask them to pay any tax.
As to those who possess properties, the
wealthy and merchants, the poll-tax to be
taken from them must not exceed twelve
drachmas a head per year [according to
Wikipedia, about 200 modern U.S. dollars].
They shall not be imposed upon by
anyone to undertake a journey, or to be
forced to go to wars or to carry arms; for
the Muslims have to fight for them . Do no
dispute or argue with them, but deal
according to the verse recorded in the
Koran, to wit: ‘ Do not dispute or argue with
the People of the Book but in that which is
best’ [29:46]. Thus they will live favored
and protected from everything which may
offend them by the Callers to religion
(Islam), wherever they may be and in any
place they may dwell .
Should any Christian woman be married to
a Musulman [i.e. Muslim], such marriage
must not take place except after her
consent, and she must not be prevented
from going to her church for prayer. Their
churches must be honored and they must
not be withheld from building churches or
repairing convents.
They must not be forced to carry arms or
stones; but the Muslims must protect them
and defend them against others. It is
positively incumbent upon every one of the
Muslim nation not to contradict or disobey this
oath until the Day of Resurrection and the
end of the world.

,

This document is likely a fraud written by the monks at St. Catherine's monastery in order to protect themselves from Muslims. It is not authentic.

onetrack:
This document is likely a fraud written by the monks at St. Catherine's monastery in order to protect themselves from Muslims. It is not authentic.

Whaaaaat?U re such a joke!