On 17th November I went on the Interfaith walk of friendship here in Sunderland. We met at Sunderland Minster and we walked into a joyous service with singing and dancing. Over a hundred people joined in the walk to places of worship around Sunderland. We set off first to the Gurdwara in Ashbrooke.

Our hosts had put on an incredibly tasty two course meal which we thoroughly enjoyed. There were lots of colourful decorations on the ceiling and fairy lights around the walls. Drumming and singing welcomed us as we arrived. It was a complete sensory experience.

We walked through the streets to the
convent and were welcomed by the nuns.
We sang “He’s got the whole world in his hands” and had a look around the beautiful building and artworks. The nuns gave us sweets and chocolates as we left.

Our final stop was at the Madrasah in Burn Park. We were given a PowerPoint presentation about the history of the Madrasah and a talk by the Imam. The afternoon rounded off with another spread of food with bhajis, a delicious Turkish pudding called Noah’s pudding and Indian tea.

We all had a wonderful time but underlying the social aspect was the knowledge that these kinds of events are so important at this time, after the terrible violence and civil unrest in the summer targeting minority groups and immigrants. By experiencing our differences, we can also recognise how similar we are and how we are all striving for peace. Let us pray that we can all live in peace together and treat each other with love and respect. 

By Elaine Shanks