Coexist House is a

charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...

for

interfaith dialogue Interfaith dialogue, also known as interreligious dialogue, refers to cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religion, religious traditions (i.e. "faiths") and/or spirituality, spiritual or humanism, hum ...

based at

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

in London, England. The mission of Coexist House is:

To establish a global centre in the heart of London, aimed at transforming public understanding about the practices and perspectives of the world's faiths and religious traditions, to promote better, more peaceful relationships across divides.

Coexist House was launched in 2015 and continues the work of the Coexist Foundation, which was founded in 2005 by Mohammed Jameel . As of January 2024, Coexist House's board of trustees comprises Sir

Bernard Rix Sir Bernard Anthony Rix (born 8 December 1944) is a former English judge, who was a Lord Justice of Appeal from 2000 to 2013. Family Rix is the son of Otto Rix and Sadie Silverberg. In 1983, he married Karen Young (now The Hon. Lady Rix), daug ...

, Professor Malik Dahlan and Professor

Tim Winter * Timothy John Winter, British Islamic scholar * Tim C. Winter, Australian sociologist {{disambiguation ...

. Previous trustees included Sir Roger Gifford (who died in 2021) and Robin Griffith-Jones. The charity has been led by Michael Wakelin and Fatimah Mohammed‐Ashrif.

Launch of Coexist House

In 2013, the Coexist Foundation and the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

Interfaith Programme launched the Coexist House initiative to establish a centre for multi-faith understanding and education in London. According to Sir

, chairman of Coexist House, the original idea had been for an "Abraham house" of the three religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, but later changed to a space where those of all faiths and none could come together. The project was conceived by David Ford,

Regius Professor of Divinity The Regius Professorships of Divinity are amongst the oldest professorships at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. A third chair existed for a period at Trinity College Dublin. The Oxford and Cambridge chairs were founded by ...

at the University of Cambridge, with an advisory board comprising the Coexist Foundation, the Cambridge Interfaith Programme, the

City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the local authority of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United Kingdom's f ...

, the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...

and

. The project was formally launched in 2013 at a dinner at the Mansion House, hosted by Sir

Roger Gifford Sir Michael Roger Gifford KStJ KNO (3 August 1955 – 25 May 2021) was a British banker in London who served as the 685th Lord Mayor of London from 2012 to 2013. Gifford was the UK head of Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (SEB) from 2000 and was ...

, where the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

gave a speech in support. In 2015, Coexist House had support from

The Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the

Bishop of London The bishop of London is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723. The diocese covers of 17 boroughs o ...

, the

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi () is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a capitulation by Ben-Zion Meir ...

, the

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

, and Princess Badiya bint El Hassan of Jordan.

Eric Pickles Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar from 1992 United ...

, the

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government The secretary of state for housing, communities and local government is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom and is the Cabinet minister responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of the Ministry of Ho ...

and Minister for Faith, announced government support for Coexist House at a speech at

Temple Church The Temple Church, a royal peculiar in the Church of England, is a church in the Inner Temple, Inner and Middle Temple, Middle Temple, London, Temples located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar for their En ...

in 2015. The fundraising target was £20 million. An audience research study found "The overall concept ��is one of the most well received cultural concepts tested in the last 3 years" and

Metaphor A metaphor is a figure of speech that, for rhetorical effect, directly refers to one thing by mentioning another. It may provide, or obscure, clarity or identify hidden similarities between two different ideas. Metaphors are usually meant to cr ...

created the design and business plan. In 2018, Coexist House was registered as a charity with the Charity Commission, and the Coexist Foundation was dissolved.

Activities

In 2016, Coexist House produced ''Stations of the Cross'', an exhibition to raise awareness for those in need of refuge, co-curated by Aaron Rosen, Catriona Laing and John W. Moody. The exhibition initially comprised 14 ancient and modern works, including by

Bill Viola William John Viola Jr. ( , ; January 25, 1951 – July 12, 2024) was an American video artist whose artistic expression depended upon electronic, sound, and image technology in new media. His works focus on the ideas behind fundamental human ...

;

Jacopo Bassano Jacopo Bassano (c. 1510 – 14 February 1592), known also as Jacopo dal Ponte, was an Italian painter who was born and died in Bassano del Grappa near Venice, and took the village as his surname. Having trained in the workshop of his father, Fran ...

; Michael Takeo Magruder; Terry Duffy;

Jacob Epstein Sir Jacob Epstein (10 November 1880 – 21 August 1959) was an American and British sculptor who helped pioneer modern sculpture. He was born in the United States, and moved to Europe in 1902, becoming a British subject in 1910. Early in his ...

; Leni Dothan; G. Roland Biermann; and Guy Reid. The exhibition was hosted in 2016 in London (with support from the Cambridge Interfaith Programme,

King’s College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

and

Art and Sacred Places Art and Sacred Places is a UK-based national charity in London working in the field of commissioning visual art for sacred places. Its work includes both temporary and permanent commissions and projects which bring together communities of people f ...

) – at the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current di ...

, the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic citadel and castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamle ...

Methodist Central Hall The Methodist Central Hall (also known as Central Hall Westminster) is a multi-purpose venue in the City of Westminster, London, serving primarily as a Methodist church and a conference centre. The building also houses an art gallery, a restaur ...

, and St Paul’s Cathedral; in 2017 in Washington, D.C. – at the

National Cathedral National Cathedral may refer to: * Iglesia Filipina Independiente National Cathedral, a cathedral of the Philippine Independent Church in Manila * National Cathedral of Ghana, a planned interdenominational cathedral in Accra * National Cathedral ...

, the

Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is a national memorial located in West Potomac Park next to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It covers and includes the ''Stone of Hope'', a granite statue of civil rights movement ...

, adjacent to the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

and at the

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

; and in 2018 in New York City – at

The Cloisters The Cloisters, also known as the Met Cloisters, is a museum in the Washington Heights, Manhattan, Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City. The museum, situated in Fort Tryon Park, specializes in European medieval art ...

, the Cathedral of St John the Divine and the 9/11 Memorial. In 2017, Coexist House collaborated with

Ernst & Young EY, previously known as Ernst & Young, is a multinational corporation, multinational professional services partnership, network based in London, United Kingdom. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and PwC, it is one of the Big Four accounting firms, Big F ...

(EY) and Professor Adam Dinham from

Goldsmiths, University of London Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by ...

to launch the EY Religious Literacy for Organisations programme, designed to help organisations better understand religious inclusion and its positive impact on business process and performance. In 2018,

Nicola Green Nicola Green (born 1972) is a British portrait painter, social historian, and public speaker. Her subjects have included the Dalai Lama, Barack Obama, and Diana, Princess of Wales. According to ''The Times'', she has a diverse heritage that in ...

collaborated with Coexist House, the University of Cambridge and King’s College London on the ''Encounters'', an exhibition of 50 portraits of religious leaders, including the

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

, the

Dalai Lama The Dalai Lama (, ; ) is the head of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. The term is part of the full title "Holiness Knowing Everything Vajradhara Dalai Lama" (圣识一切瓦齐尔达喇达赖喇嘛) given by Altan Khan, the first Shu ...

Ali Gomaa Ali Gomaa (, Egyptian Arabic: ; born 3 March 1952) is an Egyptian Islamic scholar, jurist, and public figure who has taken a number of controversial political stances. He specializes in Islamic Legal Theory. He follows the Shafi`i school of Isl ...

Jonathan Sacks Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks (8 March 19487 November 2020) was an English Orthodox rabbi, philosopher, theologian, and author. Sacks served as the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth from 1991 to 2013. As ...

and

Justin Welby Justin Portal Welby (born 6 January 1956) is an Anglican bishop who served as the 105th archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England from 2013 to 2025. After an 11-year career in the oil industry, Welby trained for ordination at St John ...

. The exhibition was shown at

St Martin-in-the-Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, there has been a church on the site since at least the medieval pe ...

in London. In 2018, Coexist House collaborated with British Muslim TV, ''

Church Times The ''Church Times'' is an independent Anglican weekly newspaper based in London and published in the United Kingdom on Fridays. History The ''Church Times'' was founded on 7 February 1863 by George Josiah Palmer, a printer. It fought for the ...

'' and ''

Jewish News The ''Jewish News'' is a free weekly newspaper, established in 1997, that serves the Jewish communities of Greater London – specifically Middlesex, Hertfordshire and Essex. In 2002, it won the ''Press Gazette'' free newspaper of the year. In ...

'' for "21 4 21", a project to identify 21 individuals aged under 40 who are increasing dialogue and breaking down barriers, particularly as volunteers but also in their working lives. The 21 awardees were invited to meet and stay at St George's House on the grounds of

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

, and participated in a business plan competition with investors, sponsored by KAICIID. The competition winners included Mohammad Ryad Khodabocus, from the

Luton Luton () is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census. Luton is on the River Lea, about north-west of London. The town's foundation dates to the sixth century as a Saxon settleme ...

-based organisation Grassroots, and Josephine Davidoff. In 2019, Coexist House collaborated with Temple Church to convene a symposium at

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

to test the hypothesis of Comparative Religious Law: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, a book by Professor Norman Doe, a professor at the Cardiff School of Law. The event was chaired by Mark Hill QC, honorary professor at Cardiff, and attended by Sir Andrew McFarlane, president of the

Family Division The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...

, and

Lord Woolf Harry Kenneth Woolf, Baron Woolf (born 2 May 1933) is a British life peer and retired barrister and judge. He was Master of the Rolls from 1996 until 2000 and Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales from 2000 until 2005. The Constitutional Ref ...

. In 2019, Coexist House participated in the

Greenbelt Festival Greenbelt Festival is a festival of arts, faith and justice held annually in England since 1974. Greenbelt has grown out of an evangelical Christian music festival with an audience of 1,500 young people into its current form, a more inclusive f ...

, together with the Cambridge Interfaith Programme and

Rose Castle Rose Castle is a Manor house, fortified house in the parish of Dalston, Cumbria, Dalston, Cumbria, England. It was the residence of the Bishop of Carlisle, bishops of Carlisle from 1230 to 2009, and has been a peace and reconciliation centre sinc ...

Coexist Foundation

The Coexist Foundation (stylised COEXIST or ☾✡︎†) was a

founded in 2005 by Mohammed Jameel and registered as with the

Charity Commission The Charity Commission for England and Wales is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's Government that regulates registered charities in England and Wales and maintains the Central Register of Charities. Its counterparts in Scotland and ...

in 2006. Its activities were transferred to Coexist House in 2015 and the charity was dissolved in 2018.

Mission and governance

The original mission of the foundation was "to promote understanding and good relations between Christians, Jews and Muslims, as well as to improve their relations with other faiths and those of no faith, by means of education, dialogue and research", but this was later broadened as "to create understanding across divides" through education and innovation. The founding director of the Coexist Foundation was James Kidner, formerly deputy private secretary to

(later King Charles III). Its board of trustees included, at various times, the founder, Mohammed Jameel ; Robin Griffith-Jones,

Master of the Temple The Temple Church, a royal peculiar in the Church of England, is a church in the Inner and Middle Temples located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar for their English headquarters in the Temple precinct. ...

; Rabbi David Rosen;

Richard Chartres Richard John Carew Chartres, Baron Chartres, , FBS (; born 11 July 1947) is a retired senior bishop of the Church of England. Chartres served as area Bishop of Stepney from 1992 to 1995 and Bishop of London from 1995 to 2017. He was sworn of ...

; Lord

Greville Janner Greville Ewan Janner, Baron Janner of Braunstone, (11 July 1928 – 19 December 2015) was a British politician, barrister and writer. He became a Labour Party Member of Parliament for Leicester in the 1970 general election as a last-minute ...

; and Professor

Muhammad Yunus Muhammad Yunus (born 28 June 1940) is a Bangladeshi economist, entrepreneur, and civil society leader who has been serving as the Chief Adviser of Bangladesh, Chief Adviser of the Interim government of Muhammad Yunus, interim Yunus ministry, g ...

, Nobel laureate.

Gallup partnership

A 2002 Gallup Poll of the Islamic world revealed rising tensions between religious and ethnic groups around the world, prompting the formation of the organization. The Coexist Foundation had a 10-year not-for-profit relationship with

The Gallup Organization Gallup, Inc. is an American multinational analytics and consulting firm, advisory company based in Washington, D.C. Founded by George Gallup in 1935, the company became known for its opinion poll, public opinion polls conducted worldwide. Gall ...

Cambridge Coexist Programme

The Cambridge Coexist Programme was a collaboration between the Cambridge Interfaith Programme and the Coexist Foundation. Activities included a collaboration with

on a religious literacy programme.

''Sacred: Discover what we share''

In 2007, the Coexist Foundation sponsored ''Sacred: Discover what we share'', an exhibition of

sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

manuscripts A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has c ...

at the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...

. The exhibition was a critical success. Mary Beard said, "You're never likely to get to see such an extraordinary and stunningly beautiful collection of religious book-art ever again", and

Norman Lebrecht Norman Lebrecht (born 11 July 1948) is a British music journalist and author best known as the owner of the classical music blog ''Slipped Disc''. His writings have been accused of sensationalism and criticized for their inaccuracies, while oth ...

described it as the "surprise hit of the London exhibition season". It was the most successful exhibition in the history of the British Library at the time, with 169,240 visitors by 9 September (three weeks prior to closing). The exhibition caused some controversy by including the dress worn by

Jemima Goldsmith Jemima Marcelle Goldsmith (born 30 January 1974), known professionally as Jemima Khan, is an English television and film producer and screenwriter. She is the founder of Instinct Productions, a television production company. Previously she was ...

at her wedding to

Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician, philanthropist, and former cricketer who served as the 19th prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He was the founder of the political party Pak ...

. The exhibition was inaugurated by

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

, and Prince Rasheed ibn Hassan II of Morocco, with attendance from Mohammed Jameel , founder of the Coexist Foundation; Lord

Melvyn Bragg Melvyn Bragg, Baron Bragg (born 6 October 1939) is an English broadcaster, author and parliamentarian. He is the editor and presenter of ''The South Bank Show'' (1978–2010, 2012–2023), and the presenter of the BBC Radio 4 documentary series ...

; Archbishop

Kevin McDonald Kevin Hamilton McDonald (born May 16, 1961) is a Canadian actor and comedian. He is a member of the comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, who have appeared together in a number of stage, television and film productions, most notably the 1988–1 ...

;

Rowan Williams Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet, who served as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury from 2002 to 2012. Previously the Bishop of Monmouth and Archbishop of W ...

, the Archbishop of Canterbury; and Rabbi Sir

, the

''Three Faiths: Judaism, Christianity, Islam''

In 2010, the Coexist Foundation sponsored ''Three Faiths: Judaism, Christianity, Islam'', an exhibition of sacred exhibitions at

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...

(NYPL). Attendees of the opening included Mohammed Jameel , founder of the Coexist Foundation; NYPL president Paul LeClerc, and Rabbi

Julie Schonfeld Julie Schonfeld is the first female rabbi to serve in the chief executive position of an American rabbinical association, having been named the executive vice president of the Conservative movement's Rabbinical Assembly (RA) in 2008 and later Ch ...

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

noted ''Three Faiths'' was part of an ecumenical response to the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

. It was inspired by the 2007 British Library exhibition ''Sacred: Discover what we share'', which had originally been intended to tour to New York, but the British Library was concerned that heightened inspections post-9/11 could endanger its manuscripts and pulled out. ''Three Faiths'' instead drew on the NYPL's own collection. The Coexist Foundation also contributed a light installation work by Ross Ashton to the NYPL for the exhibition, and supported workshops in

sacred geometry Sacred geometry ascribes symbolic and sacred meanings to certain geometric shapes and certain geometric proportions. It is associated with the belief of a divine creator of the universal geometer. The geometry used in the design and constructi ...

and traditional arts delivered by The Prince's School of Traditional Arts. The exhibition was co-sponsored by the

Stavros Niarchos Foundation The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) is a private, international philanthropic organization, making grants to nonprofit organizations globally in the areas of arts and culture, education, health and sports, and social welfare. It was established ...

, the

Carnegie Corporation of New York The Carnegie Corporation of New York is a philanthropic fund established by Andrew Carnegie in 1911 to support education programs across the United States, and later the world. Since its founding, the Carnegie Corporation has endowed or othe ...

and The Achelis and Bodman Foundations.

Coexist logo

The Coexist Foundation's logo was the Coexist sign, originally created in 2000 by Polish graphic designer Piotr Młodożeniec for a contest hosted by The Museum on the Seam for Dialogue, Understanding and Coexistence in Jerusalem.

Outreach initiatives

The Coexist Foundation was responsible for several projects that are meant to advance the objectives of the organization. An example is its radio show "Pause for Thought," which was created in collaboration with the BBC. The program includes guests from various religious backgrounds sharing their insights on a common subject. One of the Foundation's projects was "Understanding Islam" a first series of internet learning resources designed to give an accessible but thorough introduction to Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Coexist Foundation joined with online education specialists Microbooks and a team of scholars to develop the series. The Coexist Foundation, operating through a sister 501(c)(3) organisation, Coexist Foundation America, supported fair trade projects, including working with Mirembe Kawomera in Uganda and Rajlakshmi Cotton Mills in India.

Wind-down and transfer to Coexist House

From 2015, all Coexist Foundation activities were transferred to Coexist House.Coexist Foundation
Report and financial statements for year ended 30 September 2014
2015-07-27. Companies House. Coexist Foundation was formally dissolved in 2018.

References

{{Authority control Foundations based in England Religious charities Interfaith dialogue 2018 establishments in England Religious organizations established in 2018 Religious organisations based in London