Source: The Huffington Post

Inter Faith Week has been celebrated in the UK since 2009. But this year, the terrorist attacks that gripped Paris last Friday gave the campaign a sense of urgency.

More than 350 interfaith events have taken place in England, Northern Ireland and Wales through Saturday, November 21. The dates were planned far in advance, but the week couldn’t have come at a better time for members of the East London Mosque.

Salman Farsi, a spokesman for the East End mosque, said that for years his house of worship has been a target for far right groups.

“Often global events related to terrorism causes a spike in hate mail and physical attacks on members of our community,” Farsi told The Huffington Post.

The mosque threw open its doors on Wednesday for a full-day Islam Awareness Course that had been in the works for some time. About 16 non-Muslims attended, including government workers, college diversity staff, local social workers and teachers. They were taught about Islam’s intellectual history, the history of Muslims in Britain and the incredible diversity of beliefs and denominations within the religion.

According to course organizer Juber Hussain, many also had questions about Sharia law, and Islam’s stance on divorce, inheritance and polygamy. Hussain said the participants came away from the program with an idea of how complex and varied Islam is throughout the world.

Across Great Britain, these moments of interfaith encounter were mirrored in churches, synagogues, mosques, universities and many other venues. There were interfaith pilgrimages,photography competitions, afternoon teas, panel discussions, and community music and arts festivals.  Primary schools arranged visits to local houses of worship and universities held interfaith community service projects.

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