KOTHAMANGALAM: In a beautiful gesture of communal harmony, a church in Kerala allowed hundreds of Muslims to pray on its premises on Saturday.
Thousands of people from all faiths took part in the ‘Secular Youth March’ from Muvattupuzha towards Kothamangalam in protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
When the march ended, the Muslims realized it was close to the evening Maghrib (6:00 pm) prayers.
That’s when Thomas Church in Kothamangalam, locally known as the Marthoma Cheriapally Church immediately made arrangements and opened its campus to welcomed the Muslims.
Not just that, the priest of Marthoma Cheriapally himself even offered water for them to perform the “Wudhu” (the ritual washing performed by Muslims before prayer).
“It was such nice gesture to see the priests and Christian devotees welcome us there,” Munavvar Ali wrote on Facebook.
Sharing the video of Muslims offering prayers at the church Munavvar Ali further wrote: “This is a reflection of the desire of lakhs of people who want to see our country remain how it is now”.
“Friends, let love be our weapon and unity our shield. We cannot let them destroy this country. We will overcome this,” he said in the Facebook post.
The gesture sets an example of communal amity amid the divisive CAA-NRC-NPR crisis.
This is not the first such act of communal amity Kerala has witnessed.
On December 23, St Thomas Mar Thoma Church in Pathanamthitta sang the Christmas Carol song in the tune of traditional “Mappila” (traditional Muslim folk song) while donning hijabs and skull caps.