Interfaith Week takes place each year at the end of November, beginning on Remembrance Sunday and ending on Mitzvah Day, UK’s largest faith-led day of social action.  Interfaith Week aims to ‘build good relationships and working partnerships between people of different faiths and beliefs’ and ‘increase understanding between people of religious and non-religious beliefs’. 

At College, we marked Interfaith Week by providing opportunities for people of different faiths to have conversations about their beliefs and traditions. Prati Gurung, one of the Student Association Equality and Diversity representatives, reflects on her conversation with Nat Chaffe, the president of the Christian Union:

‘Coming from a family with a mixture of beliefs, I have had the opportunity to learn a lot about different religious practices and how they are carried out within Nepalese culture. Speaking to Nat was great in being able to truly immerse myself into my family’s beliefs and I was given an opportunity to join discourse on various topics. 

We spoke of gender inequality in religion, and had an enjoyable conversation on tolerance, where he spoke of a mesmerising quote “Love the sinner, hate the sin.” He spoke of how he strictly follows the bible’s teachings but also understands my views on tolerance and forgiveness, and we were able to mention how our practices impact our lives, via culture and tradition. Speaking to one another over the half an hour, I learnt that although we shared few beliefs, we were able to bond on our passion for our religion, and how it influences our day to day lives. 

I admire Nat’s devotion to his religious practices and beliefs. He spoke of his work running the Christian Society and his dedication to reading the bible regularly. Being able to gain an insight into his beliefs and how they influence him was truly inspiring, and I hope to be able to speak to him again in future. ‘