Catholic, Muslim Schoolgirls Gather in Dearborn to Find Common Ground

September 22, 2006

Source: The Detroit News

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060922/LIFESTYLE04/609220369/1041/LIFESTYLE04

On September 22, 2006 The Detroit News reported, "About 200 Catholic and Muslim school children gathered Thursday to talk about their faiths, how they worship God and to pray. And as is often the case when kids do the talking, they found that they had a lot in common. Students from the St. Paul School in Grosse Pointe traveled to the Islamic Center of America, the largest mosque in the country, to visit students from the Muslim American Youth Academy. The trip, planned last spring, occurred just days after a speech by Pope Benedict XVI in which he quoted a Byzantine emperor disparaging Islam, setting off a negative reaction among Muslims... The students heard about how important Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary are in Islam, that Jesus is mentioned more than 120 times in the Qur'an, and that the Muslim tradition of modest dress and of women covering their hair comes from the example Mary set with her chastity. They also heard Muslims disparaging those who commit violence in the name of Islam... The Muslim students will travel to St. Paul School early next year, where the interfaith exercise will continue."