"Holy Cooperation: The Economy of Reconciliation"

The three religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam share common origins and many common stories, and their respective members all worship the same divinity. Their values are more alike than they are different. However, their common history has been a turbulent one. Increased geographic intermingling has led to greater potential for conflict, but also provides opportunities for interfaith collaboration. Recent overtures by moderate leaders of all three faiths have sparked discussion about how to practice shared values of justice and love. This paper will explore the basis for building cooperation across religious divides. It will begin with the foundation of each faith–a survey of scripture. Many teachings reveal that God has a preference for justice, as well as sharing of power and responsibility, which are hallmarks of cooperation. I will also provide a brief survey of each religion’s development of cooperative forms, both historical and contemporary. These will range from cooperative Jewis