Join us for an evening with Imam Nasser Kurdy MBE and Rabbi Dovid Lewis, two faith leaders who despite significant differences, continue to speak to one another in good faith while conflict exists thousands of miles away.
Since 7th October, relationships between Muslims and Jews across the world have been strained. Many have stopped speaking; some have turned on one another. Yet in the midst of this turmoil, a Rabbi and an Imam have managed not only to preserve their friendship, but to deepen it.
Their commitment to dialogue has inspired a bi-weekly podcast that explores how genuine conversation can bridge even the most painful divides.
This special evening will explore their story, their podcast, and their mission: to show that agreement isn’t required, but dialogue, the simple power of talk, is.
Imam Nasser Kurdy MBE, originally from Jordan, is a Manchester-based surgeon and lay Imam. Rabbi Dovid Lewis is a native Mancunian who has led the South Manchester Jewish Community since 2011. Friends since 2012, their bond strengthened after Nasser survived a stabbing outside his mosque in 2017, an event widely reported at the time.
Since 7th October, they have partnered on dozens of interfaith initiatives across schools and even Premier League football clubs throughout the North West. Most recently, they jointly led an assembly for local teenagers on navigating difficult conversations about Israel–Palestine.
“The Israeli–Palestinian conflict affects relationships within our local communities. Jews and Muslims are having great difficulty speaking to each other. There’s no dialogue. Hence the podcast; it’s about dialogue.”
- Imam Nasser Kurdy MBE
“In our own communities, we might like to think we are influential: Nasser leads the mosque, I lead the synagogue. However, neither of us can make a direct difference to what’s happening in Israel, Palestine, Gaza, the West Bank. But what is our responsibility? It is to make sure that it doesn’t spill over into our communities, into the friendships we have built with one another.”
- Rabbi Dovid Lewis