Witness to God in a Secular Europe

O People of the Book! Come to Common Terms between Us and You

Abstract

The goal of dialogue among world religions is demanded by the very nature of religion.
Judaism, Christianity, and lslam accept the same source for themselves, pursue the same goal.
Regardless of how their adherents implement their faith in their daily lives, such gen- erally
accepted values as love, respect, tolerance, forgiveness, mercy, human rights, peace, brotherhood,
and freedom are all values exalted by religion. Most of these values are ac- corded the highest
priority in the messages brought by Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, up- on them be peace.
ln this aricle, l look at four calls to dialogue. First, fourteen centuries ago, lslam made the
greatest universal call the world has ever seen. The Qur'an calls the People of the Book
(Christians and Jews primarily): Say: "O People of the Book! Come to common terms as between us and
you: that we worship none but God; that we associate no partners with Him; that we take not, from
among ourselves lords and patrons other than God." Second is the hadıth's call for dialogue: "ln
the future you will conclude a peace with the Greek- Romans that will ensure security, and
together you will fight a common enemy." Third: Muslim scholar Bediuzzaman's
interpretation of these texts. Fourth, the Second Confer- ence of European Churches
Consultation on lslam in Europe St. Pölten, 5-10 March 1984.
We will cite from an article directly, although only partly.