Talking about multicultural matters...
This morning's Sunday on Radio 4 marked the BBC's 'Faith in the World Week' by featuring interviews (long and short) with believers from several of the UK's faith communities.
The tone was upbeat throughout all the segments - except for the two bits featuring Muslims, both of which focused on the the difficulties Muslims say they face in the UK (par for the course for a BBC programme of course).
Among the features was a report from the BBC's Rosie Dawson (who we last met recharging her spiritual batteries at a Muslim college, apparently at the licence fee payer's expense, as part of the BBC's internal 'Wonder Week').
Except for the bits about those hard-done-by Muslims, her message was consistent and, typically, the chosen closing words of her report (from a young Jewish lad) spelled it out loud and clear:
I think it's wonderful that we live with all these different cultures and I think it's wonderful that we've got the facilities in place, the institutions, where you've got these people talking and there's dialogue between different faiths. I think it's wonderful.
...which might be in the running to become the BBC's official motto some time soon.
Besides the various believers (and the man from the centre-left think tank Demos who's carried out a poll for the BBC), Rosie also gave us the views of an expert in the field - Adam Dinham from the University of London. He began his contribution by saying:
We've always been a nation of immigrants with a milieu of religion and belief churning away.
...which might also be in the running to become the BBC's official motto some time soon.
And so it goes on, and on and on and on and........
