Date: September 16, 2026
Host: Jim Schneider
Guest: Mike Gendron
MP3 | Order
This past June, Catholic Archbishop Edward Weisenburger of Detroit attended the grand opening of a mosque and the new headquarters of the Islamic Institute of America. Not only did he praise the building, but he also said that Muslims and Catholics worship the same God. He said he felt a “divine presence” as soon as he arrived at the mosque. He also offered a prayer that this Islamic Center will bring all of humanity “into a deeper communion with our one god.” He said “We are members of the same human family. All churches, all mosques, all synagogues, all places where God reaches out and touches with his finger are sacred.”
Also this past June in Milan, Italy, a Catholic parish set aside space for young Muslims to engage in Islamic prayers during their summer program. One priest defended this by saying that Christians and Muslims “pray to the same God. A priest there said, “I imagine the prayer could conclude with the Islamic formula Bismillah, which invokes the name of God, the compassionate and merciful.” He said, “It is always better to help young people to pray: we pray to the same God, certainly within different religious traditions. And recognizing the other’s identity is in the spirit of the Gospel.”
It’s been reported that a Muslim prayer room has been set up in the heart of the Vatican City’s 500-year-old library. Islamic scholars visiting the Vatican Apostolic Library had requested a room with “a carpet to pray on” and staff heeded their request.
Earlier this year Pope Leo XIV, on his trip to Africa, visited the Grand Mosque of Algiers calling for mutual respect and peace-building. It’s also reported that he hailed “communion between Christians and Muslims” in a message posted on X. He wrote “Communion between Christians and Muslims takes shape under the mantle of Our Lady of Africa.”
While you might think that Catholicism and Islam are very divergent and have little in common, according to our guest, it’s just the opposite. It begins with the fact that both religions deny that Scripture is our supreme authority. It’s from this perspective of common bonds that Crosstalk invites you to join us as we discuss the question, Will Islam & Catholicism Unite Toward a Global Religion?
Joining Jim for this discussion was Mike Gendron. Mike is founder and director of Proclaiming the Gospel Ministry. Mike was a devout Roman Catholic for over 3 decades and was taught to rely upon the authority of the church above all else. Mike searched the Scriptures and was amazed to find that what he read in Scripture contradicted the teaching and tradition of the church he had been a part of for so long. He trusted Jesus as his Savior and now the Bible has become his sole authority in all matters of faith.
Mike is the author of the books, Preparing for Eternity and Contending for the Gospel. He’s also produced numerous videos with warnings concerning false teachings vs. the truth of the Scriptures.
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