MULTI FAITHS GATHER TO CELEBRATE CENTENARY
August 30 2005
At a time when misunderstanding of different religions is causing tension and hostilities, representatives from many faiths and churches across the City will meet to celebrate the centenary of the Bournville Quaker Meeting House where founder, George Cadbury held the first inter-denominational gathering in 1905.
On Saturday September 3, representatives of the Sikh, Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist faiths and of the Anglican, Methodist, Baptist, Catholic and Quaker churches will speak at a symposium on how they seek to put their faith into practice today. Sir Adrian Cadbury will lead the event and speak of his grandfather's vision and on the practical way he lived his life and put his faith into practice.
The centenary celebrations will also include an exhibition of the Bournville Meeting one hundred years ago and a centenary concert with performers from the Birmingham Conservatoire. A Centenary booklet containing a brief history of the Meeting House and articles by the symposium speakers has been produced.
George Cadbury built the meeting house in 1905 as a place of worship for all living in Bournville as there was no other such place at that time. Elizabeth Cadbury wrote: "The meeting house was first used on 3rd September 1905 and was visited by Presbyterians, Anglicans, Wesleyans, Congregationalists, Plymouth Brethren and Friends, also I believe a Baptist."
Howard Saunders of the Quaker Meeting said: "When thinking of how best to celebrate our centenary we looked back to the vision of George Cadbury and remembered how he opened the doors of the Quaker Meeting House to members of other churches who had nowhere else to worship in the new village of Bournville. We remembered too how George worked hard to put his faith into practice, and decided to celebrate our centenary by opening our doors again and asking representatives of other faiths and churches to speak briefly on how they seek to put their faith into practice today".
