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CNN Live Saturday
Interview With Kanan Makiya
Aired July 06, 2002 - 12:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: One of the toughest obstacles in the Middle East peace process is the issue of Jerusalem and who controls it. It's an issue that stretches back hundreds of years and centers around an area of great religious importance. Joining us now, the author of the new book date "The Rock: A Tale of Seventh-Century Jerusalem," Kanan Makiya. Thank you very much for joining us.
KANAN MAKIYA, AUTHOR, "THE ROCK": Thank you, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Well, this is a historical documentation. At the same time, you pulled from some interesting references in which to create some characters. How much of this is fiction, how much of it is historical documentation?
The main theme of the book, namely the Muslim/Jewish relationship in the seventh century, is entirely confirmed by modern scholarship. My -- the way of fiction comes into the tale is to fill in the gaps in terms of the characters, their personalities, and so on. But most of what's in the book, the story I tell is, I believe, completely rooted in the sources that are in the last third of the book.
WHITFIELD: And the story you're telling, you are trying to involve and enlighten many of us that the relationship between Christians, Muslims and Jews was different during the seventh century than compared to today.
MAKIYA: It was diametrically opposite. In fact, if you think of the current Middle East, everything about what we see today was a completely inverted version of itself back in the seventh century.
Muslims and Jews were essentially in a kind of alliance against the then power in the city of Jerusalem, namely Christianity in the shape of the Byzantine Empire. Muslims were, of course, a rising, nascent, young force. The Koran had not yet been put together into a text. And Jewish histories and explanations and exigencies of the Old Testament were absolutely crucial to the early Muslims. The building around which my book revolves is the Dome of the Rock. This is the oldest Muslim monument in existence today, moreover, more importantly, it's the first Muslim monument ever built. And it is a monument built by Christian craftsmen to celebrate a Jewish rock. And that was in Muslim minds back in the seventh century.
WHITFIELD: So in what way do you hope that your book might help narrow the divide, particularly between Jews and Muslims? MAKIYA: It breaks down the them versus us categories in which everyone views the other today in the Middle East. It turns out the them is much more complicated, identities were much more fluent back in the seventh century than they are today.
WHITFIELD: Now, Mr. Makiya, I really apologize, we are going to have to interrupt you because we need to take viewers now to Texas to the flooding area in Central Texas for a press conference that's under way. And if we have time, we will come right back to you.
(INTERRUPTED FOR CNN COVERAGE OF LIVE EVENT)
WHITFIELD: Now let's continue our conversation with Kanan Makiya. His book is "The Rock," and we're exploring your discoveries about the relationship between Jews and Muslims in the seventh century -- and Christians. Now, the last question that I asked you, I'd like to revisit. Do you suppose or is it your hope that your book might help narrow the divide between Jews and Muslims in any way?
MAKIYA: I hope it makes them see that their histories are far more intertwined than current ideologies and mind-sets would expect. That in fact, they have a lot, lot more in common with one another. In some sense, the extremes of tension and hatred that are built up are almost like the extremes one sees in a family where people have fallen apart.
Muslim/Jewish connections are very, very deep. And they're present in the building that is the symbol par excellence of Jerusalem, namely the Dome of the Rock. As I said, the Muslim building built to celebrate Jewish rock in Muslim mines back in the seventh century. I think that is a symbol of what is possible in the future. At least I hope so.
WHITFIELD: How anxious were you to tell this story?
MAKIYA: I was entirely gripped by it, with a kind of passion that has lasted for some six years the first time I ever visited and saw the Dome of the Rock and realized by returning to modern scholarly sources just what was behind the building. It suddenly became almost an imperative for years to tell it in a way that perhaps would draw people to the tale and try themselves see connections and -- between themselves that might modify the kind of conflict we see going on now.
WHITFIELD: All right. Kanan Makiya, the book is "The Rock: A Tale of Seventh Century Jerusalem." Thank you very much for joining us.
MAKIYA: Thank you, Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: And thanks for sticking around during that press conference as well.
MAKIYA: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: We appreciate it.
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