The Muslim Jewish Forum of Greater Manchester
Established to develop the cultural and social ties between the Muslim and Jewish communities of Greater Manchester
14 September 2024
On 14 September Dr Salman Shahid, Associate Medical Director Manchester Integrated Care Board organised an interfaith event in Manchester: “The Relevance of Faith in an Increasingly Secular Society.” It was held at the Vermilion Restaurant, Lord North Street, Hulme Hall Lane, Manchester.
The keynote speaker was Monsignor Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, British and Pakistani Prelate to HH Pope Francis and former Bishop of Rochester. You can read more about him on his official website.
Our Co-Chair Heather Fletcher also spoke. She was speaking from a written text and has permitted us to publish it below.
Good evening, ladies, gentlemen, and distinguished guests. My name is Cllr Heather Fletcher.
I was born in Salford in the early 1960s. My father's family originated from Poland, but my father himself was born in Dublin in the Republic of Ireland, and my mother's family originated from Lithuania but had lived in Manchester since 1868. They were both Jewish.
We were not a religious family; I would describe us as cultural Jews as we celebrated all the major Jewish festivals and were proud of our heritage. Whilst not religious myself, I have always had friends who were religious Jews, Catholics, and Protestants, and I have seen how faith is an important part of their lives and brought them comfort and happiness.
I attended a Jewish primary school then a Church of England girls grammar school and finally Birmingham University where I studied Law. I was in the legal profession for 33 years, but I decided to change career direction 9 years ago to enter into local politics. I became a Councillor in Swinton in 2016.
Twenty years ago, I went along with my friend Martyn to the first meeting of Muslims and Jewish people at Manchester Town Hall hosted by the late Henry Guterman and Afzal Khan (now an MP) who were both well-known community activists. We went along more out of curiosity than anything else. However, that meeting changed my life.
I was impressed by the positive vibes in the room where over 100 people of the Muslim and Jewish faiths mixed together happily. Ten months after this initial meeting Henry and Afzal co-founded our Muslim Jewish Forum of Greater Manchester. Although I had never been on a committee before I decided to join the Executive Committee. I have been on the Executive now for 19 years, 10 as the Company Secretary and 9 as the Jewish Co-Chair.
Because I believe that it is ignorance which creates bigotry and intolerance, but when people mix together and learn about each other's faiths and cultures, the "unknown" becomes the "familiar" and people become more open minded. Conversely if people are insular and do not mix with other people of different faiths and cultures, this creates ignorance and blinkered opinions and could well give rise to fear, hatred, and division.
In the past 19 years our Forum has organised 149 diverse events bringing together Muslim people and Jewish people as well as people from other faiths from all over Greater Manchester who otherwise would never have met. We have organised picnics, iftars, Eid parties, Chanukah parties, big concerts and more serious events like our annual Lawyers Event.
It may seem that our events are largely social BUT I believe that better community relations are fostered when people mix together in a casual, relaxed setting rather than in an educational setting.
We have also connected with other groups of Muslims and Jews in Paris, and Leeds. We have held several away-days such as to the National Holocaust Centre, Liverpool, and Lincoln to see places of Muslim and Jewish interest. Some of the Executive have been away together to capital cities in Europe where we always visit places of Muslim and Jewish interest. For example, we visited Oslo in June and visited the Jewish Museum and the Mosque. On other holidays we have visited Cathedrals too.
The Forum was set up with a clear objective "to promote and develop social and cultural ties between Muslim and Jewish communities in Greater Manchester." Accordingly, Middle East issues are beyond our remit. We work hard on what we feel we are able to change i.e. help communities get along better on our doorstep. We are powerless to do this overseas.
The Forum has won two awards for our community work: a British Muslim award for "The Spirit of Britain" in 2014, and a Northwest Fusion award for Community Organisation of the Year in 2016.
Through organising so many diverse events our Forum has brought together many people of all faiths and backgrounds who otherwise would never have met. Several of our Executive and other members have forged strong friendships through working together for our organisation.
I contend that faith is relevant in today's society as it is prevalent in so many people's lives, and the more we mix together and learn about each other's faiths and cultures the more understanding we become, and this leads to a more cohesive and happier society.
I believe that our Forum has helped foster better community relations through our activities and created more understanding and harmony in Greater Manchester. I hope we shall continue to do so for many more years to come and hope that even more people will join us on our mission to create a more harmonious society. A society where all faiths and cultures are relevant and where people learn about faiths and cultures from one another and enrich their lives with new knowledge and new friends.
Thank you.
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The Muslim Jewish Forum of Greater Manchester
Established to develop the cultural and social ties between the Muslim and Jewish Communities of Greater Manchester