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Two experts on interfaith relations will debate the way forward at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge’s first Festival of Ideas which begins on Wednesday.

At a debate on Thursday Dr Edward Kessler and Shaykh Michael Mumisa will argue that there is an urgent need for improving understanding and fostering better relations between Jews, Christians and Muslims and overcoming past and present schisms. They will consider what Jews, Christians and Muslims can learn from each other.

Dr Kessler says: “Today, it seems that the memory of positive historical encounters has been shelved into the darkest corners of a distant, seemingly irrelevant background and we face not so much a clash of civilizations as a clash of ignorance.”

He and Michael Mumisa will look at what can be done to move forward and break out of the cycle of mistrust, suspicion and anger. ̽��ֱ��event will be chaired by a member of Radio Salaam Shalom, a unique Jewish Muslim online broadcaster who will stream it live.

Edward Kessler is a leading thinker in interfaith relations, primarily contemporary Judaism, Jewish-Christian and Jewish-Muslim Relations. He is Founder and Executive Director of the Woolf Institute of Abrahamic Faiths and Fellow of St Edmund's College, Cambridge. He is a prolific author, having written or edited 9 books and 26 articles.

Michael Mumisa is based at the Centre for the Study of Muslim–Jewish Relations (CMJR), the first and only independent European Centre fostering a better understanding of relations between Muslims and Jews through teaching, research and dialogue. He has worked as a Visiting Lecturer in the Department of Theology at the ̽��ֱ�� of Birmingham, as Lecturer in Islamic Philosophy and Theology at the Markfield Institute of Higher Education, Leicestershire and was Head of Research and Publication at the Islamic Institute in Birmingham.

̽��ֱ��Festival of Ideas is the first event of its kind in the UK to celebrate the arts, humanities and social sciences and will offer visitors of all ages the chance to understand more about the world we live in, on a global and local scale. It will include well known figures such as the BBC's Evan Davis, Michael Howard MP, Doug Richard of Dragon's Den, Professor John Carey and linguist David Crystal. Subjects covered will range from politics, Europe, arts entrepreneurship, different cultures and the stories behind paintings to hidden trails around the city of Cambridge and beyond. There will be thought-provoking talks by leading academics, visits from well-known alumni, performances, department open days, language workshops, school visits and discussions, all held in colleges, departments, galleries and museums around Cambridge. ̽��ֱ��Festival of Ideas will run from 22nd October to 2nd November.

For more information and a full programme of the 200 activities on offer go to . Jewish-Muslim relations: the state of play will be on 23 October from 17:30-18:30 at Room 9, Mill Lane Lecture Rooms, 8 Mill Lane.
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