In a recent lengthy and thoughtful article in the National Catholic Reporter, John L Allen, one of the few writers for that publication consistently capable of transcending its underlying prejudices, has ruminated on the fact (for such he takes it to be) that “the last decade has witnessed a historic shift from Judaism to Islam as the paradigmatic interfaith relationship of the Catholic Church”.
This is not to say, he continues, that Judaism has become unimportant, or that the Church won’t continue its interfaith relationship with that religion. It’s simply that now, it is Islam “where the bulk of the Church's time and treasure is being invested”. This relationship, furthermore, is “the new template for all of Catholicism's relationships with other religions”.
