Abraham Geiger (24 May 1810 in Frankfurt am Main – 23 October 1874 in Berlin) was a German rabbi and scholar who led the founding of Reform Judaism. He sought to remove all nationalistic elements (particularly the "Chosen People" doctrine) from Judaism, stressing it as an evolving and changing religion.

As a child, Geiger started doubting the traditional understanding of Judaism when his studies in classical history seemed to contradict the biblical claims of divine authority. At the age of seventeen, he began writing his first work, a comparison between the legal style of the Mishnah and Biblical and Talmudic law. He also worked on a dictionary of Mishnaic (Rabbinic) Hebrew.

Geiger's friends provided him with financial assistance which enabled him to attend the University in Heidelberg, to the great disappointment of his family. His main focus was centered on the areas of philology, Syriac, Hebrew, and classics, but he also attended lectures in Old Testament, philosophy, and archaeology. After one semester, he transferred to the University of Bonn, where he studied at the same time as Samson Raphael Hirsch. Hirsch initially formed a friendship with Geiger, and with him organized a society of Jewish students for the stated purpose of practicing homiletics, but with the deeper intention of bringing them closer to Jewish values. It was to this society that Geiger preached his first sermon (January 2, 1830). In later years he and Hirsch became bitter opponents as the leaders of two opposing Jewish movements.

Abraham (Hebrew:  אַבְרָהָם (help·info), Modern: Avraham, Tiberian: ʼAḇrāhām, Ashkenazi Avrohom or Avruhom, Arabic: إبراهيم‎ Ibrāhīm, Ge'ez: አብርሃም ʼAbrəham, Greek: Aβραάμ, Russian: Авраам), whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam. According to both the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, through his sons Ishmael and Isaac, Abraham is the forefather of many tribes, namely the Ishmaelites, Israelites, Midianites and Edomites. Abraham was a descendant of Noah's son, Shem. Christians believe that Jesus was a descendant of Abraham through Isaac, and Muslims believe that Muhammad was a descendant of Abraham through Ishmael. Abraham is notable for his advocation and promotion of monotheism.

The Book of Genesis narrative that records the life of Abraham presents his role as one that could only be fulfilled through a monotheistic covenant established between him and God. The Qur'an has stories about Abraham and his offspring that are similar to the Bible's. In Islam, Abraham is recognised as a prophet, patriarch and messenger, archetype of the perfect Muslim, and reformer of the Kaaba.

Talal I bin Abdullah (Arabic: طلال بن عبد الله Ṭalāl ibn `Abd Allāh‎) 26 February 1909 – 7 July 1972) was King of Jordan from 20 July 1951 until forced to abdicate in favour of his son Hussein due to health reasons (reported as schizophrenia) on 11 August 1952.

Talal's family claims a direct line of descent from the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

Talal was born on the 26 February 1909 at Mecca in the Ottoman Empire to Abdullah and his first wife Musbah.

He was educated privately before attending the British Army's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst from which he graduated in 1929 when he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Cavalry Regiment of the Arab Legion. His regiment was attached to a British regiment in Jerusalem and also to the Royal Artillery in Baghdad.

Talal ascended the Jordanian throne after the assassination of his father, Abdullah I, in Jerusalem. His son, Hussein, who was accompanying his grandfather at Friday prayers was also a near victim. On 20 July 1951, Prince Hussein traveled to Jerusalem to perform Friday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque with his grandfather, King Abdullah I. A Palestinian, fearing the king might normalize relations with the newly created state of Israel, opened fire on Abdullah and his grandson. Abdullah was killed, but the 15-year-old Hussein survived.

Don Tourliev "Danny" Maseng is an Israeli-born performer. An actor, singer and writer, Maseng is known as a composer of contemporary Jewish Liturgical music. He currently serves as the Cantor and Musical Director of Temple Israel of Hollywood.

Maseng was born in Tel Aviv, Israel to an American Jewish mother and a Norwegian-American Lutheran father who came to Israel to serve as a volunteer in the Air Force during Israel's War of Independence and later converted to Judaism. Maseng rose to stardom in Israel at a young age and was the star of one of the first TV shows in Israel. Maseng came to America in 1971 to star on Broadway in the musical Only Fools are Sad under the patronage of Golda Meir.

After his Broadway run, Maseng remained in the States, living in several cities before becoming a practicing Buddhist and student of the late Dainin Katagiri Roshi in Minneapolis. He later found his way back to Judaism and became involved in the Reform Judaism movement through the Olin Sang Ruby Union Institute, where he ran the Tiferet Arts program for eight years.

Fethullah Gülen (born 27 April 1941) is a Turkish author, educator, and Muslim scholar. Gülen has been described in the English-language media as "one of the world's most important Muslim figures." He is the founder of the Gülen movement. He currently lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania, USA.

Gülen teaches an Anatolian version of Islam, deriving from Sunni Muslim scholar Bediüzzaman Said Nursi's teachings and modernizing them. Gülen has stated his belief in science, interfaith dialogue among the People of the Book, and multi-party democracy. He has initiated such dialogue with the Vatican and some Jewish organizations.

Gülen is actively involved in the societal debate concerning the future of the Turkish state, and Islam in the modern world. In the Turkish context Gülen appears relatively conservative and religiously observant.

His role in Turkish politics is a controversial one, and in 1999 he was put on trial for attempting to overthrow the government. He has since lived in exile in the United States. He was acquitted of the charges in 2008. He has been seen as supportive of Turkey's current prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, but news emerging in May 2012 emerged of a possible conflict between the two.