A Case Study in Stimulus Diffusion

From an outsider’s perspective, the sibling rivalry between Christianity and Islam is a fascinating slice of religious and cultural history. Though the propagandists of both faiths tend to deny this heatedly, they have many more points in common than differences, especially when compared to religions elsewhere in the world. Both developed in the eastern penumbra of the late Classical world, where Hellenic and Semitic cultural currents tangled and blended; both took the basic principles of Judais...