In celebration of World Inter Faith Harmony Week, the Muslim Council of Britain’s Inter Faith Relations Committee organised a colloquium on the theme of ‘Building Trust, Peace and Harmony through Inter Faith Relations’ on 6th February 2012. The event was hosted by Lord Sheikh of Cornhill at the House of Lords, with speeches from a wide array of speakers from different faiths and a speech from the Guest of Honour for the evening, Princess Badiya El Hassan of Jordan, who presented a video message from her father, HRH Prince Hassan Bin Talal.
(From Left to Right: Dr Manazir Ahsan, Chair of MCB's Inter Faith Relations Committee, Princess Badiya El Hassan of Jordan, Lord Sheikh of Cornhill, HE Mazen Homoud, Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Abdul Rahman Al-Suhaibani, Counsellor from the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia and Farooq Murad, Secretary General of the MCB)
Welcoming the Guest of Honour, Princess Badiya, the hosts, speakers and guests, Dr Manazir Ahsan, Chair of MCB’s Inter Faith committee said, “this ‘week’ will not only create harmony but also greatly help to bridge the gaps of mistrust and suspicion which unfortunately still exist for one reason or another, between faiths, beliefs, cultures and communities”.
The host Lord Sheikh, highlighted the importance of inter faith relations and gatherings such as these and said “Islam is a part of the Abrahamic faith and Islam regards Christians and Jews as the people of the book. Everyone one of us should be an ambassador in promoting Islam’s message of peace”.
Princess Badiya addressed the audience about her great interest in Inter Faith relations and introduced the pioneering work of her father, HRH Prince Hassan Bin Talal “in promoting inter and intra-faith dialogue” she continued. “Long before the word Interfaith was known and used, my father had the confidence that made him comfortable in engaging and interacting with the ‘other’ and those who seem different. Such confidence stems from a genuine understanding of one’s own religion.”
Guests were then shown a video message from HRH Hassan Bin Talal, in which he commended the excellent work on inter faith and encouraged greater dialogue to “ensure a free flow of information between our communities and work together, beginning with commonality”. Talking about the Arab Spring Prince Hassan said “it is not a spring against anybody but a reform movement based on values and human dignity”. He commented on London preparing for the Olympics and said “Muslims look forward to Muslim athletes alongside our athletes from different parts of the world, believers and non believers to participate in a spirit of sport for peace. The Olympic traditions usually give us an idea of how rich our common humanity is, particularly our youth”.
Dr Harriet Crabtree OBE, Director of the Interfaith Network for the UK commented on World Inter Faith Harmony Week, “It is an important week significantly” and said how “religions can be a great contributor to peace and trust, which was the theme of the event, underpins all inter faith relations”.
Mehri Niknam MBE, CEO of The Joseph Interfaith Foundation, spoke about Muslim-Jewish relations in the Middle East and highlighted the statement: “What happens elsewhere does not or should not affect our interfaith relations here” and said “The issue of gaining trust in the eyes of your dialogue partner is vital in building sound interfaith relations, particularly Muslim-Jewish.
Bharti Taylor, Secretary General of the Hindu Forum of Europe, talked about how all religions are equal and how “pluralism, acknowledgment and equality are all important inter faith areas and the importance of taking back the things we learn from each other to our own communities and sharing it with them”.
The event included a unique artwork presentation by Kristiane Backer, former MTV presenter and Alexander de Cadenet, the artist behind the sculpture. It was based on the common beliefs shared between the two religions. A mini sculpture of a big needle centred in a green field with camels on either side of the needle sculpture provided a visual element of a verse from the Quran and the Bible in which it says: “Indeed, those who deny Our verses and are arrogant toward them - the gates of Heaven will not be opened for them, nor will they enter Paradise until a camel enters into the eye of a needle” (Chapter 7, verse 40, Holy Quran).
Artist Alexander De Cadenet with Sheikh Hojjat Ramzy admiring 'The Eye of the Needle' sculpture.
The evening also consisted of young contributors sharing their perspective on inter faith relations. Dr Bilal Hassam, a member of the MCB’s Inter Faith Relations Committee, mentioned how the Arabic word for ‘youth’ means “spark” to represent the energy of youth but these days, “that energy is wasted”. “As a young person, when you look at the world, what is it that we are inheriting?” he asked. He raised important issues such as poverty and how there is inconsistency in the world we live in. Bilal talked about putting things we believe into practice, “If you think child poverty is cruel, you should check where your clothes are from”. He talked about how everyone should work together with the ‘experience of the old and the zeal of the youth’ and encouraged everyone to be “practical optimists”.
Megh Falter, a digital Marketer, talked about her own conversion to Islam “after 15 years of hardcore atheism”, with her father being Jewish and her mother a Christian. When she first started learning about Islam, it was “in the context of Islamophobia and terrorism” when she was in New York. “I didn’t take that for an answer and went to university and started a few courses on Islam. What I learnt was that Islam is a continuation of what I was brought up with – Judaism and Christianity”. She went on to say how “there are so many universal elements that unite us, we need to step back and analyse on a micro level”. Megh exclaimed how “faith is a gift and is something we should be extremely fortunate to have” and talked about how we need to share our commonalities.
Guest Speaker, HE Mazen Homoud, the Ambassador of The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in London said, “As we celebrate, we need to remember the message of peace”. The other Guest Speaker, Professor Mohamed El-Gomati OBE and President of the Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation showed many practical examples of how everyone is a part of one world and said “everyone and every civilisation have made contributions to this world we live in”. He went on to say, “By recognising and honouring the ‘other’, we are building the truth”.
Farooq Murad, Secretary General of the MCB, said in his concluding remarks, “It is a challenge for people of faith to dispel the common perception that faith and religions are cause for conflicts and bloodshed. The fact is that it is not faith, but its absence, lack of its understanding, ignorance and vested interests which cause problems. The challenge requires faith leaders to come together, build trust and work together on the common values of peace and harmony. MCB is committed to working together with all faith communities and the UN World Interfaith Harmony Week provides a wonderful opportunity for us all to come together."
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