Dr. David D. Grafton Sees Another Volume Released in Major Research Project

Since 2008, Dr. David D. Grafton has served as a general editor for a large international research project, Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History (CMR), that has involved over 1000 different researchers. The project recently released its 22nd volume, The Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographic History, Volume 22. 

Reflecting on this publication, Dr. Grafton said, “The CMR project seeks to provide an overview of every Muslim or Christian author who has written on or about the other religious tradition. It is a massive undertaking!”

Christian-Muslim Relations, a Bibliographical History, Volume 22 focuses on the interactions between Christians and Muslims in Central and Eastern Europe from 1800 to 1914. The overall series looks at the history of relationships between the two religions, starting from the 7th century up to the early 1900s. 

Dr. Grafton has helped edit two of the volumes and has authored articles in four others, including this latest one. “My focus has been on North American authors and Protestant missionaries living in Muslim majority countries in Egypt, Syria, and Turkey,” he said.

Thankful for the wealth of information uncovered through this project –  biographical details of the authors, descriptions and assessments of the works themselves, and complete accounts of manuscripts, editions, translations and studies – Dr. Grafton emphasizes the importance of researchers collaborating and relying on one another, working as a network to advance their scholarship.

 “My latest book, Muhammad in the Seminary: Protestant Teaching about Islam in the Nineteenth Century, utilized so much of the research that was done by other people that is published in this CMR project,” he said. “In the preface of the book, I provided a generous thank you to all the scholars who participated in the CMR project. There were so many sources I used. All you have to do is browse my footnotes, and you can see how much I relied on this research project."

Volume 22 is another great contribution to the project, Dr. Grafton said. "I am proud to be a part of it."

Congratulations, David!