The Organization of Islamic Conference, (oic-oci.org) who has 56 member nations, has been an active source of reconciliation with other faiths and the West. Dr. Hassan Hathout in the OIC "Faces of Islam.pdf” posted an article, "The chaff and the wheat about Islam," from which we quote .

"In 1076, Pope Gregory VII wrote to the Muslim ruler Al-Nasir, “We believe in and confess one God, admittedly in a different way,” and emphasized the shared Abrahamic faith. In 1095, Pope Urban II characterized Muslims as godless people, infidels, dogs, chaff for eternal fire, etc… He was known as “Urban the Blessed” and was the one who called for the first Crusade.

In 1965, Pope Paul VI mentioned in his Nostra Etate, “Upon Muslims too the Church, looks with esteem, they adore the One God, our God, the God of Abraham with whom the Islamic faith is happy to associate itself and worship Him by prayers and almsgiving.” He also emphasized that although Muslims do not believe the sonhood of Jesus to God, they believe that he was the prophet and messenger of God and was supported by miracles. Muslims also love and respect his mother, the Virgin Mary.

The late Pope John Paul II commented on the conclusion of the second millennium by saying that Christians had things to atone for in that millennium, citing the Inquisition, the Crusades, and the Holocaust.

If the aforementioned conflicting views about Islam were expressed by Popes (supposedly infallible), then it must be that those views were in fact situational, although each exerted its influence on Christendom throughout history. It was not only Popes who regarded Islam so variably. Whereas Dante puts Muhammad in the deepest pits of hellfire, others grade him as number one of the hundred persons who positively influenced human history, and the British playwrite George Bernard Shaw expressed humanity's need of a person like Muhammad, who would have had the ability to solve its problems while sipping a cup of coffee.

These are but a few sporadic examples of what the minds of the people in the West are continually exposed to. It seems that unbridled human nature, however, has more affinity to cling to bad news and views rather than to look at them analytically or exert effort to verify them. Even in modern times when means of verification have become easy, a lie has a better chance to be believed by the masses if the proper technique is used. The examples are plenty and dramatic even in the highest circles. It is a pity that we pontificate to our children during their early years about the value of truth and honesty only to see them reverse direction as they grow up to be big politicians, business tycoons, and leaders. The media often lose their impartiality and their great efforts to reveal the truth are marred by situations where they actually deny or conceal it. It is sad to see the art of lying become such a sophisticated science, targeting even their own people. The Crusades in particular seem to have left such a permanent impression on the Western mind that the word “crusade” has been established in common use with positive connotations, whether by top politicians or by religious preachers.

Then came the tragic events of 9/11 that shocked America and the whole world. All Americans including Muslim Americans were angered and saddened by the heinousness of the attack and the loss of innocent lives (including some three hundred Muslim victims). Although it was a crime perpetrated by a band of criminals who were

Muslims, voices were raised incriminating all Muslims, including American Muslims. By and by, the accusations expanded to include Islam itself, the Prophet of Islam, and even the God of Islam. One has to admit, however, that on the whole, the American people have scored very high on the scales of tolerance and humaneness. I imagine that if 9/11 had happened anywhere other than America, rivers of blood would have flown and massacres would have been committed.

The image of Islam in America has naturally suffered and with the selectivity of reporting by word or by picture from or about the Muslims in their countries, the image is naturally getting worse. On the other hand, one should realize that ordinary Americans have their excuse in thinking negatively about Islam, on account of what they read and watch. This negative image of Islam is lent support by the actions of those Muslims who exhibit criminal, atrocious, and disgusting behavior while claiming that they do it in the name of Islam.

Any honest attempt to portray what Islam really is can only be successful if the reader can cast aside the curtains upon curtains of preconceived ideas. Preconceived ideas unfortunately tend to block the flow of new ideas.

Muslims are part of the sector of humanity that believes that God is. God is infinite in all of His descriptions and power. Muslims do not entertain the question what was before him or who comes after him, for this would mean that He is finite. Muslims cannot understand infinity because we ourselves are finite. This is not religious jargon, but infinity is indeed a scientific fact that we teach in our math classes and refer to by a special signal (OO ). It follows therefore that God is One whether you are Muslim,

Christian, Jewish, an agnostic, or an unbeliever. God is given various names in various languages such as: Allah in Arabic, Yahweh in Hebrew, Dieu in French, Theos in Greek, etc…The English language has no name and uses the word God with a capital G.  God is also beyond gender and our reference to God as “He” is a matter of linguistic usage, but not of gender. God created the universe, including our planet Earth. All atoms follow atomic laws. They combine to form molecules following chemical laws. Molecular complexity advances to the stage where nucleic acids can split and each half replenishes itself into a new molecule, actually signifying Life along its long course to higher animals. Biologically, we humans are the head of the animal kingdom, and yet many of us would be offended to be called an animal. The reason is that, although we share biology with animals, it is not our biology that makes us human beings, but another factor that is not derived from the earth. This factor is what we call the Spirit and is breathed into us from God Himself. It is this element that makes us eligible to identify good and evil and to have the willpower to observe God's do's and don't's even in the face of temptation. As humanity grew and life became more and more complex, humans were reminded by a long chain of messengers and prophets along human history. They reminded people that they are under continuous surveillance (by angels) and that if they can manage to get away with their sins during life, there will be a life after death where detailed reports are available and responsibilities are assigned. There has been a long chain of messengers (three hundred according to biblical sources) ending in what we call the Abrahamic faiths: Judaism (Moses), Christianity (Jesus), and Islam (Muhammad). Muslims don't see them as alternatives but as a continuum. Even without reciprocity, the Quran (to Muslims, God's very word) addresses Muslims saying, “The same religion God enjoined on you as the one He recommended to Noah, and this Quran we revealed to you, and that which we recommended to Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, that you should uphold the faith and break-not your unity therein” (Quran 13:42).

Islam calls Jews and Christians the “People of the Book,” since they are the recipients of the Torah and the Bible. The Quran describes Jesus as the messenger of God, His Word that He bestows on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him. Also in the Quran, the angels tell Mary, “God has chosen you, purified you, and chosen you over the women of all nations” (Quran 3:42).

As for the Jews, I will simply make one reference to the late Mr. Aba Eban, former foreign secretary of Israel, historian, and philosopher, who, in his epic book My People (also made into a television series), wrote, “Over their history, my people were treated with justice only twice: under the Muslims in Spain and recently in the United States of America. It was never under Muslim rule that the Jews met the repeated pogroms they suffered in Europe, concluded by Hitler's Holocaust.”

In the middle ages, when Ferdinand and Isabella expelled the Jews from Spain (as collateral damage with Muslims), many of them went to Muslim lands. They were generously welcomed, and the Muslim Sultan mocked the Spanish monarchs by saying, “They impoverished their country and enriched mine.” It was not until the Palestinian issue that the relations soured, and we hope some solution agreeable to both Palestinians and Israelis will be reached at long last. Looking at Jerusalem through

Jewish, Christian, or Muslim eyes, it is obvious that God meant it to be a converging lens of the three faiths and not a divergent one. Finding a solution to restore peace to the land of peace should be the concern of all three communities. However, it should not be a Versailles-like peace, because this would only be the prelude to further conflict.

It is quite obvious to me that in America and the West as a whole, Islam is very much talked about and very little understood. To facilitate the matter to the western reader, I would liken Islam to a building composed of the foundation and three stories. The foundation is belief in and love of God, heeding Him all the time. The first floor is that of worship (prayers, fasting, almsgiving, and pilgrimage to Mecca if affordable). The second floor is human relations and interaction with the environment. The third floor is a constitution (legal system) that is pliable to suit new times and situations. There is no clergy system in Islam (only scholarship), hence the conflict between church and state does not arise. The three floors are interconnected; the system is inclusive and takes care not to enforce on non-Muslim citizens anything that runs against their respective religions. It is the second floor that is important to us all and is practically the same as in Christianity, Judaism, and all other members of humanity who believe in goodness and human decency.

Readers will ask why the problems of terrorism and the negative actions committed by Muslim perpetrators arise. We say that such phenomena are not confined to Islam and we invite the reader to widen his or her field of vision and consider the history of followers of the other religions, both in the past and in our present day. A study of terrorism in both the past and the present shows it to include Muslims, Christians, Jews, and practically human beings of all creeds and breeds. Yet the press often attaches the title “Islamic” only when the perpetrators are Muslims, omitting such characterization in other cases.

Terrorism is a real and potentially devastating problem in our modern times. It is a pity to see the handling of the problem entirely relegated to politicians and their allies of the military-industrial complex, exactly what the late US President Eisenhower warned us against. It is also sad to note that our national budgets allocate far more for inflicting death than do they for educating and protecting life. The problem of terrorism should be handled in a scientific way. An international committee should systematically study all aspects of the problem and elucidate its predisposing factors, exciting factors, and early symptoms.

Preventive management is certainly more valuable than therapeutic treatment. The aim of enlightened statesmanship is to turn your enemy into a friend and not just to kill him. This approach is an axial theme that should be adopted by all people of all nations and of all religions. The United States was founded on the idea of “Out of Many: One” and this should be its guiding light within and without its borders. The United States, physically and morally, should never allow itself to live behind an Iron Curtain. It should never ever allow itself to be tempted by the idea of “the survival of the fittest, ”otherwise it will lose itself even if it wins its battles." [Dr. Hassan Hathout is a professor at the Islamic Center of Southern California, and a former professor in the School of Medicine at Kuwait University.]

A Comment on Dr. Hassan Hathout's article:

His quote of the Quran 13:42:

““The same religion God enjoined on you as the one He recommended to Noah, and this Quran we revealed to you, and that which we recommended to Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, that you should uphold the faith and break-not your unity therein...”

The quote confirms the verses listed that confirm the Bible in chapter 4 above and the conclusion that the God of the Bible and Allah must be the same person* and that the Koran requires keeping the faith in the religion (sic Old Testament & Gospel of Christ: the Bible). However Dr. Hathout repeats a common expression of Islamic scholars, that “the Koran describes Jesus as the messenger of God..His Word that He bestows on Mary and a Spirit proceeding from Him.” We point out that according to the Koran Jesus is recognized as the Messiah:

The IMRANS 3:45 The angels said to Mary: "Allah bids you rejoice in a Word from Him. His name is the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary.

The Messiah is a very special character in the Bible, and to appreciate how much more of a messenger or prophet he is expected to be we need to read the plethora of verses that relate to him, under such names (besides Messiah; Gr. Christ; Engl. Anointed One). Recently two conferences were conducted, one in Turkey and the other in Saudi Arabia, to promote moderate Islamic views. See articles:

Maravot News 04.01.10 Extremists must repent: Muslim scholars
Maravot News 3.31.10 article 03.31.10 Muslim scholars recast jihadists' favorite fatwa

Notes:

* Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary-General Of The Organization Of The Islamic Conference (OIC), sent their Invitation to a New Partnership, to President Obama, January 21, 2009, that included the following comment: "...Many myths about Islam, fostered by extremists in both the West and East, have proliferated in the last decade, and a new word — "Islamophobia” — has even entered the world's lexicon to describe anti-Muslim acts of prejudice and violence. Despite these pernicious myths, you will find that Islam is a religion of peace. Tolerance is its benchmark and borne of the very nature of Islam. Nor is Islam an exclusive religion. It is an integral part of the history of world religions. It continues and confirms the previous scriptures. Along with Christianity and Judaism, Islam emanates from the same part of the world, comes from the same God, and holds to the same Prophets, mainly Abraham. It has been tested over fourteen hundred years, and shown itself to be a religion of compassion, mercy, justice, and equality. Extremists in any faith or tradition are rare, though they often command disproportionate attention. But the often overlooked truth is Islam is also the religion of moderation. It celebrates diversity and acknowledges and venerates a wide array of religions. Islam, in fact, abhors extremism and fanaticism and calls for treading the path of the “middle way” in favor of tolerance and reconciliation. It exhorts Muslims to be morally responsive to the truth and to goodness, and to be alert to all that is false, evil or destructive..." (See Appendix A for an extension of this precept to Imams.)

Chapter 8
Some names of the Messiah, his characteristics and time(s)
(from Hidden Pavilions4.html, pages 142-191, Appendix A)

The Word, Branch, Shepherd, Judge/ King Messiah, Redeemer, Messiah ben Joseph, Messiah of Israel, Son of David, Servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified (Isa. 49.2); Prophet like unto thee [Moses] (Exodus 19.18);

Lam. Rab. 1:51, p36, and Lam. 1:16: What is the name of King Messiah? R. Abba bar Kahana said: "Lord [Adonai] is his name, for it is written, I will raise unto David a Righteous shoot...in his days Judah shall be saved...And this is the name whereby He shall be called: The Lord is our Righteousness (Jer. 23:5-6)." For R. Levi said: "Happy is the country whose name is like the name of its king and the name of whose king is like the name of its God..." R. Y'hoshu'a said: "Shoot [Tzemah] is his name, for it is written, Behold a man whose name is Shoot and who shall shoot up out of his place and build the temple of the Lord (Zech. 6:12)." R. Yudan in the name of R. Aybo said "Menahem [comforter] is his name, for it is written, Because the Comforter is far from me (Lam. 1:16)." In the house of R. Shela they said: "Shiloh is the name of the Messiah, for it is written, Until Shiloh will come (Gen. 49.10), and the word is spelled Shela." In the house of R. Hanina they said: "Hanina is his name, for it is written, For I will show you no favor [hanina] (Jer. 15:13)." In the house of R. Yannai they said: "Yinnon is his name, for it is written May his name be continued [yinnon] as long as the sun (Ps. 72:17)." R. Biva of Srungaya said: "Nehira [light] is his name, for it is written, And the light [nehora] dwelleth with him (Dan.2:22), and it is spelled nehira." R Y'huda ben R. Shimion said in the name of R. Shimuel ben R. Yitshaq: "This king Messiah, if he is of those who are alive, his name is David, and if he is of those who have died, his name is David." R. Tanhuma said: "I shall tell you the reason: [It is written] He giveth great salvation to His King, and showeth mercy to His Anointed (Ps. 18:51). [Thereafter] it is not written 'and to David,' but to His Anointed to David and his seed..' "

Mid. Mishie, ed. Buber: Rav Huna said: "The Messiah is called by seven names and they are: Yinnon, Tzidquenu [Our Justice], Tzeman [shoot] Menahem [Comforter], David, Shiloh, and Elijah."

S. Buber's note : The Messiah is called by eight names: Yinon, Tzemah, Pele [Miracle], Yo'etz [Counselor], Mashiah [Messiah], El [God], Gibbor [hero], and Avi 'Ad Shalom [Eternal Father of Peace].

Pereq Shalom: R. Yoyse the Galilean said: "The name of the Messiah is Peace, for it is said, Everlasting Father, Prince Peace (Isa. 9.5)..." R. Yose the Galilean said: "Great is peace, for in the hour in which King Messiah is revealed to Israel, he begins with peace, for it is said, How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger of good tidings who announceth peace [Isa. 52.7]."

B. Sanh 98.b: Rav Yπhuda said: "Rav said that the Holy One, blessed be He, will in the future raise for them [for Israel] another David, for it is said, They shall serve the Lord their God and David their king whom I will raise up unto them (Jer. 30.9). It does not say 'raised up,' but 'will raise up.' "

Rav Papa said to Abbaye: "But it is written, And David my servant shall be their prince forever" (Ezek. 37:25). He answered: "They will be like Caesar and vice-Caesar."

Ezekiel 34.12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that He is among his sheep that are scattered…and I will set up one shepherd over them and shall feed them, even my Servant David…then the heathen that are left around about you shall know that I the Lord build the ruined places…therefore…in that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely shalt thou not know it?” :

Ezekiel 36.24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
Ezekiel 36.25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
Ezekiel 36.26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
Ezekiel 36.27 And I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
Ezekiel 36.28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
Ezekiel 36.31 Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loath yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.
Ezekiel 36.32 Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.
Ezekiel 36.36 Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the Lord build the ruined places, and land that that was desolate: I the Lord have spoken it, and I will do it.
Ezekiel 37.21 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:
Ezekiel 37.22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all:
Ezekiel 37.24 And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.
Ezekiel 37.25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant... and my servant David shall be their prince forever.
Ezekiel 37.26 Moreover I will make a Covenant of Peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midstof them for evermore.
Ezekiel 37.27 My Tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God and they shall be my people.
Ezekiel 37.28 And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore. 

Daniel 12.1 And at that time (referring to the King, great flatterer and deceiver who places the Abomination of Desolation and the tabernacles of his palace between the seas) shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
Daniel 12.2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

Zechariah 12.8 …In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the House of David shall be as God, as the Angel of the Lord before them.

Isaiah 42.1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold, mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him; he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
Isaiah 42.2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
Isaiah 42.3 A bruised read shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: He shall bring forth judgment unto truth
Isaiah 42.4 He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till he have set judtgment in the earth: and the isles shall wait for his Law;

Isaiah 4.2 In that day shall the Branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel’
Isaiah 4.3 And it shall come to pass that He that is left in Zion, and He that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called Holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem.
Isaiah 4.4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst there of by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.
Isaiah 4.5 And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defense.
Isaiah 4.6 And there shall be a Tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and rain.

Isaiah 32.1 Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.
Isaiah 32.2 And a man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

Isaiah 33.10 Now will I rise, saith the Lord; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself.
Isaiah 33.17 Thine eyes shall see the King in His Beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.

Isaiah. 41.28 For I beheld, and there was no man; even among them and there was no counsellor, that, when I asekd of them, could answer a word. 

Isaiah 49.4 Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nought, and in vain; yet surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God.
Isaiah 49.5 And now, saith the Lord that formed me from the womb to be his Servant, to bring Jacob again to Him, though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.
Isaiah 49.6 And he said, it is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel; I will also give thee for a Light to the Gentiiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
Isaiah 49.7 Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, and His Holy One, to him whom the nation abhorreth, to a servant of rulers, Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful, and the Holy One of Israel, and he shall choose thee.
Isaiah 49.8 Thus saith the Lord, in an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of Salvation have I helped thee: and I will preserve thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages.

Leviticus Rabbah XIII:V.6g: I have trodden the winepress alone.

Genesis 49:10 The Scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come, and unto Him shall the gathering of the people be.

Ezekiel 36.23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.

Malachi 4.2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings;

Daniel 7.13 …and behold, One like the Son of Man came with the Clouds of Heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, …and there was given him dominion, and glory and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages should serve Him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.”

Jeremiah. 23.6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called: the Lord our Righteousness;