John L. Esposito

A well-known promoter of strong ties between Muslims and Christians, John Esposito has even challenged the Vatican to make greater efforts to encourage such ties. Esposito is professor of religion, international affairs, and Islamic studies at Georgetown University and the founding director of the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding in the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. The center received a $20 million endowment from Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal “to advance education in the fields of Islamic civilization and Muslim-Christian understanding and strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural and inter-religious dialogue.”

Esposito is a consultant to the U.S. State Department as well as corporations, universities, and the media worldwide. He has also served as president of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) and the American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies, vice chairman of the board of directors for the Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, and is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Council of 100 Leaders and president of the Executive Scientific Committee for “The Mediterranean, Europe, and Islam: Actors in Dialogue.”

The author of more than 35 books, Esposito has reached a wide audience with two of his titles, Islam and Politics and Islam: The Straight Path. He is also editor-in-chief of a number of Oxford reference works including The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, The Oxford History of Islam, The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World, and Oxford Islamic Studies Online.

Taken from [omnibuslectures.org]