People from across Dudley Borough gathered together on Sunday for a special celebration to mark Interfaith Week. Dudley Together celebrated diversity with art, dancing, inspirational speakers and food!
Claire Cox, curate at St Mary’s Church in Oldswinford helped to pull the event together. She said: “It was a really joyous occasion, with people showing their different gifts and talents. It was a time for people of all faiths and none to come together and it has been really special!”
The evening included a demonstration of marble art, some bhangra drumming and a display of artwork by students from Dudley College highlighting the diversity of the Borough. Amelia Cox read words of inspiration from Mother Theresa while Claire Cox read a reflection entitled ‘What If?’
Mark Wilson, Community Safety Officer at Dudley Borough Council (and Council lead on hate cohesion and extremism) was the host for the evening. He said: “It is really important that we all work to stitch our community together, to celebrate difference and diversity, to break down stereotypes and misconceptions and learn from each other.”
Dudley MP, Sonia Kumar spoke and said: “It is great to see a celebration of different cultures and religions and how we can work together as one. To continue the art theme for this evening, if we all decided to put our brushes together in a big art project, we would create something spectacular. Each individual would put their own stroke on the paper and it would be beautiful. Thank you to those who put today’s event together.”
Daniele Brennan, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager at Dudley Borough Council said: “The aims of Interfaith Week are to strengthen links, increase awareness and celebrate the contribution that different groups bring to their communities. It is a chance for people from all backgrounds to mix and learn from each other, ask questions about our different faiths and get past misunderstandings.”
Representatives from different faiths and others from the community lit candles during the event to represent their desire to work together for peace and cohesion. To mark the end of the evening, everyone came together in a semi-circle and the Bishop of Dudley, Martin Gorick said:
“It is wonderful to have such a range of different faiths here. We are often very aware of our differences, but we need to remember all that we have in common. Together we need to care for our world and care for one another. We stand together as one in the face of all that seeks to break us apart and we commit to stand together as people of Dudley and as people of peace.”
