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ISLAM is the third-largest and fastest growing religion in the United States, scholar Michael Wolfe says in 'Beliefnet'.

This is not just because of immigration - More than 50% of America's six million Muslims were born here, he said, reports special correspondent of Pakistan's state-owned news agency, Khalilur Rehman Bughio.

Statistics like these imply some basic agreement between core American values and the beliefs that Muslims hold, he added.

"Americans who make the effort to look beyond popular stereotypes to learn the truth of Islam are surprised to find themselves on familiar ground," he points out in the article.

From a Western Minaret

Writing under 'From a Western Minaret,' Michael Wolfe asks 'Is America a Muslim nation?.'- and responding in the affirmative, spells out seven reasons in this regard.

He said these are: Islam is monolithic, Islam is democratic in spirit, Islam contains an attractive mystical tradition, Islam is egalitarian, Islam shares America's new interest in food purity and diet, Islam is tolerant of other faiths, and Islam encourages the pursuit of religious freedom.

Islam is monolithic. He said, Muslims worship the same God as Jews and Christians. They also revere the same prophets as Judaism and Christianity.

Democratic in Spirit

Islam is democratic in spirit. Islam advocates the right to vote and educate yourself and pursue a profession. Islam contains an attractive mystical tradition. Mysticism is grounded in the individual search for God.

Islam is egalitarian. From New York to California, the only houses of worship that are routinely integrated today are the approximately 4,000 Muslim Mosques.

Islam shares America's new interest in food purity and diet. Muslims conduct a monthlong fast during the holy month of Ramadan, a practice that many Americans admire and even seek to emulate.

Dietary Laws

Muslims also observe dietary laws that restrict the kind of meat they can eat. These laws require that the permitted, or halal, meat is prepared in a manner that emphasizes cleanliness and a humane treatment of animals. These laws ride on the same trends that have made organic foods so popular.

All in all, the writer adds, there seems to be a deep resonance between Islam and the United States. Although one is a world religion and the other is a sovereign nation, both are traditionally very strong on individual responsibility.