JESUS THE "MIGHTY PROPHET"

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Jesus the "mighty prophet"

A mosque is to stage a play about the lives of Jesus and Mary.

Worshippers from Leicester's Muslim Khoja Shia Ithna Asheri Community are to stage the interfaith production to highlight the similarities between Islam and Christianity.

Jesus is a central figure in the Koran, in which he is known as Isa, and is revered as a major prophet fabled for his miracles, just as he is in the Bible.

The play will be performed at mosque in Duxbury Road, New Humberstone, Leicester.

The religious production is being put on as part of an inter-faith day of fasting during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

People wanting to attend the event from 7pm on Saturday, August 4, can either give up food and water during daylight hours, as most Muslims do, or just give up a treat.

Secretary of the organising group Ali Abbas Panju said: "Along with being the month of prayer, fasting and other benefits, Ramadan is also the month of unity.

"We are requesting that all attendees keep a one-day fast for the purpose of attaining closeness to God.

"The fast may be a fruit fast, a water fast, simply keeping away from something enjoyable for one day, or giving up a bad habit consciously for just one day."

The 40-minute play, called The Fast of Maryam and Isa, will be shown twice and focus on Jesus fasting in the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights.

Suleman Nagdi, of the Federation of Muslim Organisations in Leicestershire, said: "Christianity, Islam and Judaism are all based on the same early texts and the only real difference between Christians and Muslims is that Jesus is not seen as the literal son of God in Islam, but as a mighty prophet who performed miracles.

"There are 24 mentions of Jesus in the Koran and a whole passage about his mother Mary.

"A lot of people are unaware of how important they are.

"The play has been chosen as it highlights these similarities and a devout Christian would be comfortable with the play.

"There are parts of the world where there are difficulties but there are also parts where Muslims and Christians work very closely together.

Christians and Jews are all considered 'people of the book' within Islam, following religions with the same message."

Manjula Sood, chair of the Leicester Council of Faiths, will be attending the event.

She said: "I think it's very helpful to celebrate the commonalities as well as the differences between the faiths.

"Judaism, Christianity and Islam have so many similarities and it's good to get together and remember the goodness of all faiths and the message of peace and harmony they share.

"Our ability to celebrate one another's faiths is a great strength of our city."

To reserve a place at the event, e-mail: secretary.mksi@gmail.com

BOOK REFLECTS DIVERSITY OF NEIGHBOURHOOD

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Book reflects diversity of neighbourhood

A book about one of the city's most diverse neighbourhoods has been launched.

We Are South Highfields includes accounts of nearly 100 people from dozens of different nationalities who have lived in the area.

The book, funded by the Church Urban Fund Near Neighbours project, was launched at St Peter's Community Centre in Highfields, Leicester.

Editor Penny Walker said: "It was a brilliant evening and the community centre was packed out.

"South Highfields has been the place for people to come to first and a lot of Ugandan Asians moved to this area in the 1970s. A lot of the Afro-Caribbeans in Leicester still regard it as a sort of spiritual home.

"I live here and it's a wonderful area. The book gives you the backgrounds of the people and encompasses a wide range of ages and nationalities."

Copies of the book, costing £7.50, are available by calling 0116 319 9487.

CONSIDERING WORSHIP

This article (regarding the conference rounding off the University of Leicester's Mapping Faith and Place project) appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Considering worship

Places of worship will be the subject of a conference next week.St Martin's House, in Peacock Lane, Leicester, will host the event, which runs from 9.30am to 4pm on Thursday.

There will be guest speakers from faith groups, English Heritage, Leicester City Council and the University of Leicester, and a chance to debate the role of faith buildings.

For more details, call Heather Lomas on 0116 270 0386.

THIS WEEK'S VISITORS (1,994)

Regular update on the number of pageviews received from different parts of the world in the week just ending.

1. United Kingdom 724
2. United States 414
3. Russia 356
4. Canada 135
5. France 136
6. India 82
7. Germany 47
8. Poland 35
9. Australia 30
10. China 25

This week's total: 1,994 (last week: 1,816). These are aggregates of figures from the top ten countries only. Blogger's stats software doesn't show me numbers of pageviews below the tenth-ranking country.

The world map at the top of this post is the graphic that I see on the stats page. The darker the green, the more pageviews from that country. I can see different versions of that map for "now" (i.e. in the last two hours), "today", "this week", "this month" and "all time". They're updated each time I look at them.

SO. FAREWELL THEN, CLARE CARR

At Southfields Library (AKA "Pork Pie Library") this afternoon for one of Global Education Leicester-Shire's celebrated Strawberry Teas. These are known far and wide as jolly liitle affairs, but there's mixed feelings at this one. It's a farewell do for Clare Carr, Schools Worker at GELS and one of its two part-time employees (on the left in the photo above, with Claire Plumb, Development Worker at GELS).

For the past eight years Clare has been a mainstay of Global Education Leicester-Shire and its predecessor, East Midlands Network for Global Perspectives in Schools (EMNGPS) Leicester and Leicestershire Locality Group. She's also been a leading proponent of Philosophy for Children (P4C) and Fairtrade initiatives throughout the city and county and is currently one of two joint co-ordinators for Philosophy in Pubs in Leicester.

Many of the people here today have given their support to GELS, EMNGPS (and directly or indirectly, Leicester Council of Faiths) in helping broaden the horizons of children, teachers, families and communities. We've done a lot of good work together over the years and it saddens me to think that this may be the last time many of us will be in the same room together. Still, there's little time for that, as we join in the party fun, including pass the parcel (photo below). And of course, the food is delightful, featuring virtually every edible use of strawberries than you could imagine!

Clare is moving on to a job based in one of the city's schools, starting at the end of August. Those who recognise and appreciate the contribution she's made to the current good name of Leicester Council of Faiths - either by her own direct efforts or by supporting mine - will wish her well in her new post.

MAKING A CASE BY SIMPLE DENIAL

This letter appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Making a case by simple denial

When I read the recent letters from Messrs Pendragon and Hipwell, querying the very existence of Jesus Christ, two reactions came immediately to my mind. The first was how lucky we all are to have sufficient freedom in this country, to be able to express an opinion openly, however, outlandish it may be.

The second was to draw a comparison with so-called Holocaust deniers: these people claim that the Holocaust of the gas-chambers of the Second World War and associated atrocities never happened – even though it is perfectly clear they did. This is one way of making your case: pretending that the subject in question never existed!

Mark W Jacques OP, Quorn

PROMISE OVER FAITH SYMBOLS

This letter appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Promise over faith symbols

I am pleased that the Prime Minister said that the Government will back the right to display a symbol of faith in the workplace.

He also said that the Government will change the law if that is necessary so that employees can wear religious symbols at work.

The way Ms Nadia Eweida was treated by British Airways because she refused to hide or remove a necklace that had a cross on it was a disgrace.

Also, the story of Shirley Chaplin, a nurse, who was banned by the Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Trust from working on the wards because she refused to hide a necklace with a cross on it, was a disgrace.

They have taken their cases to the European Court of Human Rights and the cases will be heard at Strasbourg in September.

However, the Government's lawyers are resisting the appeal.It should be acceptable that people of all faiths should be allowed to wear symbols of faith in the workplace.

So I am hoping that the Prime Minister will stick to his promise.

Kevin Fletcher

ACCLAIMED EXHIBITION COMES TO CITY

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Acclaimed exhibition comes to city

An exhibition about religious tolerance which is touring European cities has come to Leicester.

The St Philip's Centre, in Evington, is hosting the "Religious Tolerance – Islam" in the Sultanate of Oman exhibition.

Leicester is the next stop on the tour after the exhibition visited Madrid.

Riaz Ravat, deputy director at the centre, said: "It is a great coup for us to be selected to host this exhibition."

The exhibition details how in Oman, which is a predominately Muslim country, the rights of minorities such as Buddhists, Christians, Hindus and Jews are guaranteed by the state.

The Rev Canon Dr John Hall, director of St Philip's Centre, said: "We are proud and honoured to be hosting this exhibition."

The exhibition, which is free, is being staged in St Philip's Church at the centre in Evington Road, Evington, from 10am until 4pm up to and including this Friday.

CONSIDER TOLSTOY FOR ILLUMINATION

This letter appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Consider Tolstoy for illumination

With reference to F O Hipwell's letter (Mailbox, July 3), I recommend that he reads part two of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace, in which he debates the nature of power and whether there is a deity.

He states that if the will of every man were free, all history would be a series of disconnected accidents.

People with expanded awareness, such as writers, have given their interpretations of the mysteries of life, but all experiences are those of one individual – i.e. "two men looked through prison bars, one saw mud and one saw stars".

Shakespeare covers life in all its facets in his plays and sonnets. "There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." (Hamlet)

Wordsworth comes to the conclusion "And I have felt a presence that disturbs me with the joy of elevated thoughts, a sense of sublime, of something for more deeply interfused." (Above Tintern Abbey)

In searching for the God particle, may research bring answers.

Maureen Harrison, Broughton Astle

GOD'S EXISTENCE NOT DISPROVED

This letter appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

God's existence not disproved

The letter from FO Hipwell ('Offensive, but I'd go further', Mailbox, July 3) makes the sweeping statement that science has disproved both the Bible and Christianity.

But my question to him would be: "How does science do this?"

I have just been reading a book by Dr Steve Taylor, a senior researcher and lecturer at Liverpool University, in which he says: "Science is limited in scope and usually asks the questions 'what? and how? But, not usually, 'why?'"

Science is also empirical – it is based upon observation and experiment and so does not usually consider things that are not open to testing.

Therefore, science does not disprove, indeed cannot disprove the existence of God, nor the events recorded in the Bible.

To establish the truth of those things, we must turn to other methods for proof, such as the witness of eyewitnesses and personal experience.

In the Bible, the four Gospels provide eyewitness accounts of the life, teachings, miracles, death and resurrection of the central figure of human history, Jesus Christ.

It is He who divides time into two (AD and BC) and it is He from whom today's date is taken.

There are more books about Him, more songs to Him, and more people who claim to follow Him today than any other person in history.

The Bible is now in 3,000 languages and it still the world's best-selling book.

All over the world, there are thousands of people, young and old and from very different cultures, who have discovered that being a Christian and believing the Bible is not being "gullible".

I became a Christian when I was 19 and doing my National Army service in Singapore. It was in a Chinese church one Easter Monday and a big part in how this happened was by reading the New Testament for myself.

Over many years, I have travelled to many parts of the world and produced 18 missionary documentary films on the impact of the Christian gospel from the Amazon Basin, Africa and even Papua New Guinea.

The Bible and Christianity are very much alive with the largest growth in mainland China, estimated to be in the region of 70 to 90 million, more than the total population of Great Britain!

No, I don't think that God believes in atheists, but He does love them.

Peter Anderson, Leicester