Image: digimist, Flickr
Mahabba is regularly on the road, encouraging and equipping everyday Christians and church leaders – God is on the move among Muslims and we have a part to play.
Out of the blue in The Hub, we heard from Andy, a church leader in St. Austell, Cornwall. He had been impacted by a conversation with Mahabba Network’s UK Director, Gordon Hickson.
“As Gordon shared about the work of Mahabba, I was struck by the impact that the work was having with Muslims, not only globally, but also within the UK as well.”
He added light-heartedly,
“We’re based in St Austell, so probably one of the least Muslim areas of the country!”
As it happens, Andy was not far off the mark.
In the 2011 Census, Cornwall recorded one of the lowest concentrations of Muslims in England and Wales, with 0.2% of its population stating its religion as Islam [Source 2011 Census].
In contrast, Tower Hamlets – a borough in East London, where Mahabba has a prayer group – recorded 34.5%, making it the local authority with the largest concentration in the UK.
Here is how Cornwall comes in the standings:
Government office for the region (South West)
Bottom with 1%, 51,000 Muslims
County
[N/A Cornwall is not designated as a county]
Local Authority
In the bottom 15% of LAs, with 0.2%, 850 Muslims
Ward
Wadebridge East is in the bottom 3% of over 8,500 wards in the UK
At the end of the conversation, Andy asked to be kept up to date with the work of Mahabba so that he could feed things back to the rest of the leadership team here.
Mahabba continues to spread the word about Muslims around the UK: that Christians need to face the facts, but not fuel the fear.
Muslims are here to stay, and we have a responsibility to love and pray for them.
Whether you find yourself in an area with many Muslims or not, you can have an impact.
Be Involved
Why not request a church visit like Andy, so you can find out more about Muslims and Islam and how you can engage?