Could we go from Gaza’s last hostage to coexistence?

Now that the body of the last hostage in Gaza has been returned to Israel, there is a deep hope that the Jewish state can move on. 

Jewish and Muslim communities around the world estranged because of the Middle East conflict, and especially after the 7 October 2023 terrorist attacks on Israel and ensuing war in Gaza, also need to heal. 

Now 14.5 million Israelis and Palestinians must figure out how to live together in the tiny sliver of land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. The communities in the diaspora must also seek common ground. This is not going to be easy in the current climate of hate and we shouldn’t be naïve, but understanding the long, complex relationship between Judaism and Islam, which began in the 7th century, offers important insights. 

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are dubbed “Abrahamic” religions, because of the centrality of the common biblical ancestor Avraham/Abraham/Ibrahim. While Jews believe that it was Avraham’s son, Yitzchak, that his father was going to sacrifice, the Muslims believe it was his other son, Ishmael (Ismāʿīl). Both fathered great religions. The Tanach – the collection of Jewish texts including the Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings – forms an integral part of all three faiths. Many biblical figures, including Noah (Nuh); Moses (Musa); David (Dāwūd); and Jesus (Isa) from the Christian tradition are considered prophets in Islam, superseded in importance by Mohammed, whom Muslims believe received G-d’s final revelation. 

Mohammed had many encounters with Jews in his life in the 600s CE – and not always negative ones. From the teachings of the Qu’ran – Islam’s holiest text – and the Hadith, later interpretations of the Qu’ran, emerged the concept of Jews as dhimmi, literally meaning “protected people”. These are non-Muslims living in an Islamic country. They are granted some rights, legal protection, and the ability to practise their religion in exchange for paying a tax called the Jizya. While Jews underwent verbal and physical humiliations when paying the Jizya in Muslim lands, and were certainly second-class citizens, they generally fared better than under oppressive, murderous Christian rule over the centuries. 

In the early Middle Ages, Arabic writings and society had marked influence on rabbinic culture, literature, and learning, especially on Jewish poetry and philosophy. 

The Convicencia (“coexistence”) refers to the positive relationships between Jews, Christians, and Muslims that emerged after the latter conquered southern Spain in 711 CE from the Christian Visigoths. Life improved considerably for Jews in the area. Jewish figures like Hasdai Ibn Shaprut and Samuel Ibn Nagrela rose to become royal advisers as well as community leaders in Muslim Spain. But life got worse again for Jews when more extremist Muslims from North Africa invaded the Iberian Peninsula, as seen in the writings of the Rambam and Yehuda Halevi. 

Jewish life again flourished under the tolerance prevalent in the Ottoman Empire in the 16th and 17th centuries. Jews and Muslims had lived side by side for hundreds of years. They spoke the same language, dressed the same, and exhibited similar social and political values. But as European influences and colonialism accelerated, bringing new and radical ideas, this distanced Jews and Muslims in the Ottoman Empire. The rise of Zionism and Arab nationalism widened the rift between the two communities. By the 1920s, after the 1917 Balfour Declaration and the growth of Jewish emigration to the British Mandate of Palestine, Arab intellectuals increasingly characterised Zionism as a form of European imperialism. Tensions over competing claims for the holy land have infused Muslim-Jewish relations ever since. The communities have nevertheless lived and worked together, often by skirting issues related to politics and the Middle East. The practice of “Don’t mention the war” prevails. 

There are many similarities between Judaism and Islam. Both are monotheistic religions believing a single, indivisible G-d. They believe the divine plan was revealed to human beings. Halacha and shari’a govern religious law and practice. Both encourage daily prayer, and follow the lunar calendar. There are fasts and feasts in the annual cycle. The words and concepts of charity – tzedakah and zakat – are similar. 

And there are concrete examples that offer hope. The common ancestor, Avraham/Ibrahim, has inspired agreements between Israel and Muslim states and an enormous interfaith compound in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

The Abraham Accords, signed in September 2020, normalised relations between Israel, Bahrain, and the UAE. They later incorporated Morocco, but civil war in Sudan derailed the improvement of its ties with Israel. It is hoped that Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Muslim world will eventually join the Abraham Accords. 

The Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi in the UAE incorporates a mosque, a church, and a synagogue side by side. Opened in February 2023, this magnificent complex aims to promote unity and interfaith dialogue among Muslims, Christians, and Jews. The design reflects architectural elements of each religion, making it a unique symbol of tolerance and coexistence. 

Like human beings sharing 98.8% of their DNA with chimpanzees, there is more that ultimately unites Jews and Muslims. The communities need to recapture the coexistence and tolerance that characterised large swathes of their common history. And there is no more important time than now. 

• Steven Gruzd is teaching a 10-week online course titled “The Star and the Crescent: The Long Relationship of Judaism and Islam” from 18 February. To enrol, visit www.meltoncapetown.org