Interfaith by Kristan Mouat

Dunedin Interfaith Group Visit

In August, I (Darcy) invited the Dunedin Abrahamic Interfaith Group to come and talk to our senior students about their experiences and involvement in their personal faiths.

After the attack on a Muslim student, Huda Al-Jamaa at a Dunedin High School, I think a lot of us began to realise the severity of the racism and discrimination still heavily present in society, allowing us room to speak up and support those of a different race or faith. However, it also made room for individuals of privilege, myself included, to realise that there is a lot more we can do to educate ourselves, and to learn from others who have had to deal with racism and discrimination in their lives.

The Dunedin Abrahamic Interfaith Group brought along representatives from Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and each were given the opportuinty to educate us about their particular faith. They discussed how being a person of faith affects them on both a personal and societal level, sharing their own stories they’ve experienced.

It was insightful to see how proud and protective they were of their faiths, and the amount of respect they had for each other was something we should all aspire to hold.

It was such a pleasure to have these people come and educate us on their experiences and practices in a warm and welcoming environment, we all took something away from it.