News and Events

Scriptural Reasoning Development

Since 2006 the Coexist Foundation has been supporting the work of the University of Cambridge's Inter-Faith Programme and St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation and Peace to develop Scriptural Reasoning as a tool for bringing together Jews, Christians and Muslims to read and study each others' scriptures, and in so doing further to illuminate their own. On 26th February the Rev William Taylor launched a new guide to Scriptural Reasoning - "How to pitch a tent" - at St Ethelburga's, which offers an account of Scriptural Reasoning as a civic practice. In April Coexist agreed to support a training programme which will be developed by the Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme with the Grubb Institute, a long-established and acclaimed foundation which works to mobilise faith traditions to help transform communities and society. The first conference in an international series of four under these auspices will take place in Cambridge from 4th-6th June 2008.

Teacher Training courses - "Engaging with Islam Today"

A series of conferences entitled 'Engaging with Islam Today: One Religion, Many Faces' concluded on the 15th January 2008 at Leeds University. More than 250 UK secondary school teachers listened to speakers, including Dr. Ataullah Siddiqui of the Markfield Institute, Tahir Alam of the Muslim Council of Great Britain and Dr. Peter Vardy of the University of London, addressing topics ranging from what schools should be doing to respond to radicalisation, to practical strategies for teaching about Islam through the Arts. The Coexist Foundation supported eudaemonia conferences, which was set up and is run by teachers to provide training in areas usually overlooked by commercial providers, to support these conference, and in particular to open them to trainee teachers - giving them the opportunity to build up subject-knowledge and to acquire good resources to use in their classrooms.

Lecture by Professor Menocal

Moorish Columns in the Mezquita, Cordoba, Spain

On 29th September 2007, at London’s Victoria & Albert Museum the Coexist Foundation sponsored a lecture hosted by Professor David Ford, Director of the University of Cambridge’s Inter-Faith Programme. The lecture was given by Professor Maria Rosa Menocal, Sterling Professor of the Humanities at Yale University, on “The Abrahamic Faiths in Medieval Spain”. Drawing on her best selling book “Ornament of the World”, the lecture addressed the extraordinary cultural vigour of that period in Spain’s history, when Jews, Christians and Muslims lived side by side and were open to learning from one another.

New Coexist Fountain

On 3rd September 2007, the Mayor of St Jean Cap Ferrat in France, M. Rene Vestri, with local community and faith leaders, and the Director of the Coexist Foundation, James Kidner, inaugurated a new drinking fountain in a park overlooking the Mediterranean, “in the name of peaceful coexistence between faiths”. Among those who attended the celebration were Bono, Cherie Blair and Dame Vivien Duffield, along with a host of local schoolchildren and well-wishers.

It is hoped that this fountain, with its simple, timeless message, will be the first of many in parks and public places around the world. Click here for text of speech.

Mr Mayor, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

I cannot tell you what a pleasure it is for me, as Director of the Coexist Foundation, to be here with you and so many of my Trustees today. It is, of course, always a joy to come to this corner of France. Even I, an Englishman, must acknowledge it is one of the most inspiringly beautiful places in Europe – in the world, indeed. It captures your heart, and begs you to return.

But it is a particular privilege to be here today, for the inauguration of this magnificent new fountain. Because, with this fountain, I feel you are sending a message across the world every bit as inspiring and heart-warming as the timeless beauty of this glorious coastline. You are reminding people, of all faiths and of none, that, by respecting each other, learning from each other, and inspiring each other, life can be infinitely fuller and more worthwhile.

The Coexist Foundation was established to promote understanding between faiths – to enable people to appreciate what Jews, Christians and Muslims stand for, and, without ignoring our differences, to celebrate the many things we share. We spring from the same root, and – as our various projects around the world are working to demonstrate – we share so much: things that are important not just for these Abrahamic faiths, but for all faiths, and for all people. In today’s world, where the Media thrives on conflict, difference and bad news, it is easy to forget these things. We see it as our mission to try to promote understanding: part of this is to remind people of what we share, and to celebrate this.

Everyone, throughout history – poets, peasants and princes – has celebrated drinking fountains: not just for the refreshment they give, but the pause they give for reflection, and the reminder that we all share the same needs. Let us hope that this wonderful new fountain at St Jean de Cap Ferrat can, over the years to come, inspire those who visit this magical place, and those who hear about it, to pause for a moment – to celebrate what we share; to celebrate the mutual heritage of these three great faiths; and to reflect on what coexistence, respect and learning from each other can do for us and for our children. For my part, I hope this first fountain, in the name of Coexistence, will be the inspiration for many more, and for generations to come

Lancaster House Conference

Coexist are sponsoring, with the Weidenfeld Institute and the British Government, a University of Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme conference on “Islam and Muslims in the World Today”. Bringing together some 150 academics, journalists, faith leaders and politicians from around the world, this conference will address how better to integrate the values of newer faith communities into societies with long-established cultures and traditions. Can countries with new minorities listen to and learn from their values and traditions, rather than simply expecting newcomers to adapt? How can everyone in society gain from this process?

The Conference will take place at Lancaster House in London on 4th and 5th June. Among those participating will be the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, the Grand Muftis of Egypt and Bosnia, and many senior academics from Britain and around the world.

“Sacred” exhibition at the British Library

Coexist co-sponsored this exhibition with the Saint Catherine Foundation, the Moroccan British Society, and others. Under the joint Patronage of HM The King of Morocco and HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, the Sacred Exhibition opened on April 26th, and will run until September 23rd. A series of events, from lectures and scriptural reasoning to calligraphy classes and sacred dance performances, will run in parallel with the exhibition. Reviews of the Exhibition have been glowing – “magnificent”, “inspiring”, “awesome”, “stupendous”. That of the Chief Rabbi in the Times summed up many – “If you haven’t yet been to Sacred, the British Library’s display of religious manuscripts, go!”

Collaboration with the Gallup Organization

Coexist Foundation have a ten year not-for-profit agreement with the Gallup Organization to help in the dissemination of their World Poll findings on Muslim opinion. As part of this process, Coexist helped sponsor and organize a visit by experts from Gallup’s World Poll team to London from17-19 April. They presented findings from their recent independent and self-funded surveys of London’s Muslims and the wider British public. Their visit was assisted by global tolerance, a values-driven public-relations agency.

The Gallup team presented their findings in a series of briefings to Members of Parliament, Government officials, academics and community- and faith-leaders. They also briefed the press, radio and television.

The poll results presented a different picture from the Media and public stereotype, reinforced by earlier surveys, of a “ghetto” culture where differences in attitudes present a huge challenge to integration. The poll identified strong differences over the face veil and attitudes to social/moral issues such as adultery, homosexuality and sex-before-marriage. But differences between London Muslims and the wider British public over the Iraq war were smaller than had been reported, and on a host of issues – education, jobs, health and welfare – London Muslim opinion was very closely aligned with that of the rest of the UK. Crucially, the poll found no sense of contradiction between London Muslims’ loyalty to Islam and to the UK – indeed their respect for government, democracy, the judiciary and the police was higher than that of the wider British public.

Since the London visit, Gallup analysts have made presentations of World Poll findings to audiences in the United States, Germany and France, and to the World Economic Forum summit on the Middle East at the Dead Sea from 18-20 May.

Abraham House

With the University of Cambridge’s Inter-Faith Programme and others, Coexist have been supporting work by the acclaimed exhibition designers Ralph Appelbaum Associates on a vision for Abraham House, a proposed new centre where the public can learn about the Abrahamic Religious traditions in a unique shared environment. Through distinctive education programmes it will deepen understanding of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and so help to address the misconceptions that today surround this family of faiths.

Ralph Appelbaum Associates is one of the leading international companies specialising in the planning and design of award-winning museum exhibitions, visitor centres and educational environments. Founded in 1978, and currently the largest interpretive museum design firm in the world, RAA is best known for large-scale projects requiring a marriage of complex educational content with physical environments that are at once compelling and smoothly operational. Past projects include the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, and the Museum of World Religions in Taipei, Taiwan.

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