SUMMER VISITS: BAPS SHRI SWAMINARAYAN MANDIR

 

The Faith Awareness series of summer visits to places of worship and other faith-related sites in Leicester continues this evening at BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Gipsy Lane. I'm obliged to be elsewhere this evening, so much of the content of this blog post has been provided by Barbara Butler (thanks Barbara!)

The Shri Swaminarayan Mandir is directly across the road from the place the group's last visit in this programme: All Saints Church, Kerrysdale Avenue.

Our group was welcomed and shown into the main temple, where we admired the beauty and peace of the space. We also appreciated the watercolour depictions of the life of the guru. We were shown round the classrooms and talked to some of the boys who were learning Gujarati. This was made easy because we had a child with us. We finally joined in with the worship of the community.

 

Frieze in the vestibule at BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir

This is the third of six Faith Awareness visits planned for Monday evenings in May and June, the others being

• Jain Centre, Oxford Street (13 May)
• All Saints Church, Kerrysdale Avenue (20 May)
• Islam Information Centre, Highfield Centre (12 June) 
• Neve Shalom Progressive Synagogue, Avenue Road (17 June)
• Guru Amar Das Gurdwara, Clarendon Park Road (24 June)

I may not be ale to attend every visit personally, but I hope to arrange for a blog post on each of them. Watch this space!

I'm bringing a group of Year 5 pupils from Sandfield Close Primary here tomorrow morning. That will be the third of four visits in two days that these children are making to local places of worship, arranged in association with The Mighty Creatives (a charity based in Leicester's LCB Depot, working across the East Midlands to champion young people's creativity and innovation). Artwork that the children produce as an outcome of their visits will be on display under the title, "Faith in Neighbours" in the Mezzanine at Curve as part of An Indian Summer later this month.

SUMMER VISITS: ALL SAINTS CHURCH

 

The Faith Awareness series of summer visits to places of worship and other faith-related sites in Leicester continues this evening at All Saints Church, Kerrysdale Avenue. I'm obliged to be elsewhere this evening, so much of the content of this blog post has been provided by Barbara Butler (thanks Barbara!) 

 

The visit gives a welcome insight into a multicultural and international community who worship here. The majority of the congregation is from the Punjab, from both India and Pakistan. They worship at 1500 every Sunday and offer opportunities and support for all age groups. They have also made collections of money and goods for Christian communities in Pakistan who have lost their homes in violence. There is a separate Tamil congregation.

 

We enjoyed a lively discussion about interfaith work and the reasons for it. We talked about the value of understanding each other and of working together for peace. We were asked to remain in contact with the community and to invite members to our meetings. We were also invited to attend the church and to give a talk about Christians Aware and Faith Awareness. Hopefully this will take place in July.

 

A carving of the angel Gabriel, above the entrance to All Saints Church

On 15 June the church celebrates its first anniversary, marking the date when the membership of Leicester United Christian Fellowship became a Church of England congregation with its home in All Saints Church (which used to e St Gabriel's). We've been invited to attend the celebrations.

All Saints Church is directly across the road from the place the group's next scheduled visit in this programme: BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Gipsy Lane.

This is the second of six Faith Awareness visits planned for Monday evenings in May and June, the others being

• Jain Centre, Oxford Street (13 May)
• BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Gipsy Lane (3 June)
• Islam Information Centre, Highfield Centre (12 June) 
• Neve Shalom Progressive Synagogue, Avenue Road (17 June)
• Guru Amar Das Gurdwara, Clarendon Park Road (24 June)

I may not be ale to attend every visit personally, but I hope to arrange for a blog post on each of them. Watch this space!