Muslim and Jewish Kids Unite At a Mosque!

Ramadan started today so for those observing Ramadan Mubarak! Also this is why I decided to write an article touching on something interesting I heard recently at work which highlights one of the beautiful things about Muslim people. If you asked most people how long Muslims and Jews have been in conflict I have a feeling a vast majority would say “millennia.” However nothing could be farther from the truth. Jews have been kicked out of almost every country they have ever populated for thousands of years. The map below is a map showing Jewish migration and expulsion between the years 1000–1500. If you look at the map below towards the bottom you will see Jews leaving Spain for North Africa as well as the Middle East. This is just a small snippet of Jews being thrown out of Christian countries while being welcomed in Muslim countries.

In fact the Islamic empire which stretched from North Africa through the Middle East was not only welcoming to Jews for over 700 years but Christians, Buddhists and any other religion. They welcomed them because they were vigorous students of science and religion. Professor of Jewish medieval history at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Hayim Hillel Ben-Sasson, notes: “The legal and security situation of the Jews in the Muslim world was generally better than in Christendom.” and French historian Claude Cahen, Islam has “shown more toleration than Europe towards the Jews who remained in Muslim lands.”

Knowing this it did not come as a surprise to me when one of my coworkers shared something her mosque was doing. Her mosque invited Jewish children to speak with the children of the mosque about religion in order to foster a stronger relationship for the next generation. This didn’t surprise me because I have worked with many Muslims over the years and besides being very hard working they are very respectful and curious of other religions. They love their religion however are also respectful of other religions and love to hear about the different holidays and traditions. This mosque event also reminded me of an event that occurs in Rome every few years where religious leaders of all religions are invited together to speak together. I spoke to a Rabbi and a Priest and besides sounding like the beginning of a joke I learned a lot about this event and it renewed my faith, pun intended, in religion.