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I think what you've got there is, first of all, the split that we all face. Muslims consider themselves descended from Ishmael, Jews and Christians from Isaac. But I think it is important to understand that there is a careful balance in the story. Isaac gets the land and the covenant, but in part through the malice of his mother. Ishmael goes off into the desert. His mother is treated in an exalted way, and he never leaves the realm of Abraham's love or of God's blessing.

Ishmael goes off into the desert. And actually, the Jewish tradition and Muslim traditions agree that Abraham went to visit Ishmael when he was in the desert. According to the Muslim tradition, during one of those visits Abraham and Ishmael build the Ka'ba, that's the big black stone in the middle of Mecca, which had been built by Adam and lost in the flood. Abraham reconstructs it and then calls all Muslims to make the pilgrimage.

Why is it that Abraham becomes an important figure in each religion?

God blesses Abraham, both of his children, and all of their descendants. At the heart of it is a message of unity. But what happens is over time is that each of the religions tries to elbow one another aside and claim Abraham for itself. In fact, every generation has done this for 2,500 years.

Jews came first and in the early years stressed the universal message of Abraham. But over time, as they began to feel oppressed, Jews say, "Well, actually we want to keep Abraham for ourselves." So suddenly Abraham's the reason God created the world. Abraham becomes the reason for Passover, which came with Moses, who lived a thousand years after Abraham died. Abraham even keeps kosher, even though the laws of kosher were not invented until 2,000 years after Abraham died. In other words, Abraham, who lives 1,500 years before the birth of Judaism, suddenly becomes a Jew.

The religion most exclusive about Abraham is Islam.

Yes. This is more radical, I think, than the Christian or Jewish exclusivity because it [says that] Abraham doesn't even belong to these others. It can get vicious. I went to see an imam deep in east Jerusalem who quoted Hitler to me and spewed hatred. He's the one who most strongly said to me during my research that Abraham was Muslim and that's the only way to be.

What does Abraham offer us after 9/11?

We face a choice. We're going to have open conflict among the religions or we're going to have to begin a process of dialogue. And I believe that Abraham can advance that conversation. It's going to be difficult. I can't promise that it's going to work, but I think failure here is not an option.

If you want to understand the roots of 9/11, or understand your own neighbor, or your own relationship with God, come on this journey with me. Abraham got into the center of that, and he contains the seeds of hope.

Copyright © 2002 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Visit DickStaub.com for audio and video of his radio program (4-7 p.m. PST), media reviews, and news on "where belief meets real life."

Earlier Dick Staub Interviews include:

Connie Neal | The author of The Gospel According to Harry Potter talks about leading a friend to Christ through the wizard hero. (Nov. 18, 2002)

Chris Rice | The author of Grace Matters talks about his friendship with racial reconciliation leader Spencer Perkins, his former coauthor and best friend. (Nov. 12, 2002)

John Polkinghorne | The 2002 Templeton Prize winner sees the Bible as "the laboratory notebook" of the Holy Spirit. (Nov. 5, 2002)

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November (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46