by Isabel Smyth

This year there has been a coincidence of festivals. Not only have the Abrahamic religions been celebrating Easter, Pesach and Ramadan at the same time, the Sikh community, celebrated Vaisakhi on 13th April and had their annual march on Easter Sunday.  They walked from a Gurdwara in the south side of Glasgow to one in the west end where, in the Sikh spirit of hospitality, all those who participated were given food and drink.

It also happened that Good Friday was the international day for remembering the Rwandan massacre, and Easter Sunday was the anniversary of the signing of Pope John XXIII’s encyclical, Pacem in Terris, Peace on Earth. There was a lot of spiritual energy around.

Much was made of the coincidence of the three Abrahamic festivals, which only happens every thirty years. I was able to celebrate something of each of them. As well as participating in the Sacred Triduum of Easter in a packed church which gave lie to the belief that religion is dead, I was invited to be present at iftar in our local mosque. Iftar is the meal that breaks the day’s fast and is eaten immediately after sundown, just before community prayer. We were welcomed warmly, given a tour of the mosque, had a short talk from an imam about the meaning of Ramadan for Muslims and then were served a meal while we waited for that moment of sundown when we could eat together. After the meal, shared by people from different faiths, we were able to observe the evening prayer.

Isabel Smyth is a Sister of Notre Dame who has been involved in interfaith relations for many decades.