Each year we take our Year 7s to visit our local mosque to learn about what happens there. They welcome us over two mornings, explain how the building is used by the community, what the key beliefs of Muslims are and how prayer is conducted. This visit provides important support for the RE work students carry out as they learn about Islam.

Occasionally I am asked why a Christian school visits the mosque, the implication of this being that we are somehow undermining our ethos by making the visit. Nothing could be further from the truth.

We live in a world where extremists are making real efforts to divide communities and put fear between religious and cultural groups. Christians are called to love their neighbours, to be peace bringers to their communities. We cannot honestly claim to be fulfilling these commands of Jesus if we ignore those in our community who are different from us as if somehow they don’t exist.

Educationally we are preparing young people to live in a world where they will meet and work with people from all sorts of cultures and creeds. Visiting the mosque teaches respect for difference. If we want to live in a nation where difference is welcome, then we must show that through the education we offer our students.

Meeting those with different views and beliefs from our own is good for us. It means we think about our own values and beliefs. It helps us see what we share and what is different. 

We are grateful to our friends at the mosque for welcoming us.