Coexistence was one of the highlights of the U2 Vertigo concert I attended in Brisbane. Bono wore a headband with the word “Coexist”, and the word “Coexist” appeared in the light show, during songs such as “Sunday Bloody Sunday”.
The “Coexist” symbol incorporates the crescent of Islam as the C, the cross of Christianity as the T, and the Jewish Star of David as the X in the middle. Bono referred to this symbol as he sang, “Jesus, Jew, Muhammad, it’s true…All sons of Abraham. Father Abraham, speak to your sons. Tell them, No more!”
Bono first saw the “Coexist” symbol painted as grafitti on a wall in Chicago. The origins of the icon come from Poland in 2001 where graphic designer Piotr Mlodozeniec entered it in an international art competion run by the Museum on the Seam, Jerusalem. The symbol was registered as a trademark by an Indiana-based t-shirt company in 2005, unaware of its origins. See the lifestyle brand at coexistonline.com
Apparently U2 still have the challenge of working out an agreement that will acknowledge Mlodozeniec as the artist and Museum on the Seam as the copyright holder. I wonder if Coexist still believe they have a strong foothold on the financial gains associated with the symbol.
[eminimall products="coexist"]
The Project Abraham forum on peacemaking on the Gold Coast back on the 12th of November. It became a powerful carrier of meaning for the Jews, Muslims and Christians searching together for a way to live out a life of positive engagement in life, together.
I’m part of a team organising an inter-faith forum on peacemaking, being held as a follow-up to the Gold Coast Project Abraham forum held in September.
The Project Abraham Community Forum on Peacemaking will be held on Sunday, November 12, 2 to 5 pm at Nerang Bicentennial Community Centre, Nerang-Southport Rd, on the Gold Coast.
The Project Abraham concept comes from the tradition held in common by Jews, Christians and Muslims. Each of these faiths includes the Abraham narratives in their scriptures. Here on the Gold Coast a group of leaders from each of the three faiths gathered to host a travelling exhibition and a community forum on hospitality.
Now’s the time for making peace. There’s been a lot of media coverage of Muslim beliefs and practices over the last few weeks, particularly with reported comments from Ramadan sermons. Australians each read or hear about controversy regarding the rights of women. In overseas news we have been hearing about conflicts in areas that affect Jews, Muslims and Christians - Lebanon and Israel for example.
So what do the traditions and scriptures of each religion have to say about making peace? As the facilitator for the day I’ll be exploring the story of Abraham’s peacemaking in the wake of war.
First speaker is Uri Themal, Rabbi at Temple Shalom on the Gold Coast, and former director of Multicultural Affairs Queensland. Uri recently returned from a conference in Paris where he delivered a paper on Jewish perspectives on war and peace.
The second speaker will be Imraan Husain, Imam of the Gold Coast Mosque (Islamic Society of the Gold Coast). Imam Husain has been in the Gold Coast news constantly over the last few weeks, providing a moderate Muslim perspective on a so-called ‘honour killing’ and calling for people to reconciliation rather than hostility.
Third speaker will be Tony Kitchen, executive officer - education at Queensland Catholic Education Commission. Tony’s background in Catholic education has focused on peace education, peace building and capacity building.
Pictured below are speakers from the first forum in September: Chief Justice Paul De Jersey, Imam Imraan Husain, (Anglican) Bishop Ron Williams, Rabbi Uri Themal.
The Community Forum will have kosher and halaal food provided by the Jewish and Muslim communities. The Christians are organising the tea, coffee and cold drinks.
The afternoon will include 90 minutes of questions and discussion. My hope is that people will meet and get to know people from other faiths, putting into practice the call for peacemaking.
I’m part of a group of Christians, Jews and Muslims on the Gold Coast preparing for ‘Project Abraham’, a forum and exhibition being launched on September 10. The project is connected with an initiative of Jewish and Muslim leaders in Adelaide last year.
On Sunday September 10 we’ll be holding a forum at the Gold Coast Arts Centre, focusing on “Eating and Drinking at Abraham’s Table”, food and drink in the three Abrahamic faiths. This will be a little different to the usual summaries of faith and practice given at inter-faith dialogues. We’re working together in the afternoon to explore ways in which the Gold Coast community can proactively engage with the rich traditions brought by overseas tourists. At this time of year, for example, we have a lot of tourists from United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. I’ve been told that even back in the 1970s Surfers Paradise was known in Victoria as “Surfers Palestine”.
The exhibition will include artifacts and photographs from the three Abrahamic faiths. I’m working as a Uniting Church in Australia participant with representatives of the Anglican and Catholic churches in the North Gold Coast region. The Uniting Church doesn’t have anywhere near the number of artifacts and worship aids found in the two more traditional denominations. The other two have collected most of the work and given me the job of putting them together.
The Gold Coast City Council has provided the venue and two staff to work with the coordinating team. Funding comes from the Australian government’s Living In Harmony programme. Local schools are being invited to send students to the exhibition and participate in an educational programme.
