Category: Interfaith

A Reflection on ‘Healing the Earth, Healing Ourselves’ – Faith for the Climate Eco-Summit

MTO Zendeh Delan ensemble. Photo by Jon Chew

Source: Faith for the Climate

Interim communications officer, Jon Chew, reflects on the recent multi-faith eco-summit on 23 February, 2025.

Colette Joyce (Westminster Justice and Peace Co-ordinator and Trustee of Faith for the Climate) and Fr Dominic Robinson SJ (Justice and Peace Chair) were in attendance on behalf of the Diocese.

“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I’ll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass, the world is too full to talk about.” – Jalaluddin Rumi

Rabbi Debbie Young-Somers, trustee of Faith for the Climate. Photo by Jon Chew

As Rabbi Debbie Young-Somers, a trustee of Faith for the Climate, led us in ‘Hinei Ma Tov’ – a Jewish hymn sung at Shabbat feasts – I was reminded of the field the Sufi poet Rumi speaks of. While evocative, this translation by Coleman Barks has been accused of de-Islamifying Rumi a bit too much. 

There is another translation by the British scholar A.J. Arberry that is closer to the original meaning of the Persian: 

“Beyond Islam and unbelief there is a ‘desert plain.’ For us, there is a ‘passion’ in the midst of that expanse. The knower [of God] who reaches there will prostrate [in prayer], (for) there is neither Islam nor unbelief, nor any ‘where’ (in) that place.”

In this rendering, the middle ground between belief and unbelief feels like a blank canvas, a place that may be too scary for some to enter. But here, a worshipper of God finds a unique passion, where your heart and devotion to truth and healing fills the expanse. A passion that is no less devoted, that causes us to prostrate in prayer, but maybe, a place where fellow pilgrims are feasting with each other. A place where we are bound not by the ferocity of our arguments, but by our need to find kinship.

Hinei mah tov umah na’im / Shevet achim gam yachad. Behold how good and pleasing it is, for people to sit together in unity.

An act of gathering can be a provocation for our times, because these are the times we live in. On February 23, around 150 of us spent an afternoon at Friends House in London for our ‘Healing the Earth, Healing Ourselves’ summit. Co-organised with Christian Climate Action and Quakers in Britain, we came together in The Light Auditorium, where a vaulted roof stretched with holy hands to the skylight above, almost in recognition that the sacred provides safety for the extra-ordinary. 

Event attendees gathering inside The Light Auditorium. Photo by Jon Chew

The word “inter” kept springing to mind, the original word in Latin meaning “in between”… continue reading on Faith for the Climate website

Bishop John Sherrington Attends Commemoration for Holocaust Memorial Day

Holocaust Memorial Day 2025 group photo

Monday 27th January 2025 marked 80 years since the liberation of Nazi concentration and death camp, Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Bishop John Sherrington, Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster, and James Holland, Coordinator of Westminster Interfaith, were among the guests invited to a Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration in Lambeth Palace, organised by the Council of Christians and Jews. 

After an introduction from the Lord Archbishop of York, those gathered listened to the survivor testimony of Martin Stern MBE, who was just two years old when the Nazis invaded the Netherlands. Having been successfully hidden for a few years, by a Christian family, Martin eventually found himself in Theresienstadt, a concentration camp north of Prague. 

Here, he and his sister, aged just one-year-old, was cared for by a Catholic prisoner, who was transported to the camp for being married to a Jewish man. In 1945, the camp was liberated by the Soviet army and Martin is counted among a small group of people who survived the Holocaust. He has dedicated his life to sharing his story and, for all those gathered, it was an honour to listen to his testimony. 

There was also the testimony of a second-generation Roma survivor, whose story was a reminder that the Nazis sought to exterminate not just Jewish people, but Sinti and Roma people too, amongst many others. Daniela Abraham, founder of the Sinti Roma Holocaust Memorial Trust, spoke about the trauma her family members endured during Nazi occupation. 

Throughout the commemoration, scripture was shared in both Hebrew and English, recognising the role sacred scripture played, and continues to play, in the lives of Christians and Jews. Alongside Rabbi Josh Levy, Co-Lead of Progressive Judaism, Bishop John Sherrington read Psalm 23, The Lord is My Shepherd.

James Holland, Coordinator of Westminster Interfaith, said:

‘It was a great honour to be present at this commemoration, and yet, listening to the stories of survivors is harrowing. It is a hideous reminder of the evil humankind is capable of. For all participating in Holocaust Memorial Day, it reinforces what we all know – that the future is far from certain. Each of us must recommit ourselves to building a better future together and working for a peaceful world for all.’

Photos: Council of Christians and Jews

Links

Westminster Interfaith

Council of Christians and Jews

Holocaust Memorial Day

23 February 2025, Healing the Earth, Healing Ourselves. Multi-Faith Summit at Friends House

Join us for an afternoon of panel discussions and workshops, spiritual connection, music, dance and poetry, creative work, and stalls showcasing the work that faiths are doing for the planet. Hosted by Faith for the Climate, Christian Climate Action and Quakers in Britain.

The event is free, and the venue is accessible for wheelchair users and people with other mobility issues. If there will be other barriers to you joining us (e.g. travel costs or travel schedules for your journey or being responsible for children), please email mobilise@faithfortheclimate.org.uk.

We want to learn so that we can improve the events that we organise. If you could please answer the monitoring questions when you sign-up that would be really appreciated!

Breakouts

There will be an opportunity to choose from 4 breakout sessions to take part in:

1) Healing Ourselves During Challenging Times (a series of activities you can do at your own pace) – nurturing your existing spiritual resources and learning from other traditions.

2) Bridging the Divide: How Faiths Can Come Together (panel and discussion) – building new, and refreshing existing, faith connections.

3) Starting With Our Local Environment (panel and discussion) – hear from groups already taking local action about their projects and how faith values connect with this.

4) National and International campaigns (panel and discussion) – learning about campaigns that are focused on justice-based action on climate.

You will be able to indicate which stream you would like to take part in when you register.

Agenda

12:30 – 13:30 Registration and stalls

13:30 – 14:00 Welcome, housekeeping and opening

14:00 – 14:45 Plenary

14:45 – 15:05 Break

15:05 – 16:35 Breakout streams

16:35 – 16:55 Break

16:55 – 17:15 Regrouping

17:15 – 18:00 Performance and closing

Link

Faith for the Climate

Cardinal Vincent Nichols joins faith leaders in condemning violence

Source: CBCEW

Cardinal Vincent has joined faith leaders including the Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, and Sayed Razawi, Chief Imam in condemning the recent ‘hatred, violence and vandalism to towns and cities across the country.’

Read the full text of their letter below:

Sir,

Over the last few days we have watched in horror as a small minority has brought hatred, violence and vandalism to towns and cities across the country. We have seen anti-Muslim hatred and the targeting of mosques; asylum seekers and refugees attacked; violence directed towards the police and private property, all of which are a stain on our national moral conscience.

Every British citizen has a right to be respected and a responsibility to respect others, so that together we can build a cohesive and harmonious society for all.

As faith leaders, we salute the many people who have stepped forward to repair damage and restore their neighbourhoods. We pledge to work with government and all sections of society towards a constructive and compassionate dialogue on immigration and social cohesion.

The Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis
The Most Rev Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury
Imam Dr Sayed Razawi, Chief Imam and director general of Scottish Ahlul Bayt Society
Imam Qari Asim, chairman of Mosques and Imams National Advisory Board
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster

Report from Second Interfaith Walk for Peace 23 June 2024

Silent Peace Walk down Whitehall, 23 June 2024

Source: Quakers/ ICN

Fr Dominic Robinson SJ (Chair), Colette Joyce (Co-ordinator) and Ann Milner (Hitchin) from the Justice and Peace Commission represented the Diocese of Westminster at an Interfaith Peace Walk in Central London on Sunday 23rd June 2024. We joined Christians from several denominations and members of other faith communities to walk in solidarity in a silent, yet powerful, call for peace. In the face of escalating violence and loss of life in over 100 wars and armed conflicts worldwide, including in Palestine and Israel, Sudan, Ukraine, and Myanmar, around 500 people of all faiths joined the vigil.

Facilitated by Plum Village UK and Quakers in Britain, this second peace walk, held by popular request, reflected a groundswell of calls for peace in London and inspired events in Washington, Los Angeles and France on the same day.

The walk commemorated people killed in war, alongside a call for the cessation of killing and reflected a shared commitment to nonviolence, reconciliation and a just peace.

Muslims, Jews, Christians, Buddhists and many more faiths joined the walk from Parliament Square to Trafalgar Square and back, weaving a narrative of peace between the city’s key political landmarks.

Without flags, placards, slogans or chants, participants dressed in mourning to remember the loss of life through war.

They carried hand-made white flowers as a reminder that everyone has a role to play in cultivating a more peaceful world.

Prayers were offered by a diverse group of grassroots faith representatives: Lakshmi Vyas (Hindu), Shahin Bekhradni (Zoroastrianism), Maureen Goodman (Brahma Kumaris), Islam, Rabbi Rebecca Birk (Judaism), Rev Sarah Farrow (Christian), Jinali Meisheri (Jain), Sr Dao Nghiem (Buddhist), Cristina De Rossi (Pagan, Wiccan, Druidry), and Koje Freemantle (Baha’i).

Plum Village Buddhist monastics from France attended the walk, which was supported by key aid organisations Christian Aid and the Salvation Army.

Rehena Harilall, co-organiser from Plum Village UK, said: “There are simply no more words left to convey our anger and grief.”

Judith Baker, co-organiser from Quakers in Britain, said: “We walk together because we share a deep love for creation and a common universal language of peace. We share horror at the desecration of creation that war brings. War is failure to love our neighbours as ourselves; failure to seek peace and pursue it; failure of dialogue and diplomacy; failure to uphold the basic principles of international law and ethical norms. But the possibility of peace is always with us.”

Link

Plum Village UK – Buddhist Tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh

Quakers UK

9th June 2024 Interfaith Picnic for Great Big Green Week

Westminster Justice and Peace are part of the Faith for the Climate network which brings together people of different faiths working on climate issues across the UK.

Faith for the Climate are hosting an interfaith event for Great Big Green Week at St John’s Church, Waterloo , 73 Waterloo Road, London, SE1 8TY, on Sunday 9th June 2024, 1.00pm – 4.00pm.

Everyone is welcome. Do come along and join us!

1.00pm – Interfaith Picnic
Communal picnic in the garden of St John’s Church – including children’s activities and faith-based stalls focused on the Great Big Green Week’s theme of ‘swaps’. Please bring your own picnics. The Justice and Peace Co-ordinator for Westminster, Colette Joyce, is planning a treasure hunt!

2.30 pm: Creative Responses to the Climate Crisis
Entertainment including poetry and performances.

3.15 pm: Interfaith Responses & Commitment

3.30 pm: Tea

Faith for the Climate exists to encourage, inspire and equip faith communities in their work on the climate crisis. People of faith see our planet as a gift, and believe we have a sacred responsibility to show solidarity and support for those who have done the least to cause climate change but are suffering its worst impacts.

Many of our faiths and belief systems also share a “Golden Rule”: treat others as you wish to be treated. Faith communities have a unique and precious role to play – in our thought, speech, worship and action, alongside and in partnership with secular environmental organisations – enabling people of faith to live out their calling by acting to protect the climate.

Faith for the Climate

‘Transcendence’ – Book Launch from Westminster Interfaith, 5th September, 10.30am, at Farm Street

Source: Independent Catholic News

This inspiring volume from Westminster Interfaith brings together Sacred Scripture, writings and poems from a range of religious, cultural and spiritual traditions to create a wonderful resource exploring twelve themes from an interfaith perspective. As the subtitle indicates, it is the Prayer of People of Faith.

Originally published in 2016 honour of Brother Daniel Faivre SG, who founded Westminster Interfaith in 1981, this fourth edition includes further texts and an additional chapter. The book starts with a prayer from Brother Daniel, before introducing him to us as a humble but trailblazing lifelong advocate for interfaith relations between people. It then offers a brief extract from Michael Barnes SJ on ‘Listening to the Sacred’ to unpack and explore a little about the interfaith context and other faith traditions, particularly from the perspective of Christianity.

The main body of the book contains writings, from different faith traditions, that enable us to go deeper into exploring aspects of God, the Divine, spirituality and our relationship with them, drawing on a wide range of carefully selected texts. The chapters cover a range of thought-provoking themes on Transcendence, Presence, Light, Creation, Providence, Praise, Union, Compassion, Love and Devotion, Peace, Life Eternal and, in a timely final chapter at this time of ecological crisis, One Earth.

This expanded edition will hopefully introduce those who are new to this book to the inspiring and important work of Brother Daniel and Westminster Interfaith, whilst at the same time offering those familiar with this work an opportunity to be re-inspired and re-invigorated. It can offer support and encouragement to those working in an interfaith context, or for those just exploring what the wisdom contained within these writings could be saying to them and to all of us.

To order a copy of this book, go to New City website: www.newcity.co.uk/books/transcendence, or attend the Book Launch at the London Jesuit Centre on Tuesday, 5th September 10.30-2.30 by contacting Jon Dal Din (jondaldin@email.com) 07527 758 729 or Sister Elizabeth (elizabethodonohoe@gmail.com) 07946 591 564.