It is three years since Senator Barack Obama pronounced that America "is no longer a Christian nation-at least, not just." The words sounded harsher than he intended: he meant to make the point in a more positive way, stressing that the United States was as much a Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu or non-believing polity as a Christian one. In Turkey in April the president seemed to turn the formula on its head, declaring that "We do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation" but "a nation of citizens" bound by values.rnAnd in a warmly received speech in Cairo on June 4th, which repeatedly cited the Koran, he called for a "new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world" based on the "truth that America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in competition."rnThe philosophy may not be perfectly coherent, but the mood music is clear-absolute opposition to sectarianism, to any emphasis on religious difference rather than commonality. And quite a lot of Muslims seem willing to hear it.
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