After a long year of anguish and uncertainty in the community, an Indianapolis church intended to build interfaith bridges.
Christ Church Cathedral, an Episcopal church on Monument Circle, invited Hoosiers (Indiana natives) from the Indianapolis Muslim Community Association to speak before two of its Christmas Eve sermons to come together in solidarity during the church's time of celebration.
The times are calling upon us to build these bridges, said Eyas Raddad, the representative from the Indianapolis Muslim Community Association who spoke to the congregation. Fear, especially of those who are different, and the uncertainty that comes with that has been a core cause of the angst in the community.
This is the first time Christ Church Cathedral has done this, but it is not the first time Muslims have been in churches participating in Christmas celebrations, Raddad said. Coming together in a time of celebration will start to build these bridges.
Jesus Christ is also important in Islam, Raddad said, which is not something many know. Jesus and the Virgin Mary are mentioned many times in the Quran, similar to how they're mentioned in the gospel.
I want to bring a message to people to understand that commonality is much more than they ever tend to appreciate, Raddad said. Muslims are friends of Christians, and our common values will translate to common actions.
From her part, Klemesrud, a member at CCC, said the unified Christian and Muslim introduction was touching. She wasn't aware that both the Bible and the Quran recognized Jesus and the Virgin Mary as holy figures, and said it was neat that she could continue to learn more about the similarities.
It's important to bring people of different faiths together because we need to be unified in bringing peace and justice to all, she said. I think all faiths have a common thread of the love of God, and I know at Christ Church Cathedral, it's very central to the theme.