IGE established the Global Leadership Forum (GLF) to equip people of faith, and of good will, to live out their beliefs with cultural sensitivity and civic responsibility worldwide. Provoking thoughtful conversations ensures that the next generation will continue to advance freedom by strengthening dialogue at home and seeking greater freedom abroad.

GLF 2009 featured an honest conversation between Muslims and Evangelicals about their deepest differences. The Forum began with an open evening plenary session on “Voices of Muslim-Christian Understanding,” followed the next day by three panels on Respect, Reconciliation, and Religious Freedom. The first panel examined the sources for mutual understanding and respect in each tradition. The second panel featured an examination of the term ‘reconciliation,’ focusing both on the deep theological, cultural, and political differences between the two great traditions and on the common points of agreement which could become the beginning of a larger reconciling process. The third panel presented a frank discussion of religious freedom: what happens in Muslim countries if a Muslim converts to Christianity? Alternatively, how have Muslims perceived and experienced Christian missionaries in Muslim countries? How are Muslims treated in Christian majority countries, especially related to the construction of new mosques?

Participants included: Imam Dr. Muhammad Nurayn Ashafa, Interfaith Mediation Centre, Nigeria;Dr. John Borelli, Georgetown University; Dr. Jennifer Bryson, Witherspoon Institute; Dr. John L. Esposito, Georgetown University; Suhail A. Khan, Institute for Global Engagement; Imam Mohamed Magid, ADAMS Center; Dalia Mogahed, Gallup Center for Muslim Studies; Dr. John O. Voll, Georgetown University; Pastor Dr. James Movel Wuye, Interfaith Mediation Centre, Nigeria; Imam Saafir Rabb, Masjid Khalifah;Dr. Andrew Saperstein, Yale University; Dr. Timothy Samuel Shah, Council on Foreign Relations and Boston University; Dr. Chris Seiple, Institute for Global Engagement; H. Knox Thames, co-author, International Religious Freedom Advocacy (Baylor University Press, 2009); andAhmed Younis, Gallup Center for Muslim Studies.

In the end, GLF 2009 assisted participants to better understand the issues that divide—and connect—these two great traditions and helped pastors and imams bring back new insights to their congregations.

For more information, please visit: http://explore.georgetown.edu/news/?ID=42401