At the start of Interfaith Week, which runs from November 11 to 18th , a group of seven Christian and Muslim women in Riddlesden near Keighley have held an overnight sleep-out in a church car park to raise money for charity.
The group of friends spent a very chilly night of November 11 in the car park of St. Mary’s Riddlesden, raising money for the charity War Child which tries to help, support and rescue children in conflict areas around the world.
Despite being very cold, and getting little if any sleep, organiser, the Revd Jenny Ramsden, Assistant Curate of Morton and Riddlesden, said that group felt that the sleep-out was important. “The date seemed significant to us being both Remembrance Day, when we remember and pray for all victims of conflict, many of whom are children, and also the first day of Interfaith Week, which is a week to show that people of different faiths can come together in friendship and concern for others."
Pictured below is Jenny with Shamim Akhtar.
Jenny added, “We came together as women of faith to remember and support children whose lives are still disfigured by war and to raise money for War Child, who support them.
“It was incredibly cold, we were very uncomfortable, and we hardly slept, but we were all very aware that our discomfort was very short-lived, unlike the situation of hundreds of thousands of children suffering terribly in conflict zones around the world.”
For more on interfaith week visit the webpage here.