{'fraction_non_alphanumeric': 0.014749262536873156, 'fraction_numerical': 0.0014749262536873156, 'mean_word_length': 5.056547619047619, 'pattern_counts': {'":': 0, '<': 0, '<?xml version=': 0, '>': 0, 'https://': 0, 'lorem ipsum': 0, 'www.': 0, 'xml': 0}, 'pii_count': 0, 'substrings_counts': 0, 'word_list_counts': {'cursed_substrings.json': 0, 'profanity_word_list.json': 0, 'sexual_word_list.json': 0, 'zh_pornsignals.json': 0}}
Synagogues in the Islamic World: Architecture, Design and Identity

words and their meaning is not solely characteristic of the Jews or the Christians, as would often be later claimed’ (126), the adoption of a pre-critical hermeneutic towards the Islamic account that is not applied similarly to Jewish and Christian texts is problematic. The author has selected his themes well, but does not fully exploit their potential, with much of the text comprising a narrative retelling of stories from the Hebrew Bible and the Qur’an (the Gospels are treated to a much lesser extent). As well as proving somewhat unsatisfying for a reader already familiar with these texts, the stated aim of ‘reading the three books together’ never seems to quite take, as the texts are often set side by side and similarities adduced rather than allowing for a more robust intertextual hermeneutic. Here, one is left with the impression that the complex hermeneutical issues involved in reading the three texts together have not been adequately teased out and that the semantic possibilities of such an approach remain largely untapped. This lack of hermeneutical clarity leaves the reader with the impression that differences of perspective between the texts are occasionally flattened out, and the book would gain greatly from more consideration of the differences and points of contestation between them. The book has been translated from the Dutch and there are a number of infelicities of language and textual errata throughout. It is likely to be of most benefit to those approaching the field of interfaith dialogue for the first time who are not schooled in the narratives it examines and may be unaware of the textual commonalities shared by the three traditions. Overall, the author has laid an honourable foundation for further explorations in joint exegesis between the three traditions in a text that has moments of real insight and beauty, along with a generosity that is sorely needed in today’s context of heightened interreligious tension.