Members from Islam, Christianity and Judaism gathered Wednesday not to discuss their differences, but instead their similarities – particularly their shared belief in the prophet Abraham.

The Abrahamic Dinner provided about 65 attendees, Turkish food and music as well as one speaker from each major religion. Sponsored by the newly formed Intercultural Dialogue Student Association, the dinner was one of the highlights of Interfaith Council’s Interfaith Week. The goal of the dinner was to highlight all the three religions have in common.

“If we focus on similarities, we realize there’s really not that much of a difference after all. Focusing on the differences is what causes hate among religions,” said Ismail Guneydas, president of Intercultural Dialogue Student Association.

Abraham, whose story appears in the book of Genesis, plays a major role in all three religions. Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Isaac, is admired by all three religions as an example of true faith.

Some of the other similarities among religions include love for Jesus, belief in a single god and faith in angels Michael and Gabriel, said Guneydas, a graduate student studying computer science.

“All the speakers are talking about Prophet Abraham from their religion’s view. After listening to them, people will probably see that yeah, they have a lot in common. They’re a lot alike,” said Guneydas.

Each speaker was asked to give a short speech about who and what Abraham meant to his or her personal religion.

“For us, Abraham’s heirs, it’s not about passing a paternity test. It’s a test of character and behavior consistent with that of Abraham,” said Marleen Shepard, a Carbondale resident that acted as the featured speaker for Christianity.

Aslihan Akkaya, the Islamic featured speaker, said for her religion, Abraham represents salvation through love.

“We are all the children of Abraham,” said Akkaya, a doctoral student from Turkey studying anthropology. “Being loyal to a particular faith in a sense does not prevent its members from understanding other’s spiritual values.”

Joe Brown, the featured Judaism speaker, spoke briefly about how people are united by struggles, particularly the struggle to find meaning in life.

“When we’re asked to do certain things, we don’t know why. When we’re in terrible situations, we don’t know why. We cry out for God,” Brown said. “We ask, why? Why is it like this? What is the meaning here?”

Brown, director of SIU Hillel in Carbondale, said Judaism preaches education.

“To be a Jew means to go through struggles. To be a Jew means a person has to seek meaning, a person has to seek purpose � and that purpose is to instill these values into your children,” he said.

Lindsey Smith can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 255 or [email protected].