ABSTRACT
O f all the world’s religions, Islam seems to be the one that is forever in the news. And the news, more often than not, is bad. Islamic issues and Muslim politics seem to feature constantly in a negative light in the media. Why should this be so? Are Muslims getting a fair deal? At the same time, Islam has been the focus, in recent years, o f much dialogical activity and the fostering of good relations within both academic and ecclesiastical circles. Islam has the attention o f Western scholars and the Christian Church as never before. Religious architecture other than Christian adds new shape to our skylines. The contours of dome and minaret are emerging as identifiable features. Today, perhaps as never before, questions about Islam and our relation to it are being raised. What is Islam? What may we make o f it? What has been the nature of the relationship of Islam to its ‘sister religions’ o f Judaism and Christianity? Why has the religion o f Islam always been something o f a puzzle-to put it mildly-to Western societies? How does Islam relate to the modem world? What issues are raised when we contemplate the prospect o f a dialogical relationship with Islam and Muslims? In order to begin to answer, we need to understand where this religion comes from and how it sees itself.
