On Wise Women Daisy speaks with Catholic deacon and author George Dardess about misconceptions of Islam, Muslim-Christian relations, and how beauty can build bridges across faiths.

He explains Islam’s root meaning as a free, willing yielding rather than coercion, connecting it to the Christian prayer “thy will be done,” and compares the Christian belief in the Word embodied in Jesus with the Quran as God’s Word embodied in voice and recitation. They discuss Islamic art, calligraphy, and architecture as reminders of harmony and “home,” and argue that recovering shared human possibility "not just dialogue" is essential for coexistence and survival.

00:00 First Steps Into a Mosque
02:07 What Drew Him to Islam
03:22 Arabic Class and Quran Sound
05:38 Meaning of Muslim and Submission
07:30 Quran as Word Embodied
10:24 Why We Fixate on Differences
12:42 Islam Through Politics and Fear
13:34 Reclaiming Beauty as a Lens
16:09 Sacred Patterns and Remembering
17:43 Faith Identity and Not Converting
19:43 Art as Bridge After 9/11
22:03 Coexistence for Human Survival

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