Dr Paul Allen

English: Abraham Kuyper 日本語: アブラハム・カイパー (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In 1905, Abraham Kuyper , the Dutch statesman and theologian, set forth on a journey around the Mediterranean Sea , visiting 80 sites and cities in 20 countries. His travels brought him to ancient lands and some of the most revered sites of Christianity . They also brought him face-to-face, for the first time, with the Islamic world . When he returned, he wrote a series of reflections on his travels, now captured in a newly translated volume, On Islam , which includes select writings from his original two-volume work, Om de Oude Wereldzee (Around the Old World -Sea). Through these writings, we see Kuyper’s unique theological and cultural perspective applied across his individual encounters in the Muslim world, as well as to Islam itself. As editor James D. Bratt explains in the book’s introduction, the collection “aims to show how an outstanding thinker from a century ago spoke to a now-pressing issue in our own ag...

The issue of Islam is never far from our headlines. Early in his administration, President Barack Obama put the issue of Islam front and center on the international stage. His visits to Islamic-dominated lands and his public statements to the Muslim world have raised a host of questions at home and abroad. In a speech to the Turkish parliament , President Obama declared: “The United States is not, and never will be, at war with Islam.” He went on to say that “our partnership with the Muslim world is critical not just in rolling back the violent ideologies that people of all faiths reject, but also to strengthen opportunity for all its people.” But the President also spoke of his “deep appreciation for the Islamic faith .” Here is the statement in context: I also want to be clear that America’s relationship with the Muslim community, the Muslim world, cannot, and will not, just be based upon opposition to terrorism. We seek broader engagement based on mutual interest and mutual respe...