There is now so much interest in Christian-Muslim dialogue that it is getting hard to see where it is going, said Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, head of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, in an interview after last week's landmark conference between Catholic and Muslim leaders.
"There's a risk of overlapping," he told Reuters. "It may be the price to pay for all this interest that interreligious dialogue incites."
While dialogue between Christians and Muslims is nothing new, since the September 11 attacks sharpening tensions between western and Muslim states have prompted a new urgency.
Two years ago, Catholic-Muslim relations soured after Pope Benedict XVI delivered a speech in Regensburg, Germany, in which he quoted a 14th century Byzantine emperor's criticism of Islam, linking it to violence.
One year earlier, violent protest broke out in Muslim countries after a Danish newspaper printed a series of cartoons of Islam's most revered prophet, Mohammad. Over 50 people died in the ensuing deadly clashes, which some say could have been averted had Christians and Muslims jointly denounced the violence.
At last week's closed-door talks, a team of Muslim scholars met with the Pope and Vatican officials to develop ways to help defuse ongoing tensions between Islam and Christianity.
"Dear friends, let us unite our efforts, animated by good will, in order to overcome all misunderstanding and disagreements," Pope Benedict said in a speech to the delegates. "Let us resolve to overcome past prejudices and to correct the often distorted images of the other, which even today can create difficulties in our relations."
Led by Mustafa Ceric, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia-Herzegovina, the 24 Muslim scholars attending last week's gathering represented the Common Word Group, a broad coalition of Muslim leaders and scholars who are pursuing dialogue between the world's two largest religions.
