Evangelical Students and a Christian-Muslim Interfaith Journey: The Benefits and Challenges of Engaging in Pluralistic Dialogue

This thesis examines the experiences of Evangelical Christian university students participating in structured dialogue with devout Muslim students in the southeastern United States. Using a participatory action research methodology, it investigates how these students navigated the theological tensions between their commitment to Evangelical exclusivism and the aims of interfaith dialogue, particularly mutual understanding and peacebuilding.

Drawing on Christian Smith’s subcultural identity theory and Keaten and Soukup’s model of pluralistic interfaith dialogue, the study demonstrates that Evangelical students maintained their theological distinctiveness while engaging respectfully and meaningfully with religious others. The findings show that students formed friendships, developed more nuanced understandings of Islam, and reported a strengthened commitment to their own faith, while reshaping (rather than relinquishing) their evangelistic practices in more relational and non-coercive terms. Although cognitive dissonance frequently emerged, especially regarding theological differences and evangelistic intent, many participants adopted a non-dualistic stance, holding these tensions through relational respect and dialogic engagement. Several students expressed the capacity to love their Muslim peers while openly disagreeing with their beliefs, a posture that fostered authentic and reciprocal dialogue.

This research makes an original empirical contribution to the underdeveloped field of Evangelical–Muslim interfaith engagement, particularly among students. Theoretically, it extends subcultural identity theory through the application of pluralistic dialogic and dialogic pluralism; methodologically, it provides a reflexive account of insider–outsider researcher positionality; and practically, it offers replicable strategies for implementing Christian–Muslim dialogue within Evangelical educational contexts. Ultimately, the study reveals a paradox: students sustained Evangelical exclusivism while simultaneously engaging in practices commonly associated with dialogic pluralism.