The regional and international contexts of the relations between Muslims and Christians have changed during the last fifty years, with important consequences for initiatives by both Christians and Muslims to strengthen cooperation and dialogue. The present book is a stocktaking of experiences and expectations of mutual dialogue by intellectuals on both sides. The main part of the book discusses dialogue efforts made in Indonesia and Egypt, initiatives taken in Morocco and Tunesia, integration of Muslim immigrants in British and Dutch societies. The opening and concluding chapters treat broader questions : should one not speak of dialogue about religions rather than between religions? How do distorted perceptions impede dialogue? What does the Vatican say about dialogue? Has dialogue in fact begun yet? The introduction includes an English summary of the four contributions in French. There is a good bibliography of the subject in Western languages. This is a major intellectual contribution to the normalization of Muslim-Christian relations and, more generally, relations between the Muslim world and the West.
