My intellectual interest in Christianity & Judaism

I have 30,000 books in my library in several languages, with sections that address all fields within the social sciences, humanities, arts and literature.

Months ago, a European journalist marveled at one of the largest sections of my library which includes hundreds of books on “religions.”  In response to a question from him, I said:

My country is comprised of more than Muslims so how can I not try to know all I can about each religion?

In 1967 (the year I entered the university), an earthquake occurred in my life; the June 5th war. How can I not try to know all that I can about Israel and the Jews?

I immersed myself in the study of the Bible with its two covenants. I studied the history of Christianity, the history of the Egyptian Church, and issues of theology. As a consequence, my relationship with my fellow Christians became as it is now. 

I delved into a study of the Torah and other sacred books of the Jews, the history of the Hebrews and the Jews over the last 40 centuries, the miserable history of the Jews in Europe after the Romans expelled them from the Holy Land (70 AD) until the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, and the history of Israel since its state was established 3 years after the end of World War II. As a consequence of these intensive studies, my vision of the Jews and of Israel has become different from those who do not know 1% of what I mentioned.