Star Comment: Religions united bringing community cohesion
It is encouraging to see that people from different religious backgrounds are forging positive links in the Black Country.
We are too often presented with the claim that Islam and Christianity are forever in conflict, that the two religions are unable to live side-by-side, and are, to some extent, completely incompatible.
The Bishop of Wolverhampton, Clive Gregory, and Rashid Raja, the Imam at the city’s Central Mosque, have joined forces in a bid to prove that nothing could be further from the truth.
Their scheme, The Bishop and the Imam, sees them visit local schools to teach youngsters about the importance of community cohesion.
They have also worked together to promote a Christian-Muslim partnership initiative, where different faith schools are encouraged to twin with each other in an effort to encourage better understanding between faiths.
We salute their work.
It proves that faiths can co-exist peacefully, and offers an alternative narrative to those who criticise religion.
The vast majority of religions share a lot of positive elements in common.
The key message in Islam, Christianity and Sikhism is one of love and compassion. At their hearts, they all share the same moral and ethical values.
But we know that in every faith there are those who are determined to divide.
Over the past year Islamic terrorists have wreaked havoc on the streets of this country and elsewhere.
They falsely claim to be the true defenders of their faith. Their evil words and actions seek only to cause divisions in our communities.
We must all stand together against intolerance. Thanks to people such as Clive Gregory and Rashid Raja, the true word of religious open-mindedness is being heard here in the Black Country.
The positive messages they preach can only have a good impact on the young people they come into contact with. Their initiative deserves to be shared with a wider audience.
We hope that other faith groups across the country will begin to run similar schemes.
In the UK, the vast majority of people are willing to accept the religious beliefs of others. It has always been that way, and will continue to be so.
We must never give a free reign to those who preach division and hatred in our communities.
