The Building Bridges Seminar
Key Building Bridges Publications

These publications record the proceedings of past Building Bridges seminars - including lectures given by key Christian and Muslim scholars - and this page provides the full text of books documenting the 2002, 2003, and 2004 seminars. You can also access the texts of the sourcebooks for each meeting through the pages for each seminar.

Science and Religion: Christian and Muslim Perspectives provides a record of the eighth annual Building Bridges seminar, a process of theological dialogue between leading Christian and Muslim scholars convened by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, who contributes a preface and an afterword to this volume. Essays in the first part of the volume survey some of the key issues in the relationship to science of Christianity and Islam, past and present. The second part of the volume presents a selection of texts relevant to the interface between religion and science, together with illuminating commentary. Along with discussion of some key religious thinkers, the legacy of Charles Darwin is also considered. In his preface, Rowan Williams speaks of the “challenging and intriguing conversation” about the relationship between religion and science, noting that it “has great significance for the whole of our global civilization.” This volume gives a fascinating record of some of the highlights of this particular conversation between Muslim and Christian scholars, held in Istanbul in 2009. Excerpts from this book are available in the PDF, provided by Georgetown University Press, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents
Introduction
     David Marshall
Building Bridges in Istanbul
     Rowan Williams

Part I: Surveys
Science and the Christian Tradition: A Brief Overview
     John Hedley Brooke
Science and Religion in the History of Islam
     Ahmad Dallal
Science and Religious Belief in the Modern World: Challenges and Opportunities
     Denis Alexander

Part II: Texts and Commentaries
Biblical Texts
   "Commentary"
     Ellen F. Davis
   "What is Creation? Subtle Insights from Genesis 1 Concerning the Order of the     World"
     Michael Welker
Qur'anic Texts
   "Commentary"
     Mustansir Mir
Classical Christian Texts
   "Commentary: Science and Religion in the Classical Christian Tradition"
     Emmanuel Clapsis
Classical Islamic Texts
   "Commentary: The Importance of al-Ghazali and Ibn Rushd in the History of     Islamic Discourse on Religion and Science"
     Osman Bakar
Charles Darwin
   "Introduction to Darwin and the Selected Texts"
     John Hedley Brooke
   "Early Arabic Views of Darwin"
     Marwa Elshakry
Modern Islamic Texts
   "Introduction to Qutb and al-Sha'rawi"
     Sherine Hamdy
Pope John Paul II
   "Commentary"
     Celia Deane-Drummond

Afterword
     Rowan Williams

Communicating the Word: Revelation, Translation, and Interpretation in Christianity and Islam provides a record of the 2008 Building Bridges seminar. The essays collected here focus on key scriptural texts but also engage with both classical and contemporary Islamic and Christian thought. Issues addressed include, among others, the different ways in which Christians and Muslims think of their scriptures as the ‘Word of God’, the possibility, or otherwise, of translating scripture, and the methods – and conflicts – involved in interpreting scripture in the past and today. In his concluding reflections, Archbishop Rowan Williams draws attention to a fundamental point emerging from the fascinating array of scholarly contributions gathered here: "Islam and Christianity alike give a high valuation to the conviction that God speaks to us. Grasping what that does and does not mean … is challenging theological work." Extensive excerpts from the book are available in the PDF, provided by Georgetown University Press, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents
"Introduction"
     David Marshall

Part 1: Particularity, Universality, and Finality in Revelation
1.1 "Particularity and Universality in the Qur'an"
     Seyed Amir Akrami
1.2 "Particularity, Universality, and Finality: Insights from the Gospel of John"
     Daniel A. Madigan
1.3 "Revelation in Israel: Deuteronomy 7:1-11; Isaiah 49:1-6"
     Ellen F. Davis
1.4 "Revelation in Israel: Qur'an 2:47-57; 5:44-48"
     Osman Bakar
1.5 "Revelation in Christ: 1 John 1:1-4; Matthew 28:16-20; John 16:12-15"
     John Langan
1.6 "Revelation in the Qur'an: Qur'an 6:91-92; 25:32; 21:107; 38:87; 33:40"
     Asma Afsaruddin

Part 2: Translating the Word?
2.1 "Translating the Qur'an"
     Muhammad Abdel Haleem
2.2 "Translation and the Incarnate Word: Scripture and the Frontier of      Languages"
     Lamin Sanneh
2.3 "The Body of Christ: 1 Corinthians 11:23-27 and 12:12-13, 27"
     Daniel Madigan
2.4 "An Arabic Qur'an: Qur'an 12:1-2; 14:4; 16:103; 26:192-99; 46:12"
     Muhammad Abdel Haleem
2.5 "The Divine and Human Origins of the Bible: Exodus 32:15-16; Jeremiah 1:9;      2 Timothy 3:16-17; Luke 1:1-4; 1 Corinthians 7:10-13; Mark 5:41"
     John Azumah
2.6 "The Self-Perception and the Originality of the Qur'an: Qur'an 2:23-24;      3:44; 10:15; 69:38-47"
     Abdullah Saeed

Part 3: Methods and Authority in Interpretation
3.1 "Authority in Interpretation: a Survey of the History of Christianity"
     John Langan
3.2 "Authority in Qur'anic Interpretation and Interpretive Communities"
     Abdullah Saeed
3.3 "Reading Scripture in the Light of Christ: Matthew 12:1-8; Luke 24:44-49"
     Susan Eastman
3.4 "Interpreting the Qur'an: Qur'an 3:7; 2:106; 16:101; 31:20"
     Muhammad Abdel Haleem
3.5 "The Use of Scripture in Generous Love"
     Michael Ipgrave
3.6 "The Use of Scripture in A Common Word"
     Reza Shah-Kazemi

"Conversations in Rome"
     David Marshall
"Afterword"
     Rowan Williams

Humanity: Texts and Contexts is a record of the 2007 Singapore "Building Bridges" seminar. Building Bridges is a project in Muslim-Christian dialogue cosponsored by Georgetown University and the Archbishop of Canterbury. This volume explores issues of human identity, diversity, and humanity's relationship with the natural world. Leading Christian and Muslim scholars also discuss gender, alienation, and human dignity; Archbishop Rowan Williams provides the afterword. Extensive excerpts from the book are available in the PDF, provided by Georgetown University Press, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents

"Humanity in Context"
Michael Ipgrave

Part One: Human Identity, Difference, and Guardianship
1. Being Human
     "The Image of God, Human Dignity, and Vocation"
         Ng Kam Weng
     "Being Human in Islam"
         Mona Siddiqui
2. Living with Difference
     "Affinity, Inclusion, and Mission: Christian Resources for Living with       Difference"
         Michael Ipgrave
     "Islam and Human Diversity: Vernacular Religion Confronts the Categories of       Race and Culture"
         Vincent Cornell
3. Guardians of the Environment
     "Guardianship of the Environment: An Islamic Perspective in the Context of       Religious Studies, Theology, and Sustainable Development"
         Azizan Baharuddin
     "Slayers or Stewards? Ecological Guardianship in the Christian Tradition"
         Michael Northcott

Part Two: Scriptural Texts on Being Human
4. Human Dignity
     "Genesis 1:26-31"
        Ellen Davis
     "al-Baqara 2:30-35"
         Muhammad Abdel Haleem
5. Human Alienation
     "Genesis 3; Romans 7:15-25"
         Mona Siddiqui
     "al-Baqara 2:36-39; Ta' Ha' 20:115-124"
         Daniel Madigan
6. Human Destiny
     "Isaiah 65:17-25; Revelation 21:1-8, 21:22-22:5"
         Roland Chia
     "al-Rahman 55:26-78; Al-Qiyama 75:20-25"
         Seyed Amir Akrami
7. Humanity and Gender
     "Genesis 2:18-25, Ephesians 5:21-33"
         Tim Winter
     "al-Ahzab 33:35; al-Rum 30:21; al-Nisa' 4:34; al-Baqara 2:228"
         Jane Dammen McAuliffe
8. Humanity and Diversity
     "Isaiah 2:1-5; Galatians 3:28-29; Revelation 7:9-10"
         John Prior
     "Hud 11:118; al-Rum 30:20-22; al-Fatir 35:27-28; al-Hujurat 49:13"
         Osman Bakar
9. Humanity and the Environment
     "Jeremiah 5:20-25, 18:13-17; Romans 8:18-23"
         Michael Northcott
     "al-An'am 6:141-42; 6:38; al-Rum 30:41; al-Nahl 16:112"
         Mohamed Yunus Yasin

"Afterword: Reflections on Humanity in Text and Context"
Rowan Williams

Justice and Rights: Christian and Muslim Perspectives is a record of the fifth Building Bridges seminar, held at Georgetown University, Washington, DC in 2006. Building Bridges is a project in Muslim-Christian dialogue cosponsored by Georgetown University and the Archbishop of Canterbury. This volume examines justice and rights from Christian and Muslim perspectives--a topic of immense relevance for both faiths in the modern world, and with deep roots in the core texts and histories of both traditions. The book is available in its entirety in the PDF, provided by Georgetown University Press, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents
"Christian and Muslim Perspectives"
    Michael Ipgrave

Part I Scriptural Foundations
1. The Ruler and the Ruled in Islam: A Brief Analysis of the Sources
    Mohammad Hashim Kamali
2. Biblical Perspectives on Divine Justice and Political Authority
    Ellen Davis
3. Scriptural Texts
     3.1 Two Psalms
       Ellen Davis
     3.2 Twelve Verses from the Qur'an
       Mustansir Mir
     3.3 Two New Testament Texts
       Michael Ipgrave
     3.4 Seven ahadith
       Timothy J. Winter
     Notes

Part II Evolving Traditions
4. Religious Orthodoxy and Religious Rights in Medieval Islam: A Reality Check on the Road to Religious Toleration
    Vincent J. Cornell
5. Une Foi, Une Loi, Un Roi: Political Authority and Religious Freedom in the West, from Constantine to Jefferson
    John Langan
6. Traditional Texts
     6.1 A Letter of St. Augustine
       Rowan Williams
     6.2 A Response of ibn Lubb
       Vincent Cornell
     6.3 A Treatise of al-Ghazali
       Vincent Cornell
     6.4 A Treatise of Martin Luther
       Miroslav Volf
     Notes

Part III The Modern World
7. Human Rights and the Freedom of Religion
    Malcolm Evans
8. Modern Texts
     8.1 The Barmen Declaration
       Miroslav Volf
     8.2 Writings of Imam Khomeini
       Seyed Amir Akrami
     8.3 The Second Vatican Council on Religious Freedom
       Carolyn Evans
     8.4 Two Islamic Declarations on Human Rights
       Fikret Karcic
     Notes

Building a Better Bridge is a record of the fourth Building Bridges seminar, held in Sarajevo in 2005. Building Bridges is a project in Muslim-Christian dialogue cosponsored by Georgetown University and the Archbishop of Canterbury. This volume presents the texts of public lectures given at the Sarajevo seminar together with presentations on issues of citizenship, religious believing and belonging, and the relationship between government and religion, with perspectives from Bosnia-Herzegovina and also from three other contexts around the world: Britain, Malaysia, and West Africa. The book is available in its entirety in the PDF, provided by Georgetown University Press, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents
Muslims, Christians and the Common Good
     Michael Ipgrave

1. Believers and Citizens
"In Broken Images": Faith in the Public Sphere
     Maleiha Malik
Christian Faith and National Belonging
     Michael Nazir-Ali
Faith and National Identity of Catholics in Bosnia-Herzegovina
     Mato Zovkic
The Identity of Christians in Church and in State
     Bogdan Lubardic
Faith and National Identity in Britain
     Zaki Badawi and Michael Ipgrave
Notes

2. Seeking the Common Good
Islamic Views of the Collective
     Tariq Ramadan
The Common Good: Catholicism, Pluralism, and Secular Society
     John Langan
Bosnian Muslim Scholars on Governance and Justice
     Fikret Karcic
Muslim and Christian Perspectives on Different Models of Governance and Justice
     Vladimir Ciric
Government and Religion in Malaysia
     Mohammad Hashim Kamali
Different Models of Governance and Justice: A West African Christian Perspective
     John Azumah
Notes

3. Caring Together for the World We Share
Christianity, Islam and the Challenge of Poverty
     Rowan Williams
Poverty and the Charism of Ishmael
     Timothy J. Winter
Speaking to the Heart
     Ellen F. Davis
Ayatology and Rahmatology: Islam and the Environment
     Aref Ali Nayed
Notes

Building Bridges in Bosnia-Herzegovina
     Michael Ipgrave

Both the Bible and the Qur'an speak of prophets, messengers charged with bringing the Word of God to the world. How do Muslims and Christians understand prophecy? What do their scriptures have in common and how do they differ in describing the prophets? What are the places of Jesus and of Muhammad in their faiths, and in their view of one another's faiths? These were some of the questions addressed by the 30 Christian and Muslim scholars who met at Georgetown University in March 2004 for a three-day seminar convened by Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury. Their focus was the intensive study of passages from the Qur'an and the Bible, reading one another's scriptures with respectful attentiveness and scholarly rigor. This book provides a record of those discussions, the papers presented during the seminar, and reflections after the event. The book is available in its entirety in the PDF, provided by Church House Publishing, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents
Building Bridges in Georgetown

Chapter 1: What Is Dialogue?
Analysing Atheism: Unbelief and the World of Faiths
     Rowan Williams
Scriptures in Dialogue: Are We Reckoning without the Host?
     Mustansir Mir
Hospitable Readings: Comments on Scriptures in Dialogue
     Miroslav Volt

Chapter 2: Called by God
Scripture Dialogue I
     Ta Ha 20.1-36; Exodus 3.1-14
Scripture Dialogue II
     Acts 9.1-22; al-Muzzammil 73.1-20
Questions from the Scriptures

Chapter 3: What Is Prophecy?
What Is Prophecy? Reflections on a Qur'anic Institution in History
     Wadad Kadi
"My Devoted Friend": The Prophet as the Intimate of God
     Ellen F. Davis

Chapter 4: Sent to Humanity
Scripture Dialogue III
     Hud 11.25-49; Jeremiah 26
Scripture Dialogue IV
     1 Kings 21; al-Shu arii' 26.123-91
Questions from the Scriptures

Chapter 5: Jesus and Muhammad
Isa and Jesus: Christ in Islamic Christology
     Mahmoud Ayoub
Jesus and Muhammad: The Sufficiency of Prophecy
     Daniel Madigan
Chapter 6: The Completion of Prophecy
Scripture Dialogue V
     Maryam 19.16-36; Luke 1.26-38
Scripture Dialogue VI
     Hebrews 1.1-4; al-A}Jziib 33.40, al-Mii'ida 5.3
Questions from the Scriptures

Chapter 7: Reflections from the Dialogue
Building bridges: A Personal Reflection from a Christian
     Teresa Okure
Bearing the Word: Prophecy and Scripture in Christian and Islamic Scriptures
     Michael Ipgrave

In April 2003, Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, convened a group of twenty-five leading Christian and Muslim scholars for three days of theological dialogue. Scriptures in Dialogue presents a record of this seminar, held in Doha at the invitation of the Emir of Qatar. The focus of this gathering was the intensive study of passages from the Qur'an and the Bible. Combining scholarship at the highest level with commitment to the practice of their faiths in the modern world, the participants addressed questions such as discernment of the Word of God, the place of women in their believing communities, and making space for the religious 'Other.' The book is available in its entirety in the PDF, provided by Church House Publishing, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents

Introducing the Seminar
     His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, Emir of the State of Qatar
     The Most Revd and Rt Hon. Dr Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
     Michael Ipgrave

Chapter 1 Muslims and Christians Reading Scriptures: When, Where, How, With Whom?

Chapter 2 Listening to God, Learning from Scripture
On the Road to Emmaus
     Tom Wright
Listening to God through the Qur’an
     Vincent Cornell
Scripture Dialogue I: Signs of God
     Psalm 19; al-Rum (30) 19-30
Readings of the ‘Reading’
     Timothy Winter
Scripture Dialogue II: Word of God
     Al ‘Imran (3) 1-7; John 1.1-18

Chapter 3 Legacies of the Past, Challenges of the Present
Scripture Dialogue III: Abraham, a Righteous Man
     Romans 4; al-Baqara (2) 124-36
The Ethics of Gender Discourse in Islam
     Mona Siddiqui
A Circle Perspective
     Esther Mombo
Scripture Dialogue IV: Righteous Women
     al-Ahzab (33) 28-36; Proverbs 31.10-31

Chapter 4 Scripture and the Other
Christian Scripture and ‘the Other’
     Frances Young
Affirming the Self through Accepting the Other
Basit Koshul
Scripture Dialogue V: Space for the Other?
     Jonah 3 and 4; al-Baqara (2) 62, Al ‘Imran (3) 113-15 John 14.1-14; Al ‘Imran       (3) 19-20, 85
Christian Theology and Other Faiths
     Rowan Williams

Chapter 5 Scriptures in Dialogue

How can Christians and Muslims overcome the obstacles that stand in the way of mutual understanding and trust? This was the highly topical question addressed by forty scholars of the two faiths who gathered for a major two-day international seminar at Lambeth Palace in January 2002. Hosted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the event was supported by Prime Minister Tony Blair, with the cooperation of Prince El Hassan bin Talal of Jordan. All three contribute introductions to this book, which presents the papers read at the seminar and describes the discussions that they stimulated. Drawing on the insights and expertise of Christians and Muslims from a wide variety of nations and cultures, this book offers a message of hope to all who seek to build bridges between those who follow the world's two biggest religions. The book is available in its entirety in the PDF, provided by Church House Publishing, that follows the book's table of contents below.

Table of Contents
Participants in the Christian–Muslim Seminar at Lambeth Palace January 2002
Introducing the seminar
The Most Revd and Rt Hon. Dr George Carey, Archbishop of Canterbury
His Royal Highness Prince El Hassan bin Talal of Jordan
The Rt Hon. Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Editorial Preface: Michael Ipgrave
Acknowledgements

Building Bridges between Christians and Muslims
Chapter 1: Christians and Muslims Face to Face
Chapter 2: Learning from History
Chapter 3: Communities of Faith
Chapter 4: Faith and Change
Chapter 5: Setting the Agenda
Postscript: Ways Ahead