Faith to Faith

August 2003 index


In the United Kingdom we have a role to play in offering our prayer and support to Christians living alongside Muslims, witnessing to the Gospel and living together in peace.

-Dr Helen Reid, Director of Faith to Faith

 

We can pray especially for those involved in PROCMURA. The task to which God has called them is not an easy one. May God continue to grant them perseverance and courage as they seek to work towards building the Kingdom of God.

We can also meet the challenge of living alongside Muslims ourselves in the UK, witnessing to the Gospel and living together in peace. We can share the principles of PROCMURA, but what might that mean for us? What do we know about Muslims in the UK? What are people telling us?

‘There’s a mosque at the end of my street. I see hundreds of Muslims going in to pray’

‘I do feel sorry for those poor Muslims who have had to leave Bosnia as refugees.’

‘I have heard that there are over one and a half million Muslims in Britain.’

‘Muslims are very moral, they don’t drink alcohol or smoke’

‘So many Muslim boys are underachieving at school.’

‘I don’t know how to get to know the Pakistani lady next door – she seems so shy!’

How much of what we hear is true and fair? All this information can make us feel that we would like to know more about Islam, but some Christians worry that learning about Islam might not be a Christian thing to do. Faith to Faith is an organisation working in partnership with Crosslinks which believes it is right to study Islam and run courses called ‘Cross and Crescent’.

The aims of the course are based on what we read about Jesus and religious leaders in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 2: 45-46). We can notice five details in Luke’s description of Jesus at the age of 12 in the temple: 

  • He was sitting among the teachers, 
  • he was listening to them, 
  • he was asking them questions, 
  • he had understanding 
  • he was giving answers. 

We need to listen and learn about Islam, and when we have understanding, we can share what we know of Christ. The Cross and Crescent isn’t a course for the sake of education but a course for the sake of mission. We want Christians to make plans and act on what has been learnt. If you would like to find out more, contact the Faith to Faith Office: telephone 0121 633 8860, email office@faithtofaith.org.uk, or visit our website www.faithtofaith.org.uk

 

 

Crosslinks magazine August 2003 index