(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Over platters of falafel, biryani rice, hummus and baklava, the women of Salt Lake City’s Wasatch Presbyterian Church and eight women from the Muslim community on Thursday traded hugs, personal stories, recipes and email addresses.
The luncheon — prepared in Muslim homes and shared at the church — was a thank-you from the Muslim women, who were delighted by Wasatch’s giveaway earlier this week of free copies of the Quran, Islam’s holy book.
“You,” said Angela Young, a convert to Islam, “extended the first hand.”
The giveaway of nearly 70 books resulted from a suggestion two weeks ago by Wasatch’s new pastor, the Rev. Scott Dalgarno, that church leaders put money behind their belief that education informs faith. It also was a response to a Florida preacher’s burning of the Quran in March, an act that triggered riots and dozens of deaths in Afghanistan.
Church leaders chipped in $600 and ordered copies of the Quran through The King’s English Bookshop on Salt Lake City’s east side. They asked the store to give them away.
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