These women who sit comfortably together in armchairs grouped closely on an elevated stage do not look at all like sisters, but clearly, they are.
   Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver and Priscilla Warner carry with them a bit of an East Coast air, a kind of sophistication that settles in on those who live in one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. But when they speak, you hear Everywoman - the worries of a mother, the loving confidence of a devoted wife, the creative angst of an artist. And, of course, you hear faith.
   The three authors of The Faith Club packed Marion and David Handleman Hall November 13 at the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit's annual Jewish Book Fair. The audience seemed as diverse as the panel - Idliby is Muslim, Oliver is Christian and Warner is Jewish - and they responded frequently with applause as the women shared their story, which began after September 11, 2001.
   "As a mother, I was deeply concerned for my children," said Idliby, who had begun to notice her children shying away from their Muslim faith. "I needed them to be proud."
   Tough to do when the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil was being credited to a group of Muslim extremists. While she had not been particularly devout, Idliby now pursued faith in earnest. "I hit the books," she said. "It didn't take me long to reconnect with my religion."

   Idliby learned Muslims believe the Christian savior, Jesus, was miraculously born to a virgin and that the Israelites were fed by manna from the heavens as they wandered in the desert. But the most fascinating story she read related the Prophet Muhammad's dream of rising through the heavens and being welcomed by his Abrahamic family, including Moses and Jesus, with whom he prayed.
   Idliby decided to pursue a similar dream and connected with Oliver, who knew Warner, an artist who illustrated children's books. Their aim was to create a children's book that would show the connections between the three Abrahamic faiths. Even as they held their first faith-based conversations, however, it became clear this project would be something of a challenge.
   The very first conflict occurred as Oliver and Warner sparred over the story of Jesus' crucifixion and the perception that the story cast Jews as being responsible for it. With a broad smile, Idliby explained, "I, the Muslim, had to play the role of peacemaker."
   As the women came to know each other through the deep conversations they recorded, they not only came to a greater understanding of one another's faiths, but of their own. Oliver appears to have undergone the most dramatic shift.

   After inviting Idliby to an Easter Sunday service at her Episcopal church, Oliver said she found herself growing uncomfortable listening to talk of crucifixion and resurrection.
   "We were trying to connect and here was the thing Muslims and Christians disagreed on," Oliver said. "As I shared Gospel stories, my own confidence in (Jesus') divinity started to waver."
   When Oliver described heaven as a beautiful, peaceful, wonderful place, Idliby asked, "Do you think I could come to?". When Oliver replied "Of course," Idliby pointed out there were many Christians who believed the gates of heaven would be closed to a Muslim.
   Having reached a real crisis of faith, Oliver talked with a religious advisor who told her the opposite of faith was not doubt, but certainty.
   "Doubt allowed me to poke at issues that bothered me and if it collapsed, I discarded it," Oliver said.

   Idliby found herself even more deeply committed to her Muslim faith as she searched for and uncovered central truths that reached beyond the trappings of political extremism. Warner let go of the crippling fear that had her in its grip since 9/11 and had honest, painful conversations with Idliby about the Arab-Israeli conflict. Oliver found the strength and words to deal with her 10-year-old son's decision to stop believing in a Higher Power.
   Their individual faith journeys led them all to the same basic teaching as well. The idea of loving the Almighty with all your heart and mind and loving your neighbor as yourself is central to Islam, Christianity and Judaism, albeit in slightly different words. And the idea of killing in the name of G-d, the women came to understand, had nothing to do with faith at all.
   "Nowhere in the Quran does it say 'kill and you will be rewarded'," Idliby explained. "When someone says religion has anything to do with gaining land or with war, it is no longer religion. It is very much a human ideology."
   "When the name of G-d is used to make violence, that has nothing to do with G-d or religion," Idliby said. "America has become a diverse country. We cannot afford to vilify a whole nation."
   Warner believes the key to resolving all the Faith Club conflicts and the deep intimacy of their friendships lies in the fact that when the women met, they broke bread together. "That was really important, that we knew each other as human beings."
   Oliver added, "Politicians use fear of the other to drive their agendas. If we are all more enlightened, we can take away that fear."

To learn more about The Faith Club, how to form your own Faith Club or about the soon-to-be-finished children's book, visit www.thefaithclub.com