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common bond has to be discovered between them, which shows them all to be human beings. This shows that Islam teaches tolerance and mutual respect. Realizing that religious differences have always existed between people, Islam also teaches us to have open dialogue with people of other religions. That is why inter-religious dialogue has been found in one form or the other since the beginning of Islam. In fact, fourteen hundred years ago, Prophet Mohammad held, what can be said as the first interfaith dialogue in Medina when a three-religion conference—in modern terminology, a trialogue—to exchange views on religious issues took place between the followers of Islam, Christianity and Judaism. Such attempts have repeatedly been made in history. The circumstances that unfolded following the Second World War led the Christian Church, in particular, to pay great attention to this matter. Through its continuous efforts dialogues of this nature are regularly being held in various countries, between Muslims and Christians in particular. I too have had the occasion to participate in several of these dialogues. These efforts have borne fruit, at least partially. For instance, it is as a result of these efforts that on the one hand, a Church has appeared once again in Ben Ghazi (Libya) while on the other, a mosque has been built in Rome for the first time in recent history. Does Islam Deny Religious Freedom to Others? Contrary to the common misconception that Islam denies religious freedom to others, Islam enjoins religious freedom to others. Religious freedom is the basic human right whose violation has caused conflicts, wars and bloodshed in both ancient and modern societies. The Quran, therefore, has declared for the first time in human history: There shall be no coercion in matters of religion. THE QURAN 2: 256 The Quran also states clearly, To you your religion and to me mine. THE QURAN 109: 6 The principle that we obtain from the above verses of the Quran is generally referred to, in today’s context, as religious freedom. In view of this prohibition of coercion (Ikrah), all Islamic jurists (Fuqaha)