Sharing Heritage: Bible and Quran

An Intertextual Reading of Miriam – Mary – Maryam.

Abstract

The Bible and the Quran are treasures of the cultural heritage of humanity. As masterpieces of literature, they are of high educational value not only for Jewish, Christian and Muslim faith communities, but instead for all people. Besides a theological participation, an intertextual reading of the Bible and the Quran also encourages social participation. Thus, this article addresses the question in how far an intertextual reading of the Bible and the Quran contributes to a social togetherness in Europe. All in all, there are 25 shared characters in the Bible and the Quran (‘shared heritage’). They are suitable for learning processes due to their recognition value (interfigurality). Furthermore, they facilitate the access to the texts and emphasis the intertextual connection of the Bible and the Quran. One example is the figure of Mary, who is not only highly relevant in the Bible and the Quran, but also in secular literature. The exegetical discussion of three texts (Ex 15:20-21; Lk 1:46-55; Surah 3:35-47) serves as specification and highlights the richness of possible interpretations and learning opportunities.