Muslims and Jews Hold Exchange Event at London Mosque

London: A mosque in Romford Road, Forest Gate, England hosted a Jewish student exchange in an attempt to establish an interfaith dialogue. Minhaj-ul-Qur’an Mosque welcomed Jews from Wimbledon and District Synagogue in what Muslims hailed as a “historic interaction” for worshippers.
The mosque’s community liaison officer, Asif Shakoor, said the exploration of similarities in the traditions made for a fantastic step towards community cohesion. “The visit was fantastic and potentially interesting for members of the mosque and the synagogue to come together in unity and peace,” he said. “It is unprecedented in the mosque’s interfaith work and history for members of our Jewish community to visit the mosque in such a vast number, Newham Recorder News reported.
It is the first time the mosque has hosted students of a synagogue for a visit. Visitors from the synagogue in west London compared the writings of the Jewish Talmud and Muslim Qur’an. Young worshippers from the mosque welcomed Jewish students to join them in a “meal for peace.” The mosque’s interfaith and communities’ secretary Rafiq Patel was keen to stress that the visit should serve as an example that the mosque was open to all faiths and communities. “We hope to build on this and take similar steps to exchange thoughts and ideas when students from the mosque will visit the Wimbledon and District Synagogue,” he added.