Quote: "By dialogue we let God be present in our midst, for as we open ourselves to one another, we open ourselves to God." (Pope John Paul II)

Roots

    It all started last February with a "snow day." I had been invited to speak on Islam to a World Religions class at St. Peters High School in Peterborough, but there had been a heavy snowfall during the night before the day in question and the school buses were not running. I was unaware of this and managed to get to the school; imagine my disappointment to find there were no students. Their teacher, Helen McCarthy, was most apologetic as a student was supposed to have phoned to tell me not to come. Helen and I began to talk.

    We talked a little of our faiths and of our shared conviction that interacting with people of other faiths is vital. Helen told me she had a dream of an "Abraham Festival" whereby Christians, Muslims, and Jews would come together to celebrate our common heritage. Since I have been involved in multifaith activities for many years I was very excited by her vision. We agreed to pursue the idea, although we had no idea how it would unfold. There was undoubtedly divine intervention at work that day with the snow day and no phone call to stop my coming!

    When Helen and I talked that first day, we could not have imagined how the plans would evolve and almost take on a life of their own! Fr. Paul Massel, pastor of St. Alphonsus Parish was immediately receptive to Helen's vision. But I felt I would have a more difficult time convincing the Muslim community to participate. Following 9/11 we had invited the community to open houses at the mosque, but getting some of the more traditional Muslims to visit a church and a synagogue, and convincing them to allow Christians to participate in our prayers could. I felt, be an arduous task. I approached our Imam, Hamed Mohammad, and by the grace of God he agreed to come to a planning meeting, although I knew he had some reservations about the whole project. However, once we all got together and talked in a spirit of friendship and cooperation, he was wholeheartedly behind the venture.

Hosting

    We decided to hold two events at each place of worship; the first would be an information evening and the second a prayer or worship service. The first two evenings were held at the Masjid Al-Salaam (Peace Mosque) in Peterborough. Our community has about 60 families, so we were somewhat apprehensive about hosting a large community like St. Alphonsus Parish and we were not really sure of the motives of our potential visitors. Were they coming out of a sincere desire to meet Muslims? Did they really want to learn about our faith? Were they driven by curiosity? Were they coming to find some proof that Muslims preach violence and terrorism? Many in our community were wary, as some Muslims in Peterborough had endured racist remarks following 9/11: one Muslim student was attacked at night and the window of our mosque had been shattered by a brick. So it was with a certain amount of trepidation that we greeted our visitors on that first evening.

    However, all apprehension disappeared when we saw our tiny mosque bursting at the seams with so many enthusiastic people! What a joy it was to host such a gathering. Everyone came with an open heart and a willingness to learn about our beliefs and practices. They observed our dress code of modesty and women covered their heads in respect.

    Imam Hamed gave a talk on Abraham from the Muslim point of view and he talked of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael at God's command (differing from the Christian and Jewish traditions which identify Isaac as the son to be sacrificed). Abraham is known in the Muslim tradition as "the friend of God," and many of our practices have been handed down from Abraham. The most important of these is the pilgrimage to Mecca and the circumambulation of the Ka'aba, the structure established by Adam and restored by Abraham and Ishmael to honour God.

    Following the talk our guests had many questions on a whole range of topics, and they were surprised to learn that we honour and respect all the prophets of the old and new testaments, including Jesus (peace be upon him), and Mohammed (p.b.u.h.), the last prophet sent by God. Our guests (no doubt heavily influenced by CNN!) were also surprised to learn that Muslim women have had rights such as those of inheritance, initiating divorce, and voting long before western women secured those same rights.

    The second evening at the mosque was a prayer service. Our guests watched as we performed our evening prayers and I was honoured when Helen, the mastermind behind the festival, stood alongside us and went through the motions of the prayers. Following the prayers we entertained our guests with traditional Middle Eastern goodies; there is something very spiritual and unifying about breaking bread together. As we talked about our hopes, our fears, and our families, each of us realized our concerns are not held only by members of our own faith community, but are shared by all of us. Our community was ecstatic about the openness with which people came to learn about our faith and our practices. Because of the goodwill shown by visitors to the mosque many Muslims then attended the events at the other venues.

Visiting

    The next two evenings were held at the Beth Israel Synagogue. We were told beforehand that men had to wear a traditional cap or yarmulke but that the synagogue had very few of them, so our Imam offered to bring caps from the mosque—a true example of interfaith cooperation. We all felt very welcome at the synagogue. It was moving to see Jewish men in their yarmulkes, Muslim men in their traditional caps, Muslim women in their hijab and dress of different cultures, and Christian men and women all sitting together in a spirit of friendship and worship. Following the presentation it was time for maghrib (evening) prayers for the Muslims. Imagine a group of Muslims praying in the synagogue! This was a first for both communities.

    Throughout all these sessions we gradually got to know one another so that by the time we visited St. Alphonsus Church it was as though we were visiting family.

    The enthusiasm with which we were welcomed warmed our hearts and made us feel right at home. So many people greeted me with the traditional Muslim salutation "Asalaamu aluikum" (which they had learned at the mosque) and called me by name. I felt accepted for who I was, as a cousin in faith, not as a potential convert. Imagine my surprise when we were asked during mass to greet those around us and everyone said "Peace" or "Peace be with you"—the exact meaning of our Muslim greeting "Asalaamu alaikum"! If we greet one another in peace, any potential hostility immediately evaporates.

    By the end of the sessions at St. Alphonsus I felt I was an "honorary Catholic" and that I was accepted as a Muslim cousin who celebrates our common history, yet also rejoices in our diversity. How boring the world would be if we were all the same! God in His wisdom has made us like flowers in a garden: each one of us is an individual, different and beautiful in our own right, with our own talents. Put us all together and we form the most amazing garden of colours and scents. Little wonder that we decided to plant three different bushes each with their own colour and characteristics in a public park to commemorate our Abraham festival.

    I got to talk personally with many of those who attended, and a common theme in our discussion was the fact that we are all on this same journey of life towards a common destination, albeit by different paths. We agreed that it is our duty as human beings to reach out if one of our fellow travelers stumbles, whether he or she is on the same path or a different one, and to help them regain their balance.

Celebrating

    Our Abraham Days culminated in a gathering at a local park where three young persons—one from each of our communities—together unveiled a plaque commemorating Abraham's journey through our three faiths. The leader of each community planted a bush, one to flower in the spring, one in the summer, and one in the fall. It was only much later that our Jewish friend Heather Pollock was jogging in the area when she realized that the plaque and hushes were situated at the convergence of three paths in the park. We all felt chills up and down our spines as she related her discovery and we again expressed our feeling that there was some divine guidance right from the beginning of our planning.

The Future

    So where do we go from here? This is just the beginning. Our plan is to hold the Abraham Festival each year with a different theme that is common to our three faiths. The Muslim community is excited about the prospect of developing the festival. We pray that this is the beginning of a new era of understanding among "the people of the Book" in Peterborough. God tells us in the Holy Qur'an, "O mankind! We created you from a single pair of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other, not that ye may despise each other." Our challenge now is to build on the foundations we have laid, and the wonderful interfaith friendships we have made.

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Elizabeth F. Rahman is a member of the Kawartha Muslim Association, co-chair of the Kawartha/Lakeshore Regional Multifaith Committee, a member of the Spiritual & ReIigious Care Advisory Committee of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre, and a founding member of the Multifaith Network (Peterborough region).