Abraham’s Sons

In the Book of Genesis, Abraham leads his beloved son Isaac up Mt. Moriah and prepares to sacrifice him at God’s command. In Muslim tradition, Ishmael is the near-victim. Jews, Christians and Muslims all trace their roots back to Abraham—but not through the same son: Ishmael is the traditional ancestor of the Arabs, especially Muslims, while Isaac is the forebear of Jews and Christians.

This is, of course, a simplified reading of the history of these peoples. Yet the common history, similar beliefs and shared traditions of Jews, Christians and Muslims suggest that the members of these three faiths are indeed relatives, even if distant ones. The sad fact is that for a long time two sides of this large extended family have rarely been on speaking terms, and when they have communicated, they have not had many nice things to say to each other. Their infrequent conversations have tended to repudiate, rather than celebrate, their common heritage.

The sacred texts of this family, the Bible and Qur’an (often spelled Koran), have been used to further estrange its members. The Bible and Qur’an are often pitted against each other to bolster the claims of one side and negate the claims of the other.