ABSTRACT
While Judaism and Islam are Abrahamic faiths with a shared tradition and common ground for belief and practice, this has not always or even primarily translated into a greater acceptance or appreciation of the other in Islamic history. This essay examines two new books that explore related themes about Jews and Judaism. The first book explores how different Muslim traditions have come to view Jews and Judaism based on interpretations of the Islamic sources and history. The second book seeks to explain how contemporary Muslim societies have come to understand Judaism’s attachment to the Jewish religious sites of the Holy Land, with a particular focus on Jerusalem. Perhaps by examining these themes together, one can hope that Jews and Muslims will come to appreciate what they share as much as what is disputed.