“By their Fruits you will know them.”

This quotation from Christian scripture suddenly popped into my head when Dr AV Mahomed, the Chair of the Juma Masjid (or the Grey Street Mosque), came into my office.

He was bringing the wonderful gift of a big box of dates to share with our staff here at the Denis Hurley Centre (DHC). The blessing of being located between the mosque and the Catholic Emmanuel Cathedral means we are constantly reminded of the opportunities we have to work together and to celebrate together, people of different faiths but children of the one God.

The dates are of course a sign of celebration during Ramadaan. They are the traditional first food that is eaten when Muslims break their fast, just as the evening call to prayer (the maghrib) is intoned.

Next Wednesday (March 19) at sunset there will be a gathering outside the Denis Hurley Centre to hear the adhan: we will be a group not just of Muslims but also Christians, Hindus and, I hope, Jews and Buddhists too. It will be the DHC’s annual interfaith iftar – when people of different faiths join with our Muslim neighbours to break the fast.

Moreover, we are encouraging non-Muslims who are able to, to show even greater solidarity by joining in the fast on that day from 4.39am and experience, in a small way, what Muslims commit to for the whole of Ramadaan.

The start of Ramadaan this year coincided almost exactly with the Christian period of Lent, the time of preparation before Easter. Lent lasts longer than Ramadaan (40 days vs 4 weeks) and the disciplines of Lent are much more self-imposed than in Ramadaan.

The question "What are you giving up (for Lent)?" makes sense when asked of a Christian but would baffle a Muslim. However, the overall focus of the two periods is very similar: a greater commitment to prayer, to charitable works, and to fasting or abstinence (in some form or another). And you can find a similar focus in Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish festivals.

These are outward signs and they are an important witness to the wider world of such special times of deepened spirituality. But, to use an old Catholic expression, they should be outward signs of an inward grace. And if the inward grace is not embraced by the adherent, the outward signs run the risk of being meaningless.

In both traditions, the extra time spent in prayer is not to "clock up the hours" (as if God is tracking us on some kind of spiritual step counter!). Rather it is to remind us of our dependence on God and the need to spend time in silence and meditation, especially when we are so easily distracted by the noise and busy-ness of the modern world. The commitment to fasting is to help us to be aware of how much excess there is in our lives.

It also helps us to be more aware of those who are not making decisions about whether they miss a meal or don’t enjoy chocolate for a while – because the poor do not have the luxury of such choices. And our charitable giving should not be because we feel obligated to give, or because (as in my primary school as a young Catholic) we are competing to put the most coins in the charity bottle.

Rather it is because we should be moved to remember that all that we have is from God. That means that sharing is not about personal choice but rather a sign that we are willing to participate in God’s plan for all humankind. If there really are those inward graces – the changes of heart that lead to greater awareness of God, greater awareness of others, and greater awareness of our role in God’s plan – then the impact of Lent and Ramadaan – the good fruits that we bear – should last long after Eid or Easter.

Thus, as Jesus said (Mt 7:15): “By their fruits you will know them.”

The test of a committed Christian or Muslim (or anyone else who is espouses a faith) is not how many prayers we say, or much we fast, or whether we follow the rules for almsgiving. The test is how we are changed inwardly and what fruits my change of heart will carry into the real world. The need to bear such fruits is more pressing than ever before.

We might complain, with some justification, about the awful situations around us: whether in our own city, the wider country, the Middle East, or the impact of power-hungry politicians who do not care for anyone but themselves or their small circle. It would be so easy to give up in despair. But each one of those is also an opportunity for us to "bear good fruit".

Each person who comes in to volunteer at the DHC, from a wide range of religious backgrounds, is making a positive statement: they are not writing off the Durban CBD or dismissing those living on the streets; instead, they are demonstrating that they are willing to do something (small or large) to make a difference.

Each person who comes to our interfaith iftar next Wednesday is saying that they do not subscribe to the view that religions should be competing with each other or even killing each other; instead, they are showing that they are willing to do something to build bridges not walls.

Each person who, in our fractured society, take the trouble to share a moment to talk to someone from a different background or nationality and get to know them is resisting the bad fruits of racism and xenophobia; instead they are recognising the inherent dignity that every human being shares.

A few weeks ago, a humble religious leader from Cape Town was assassinated in an attempt to silence him. Muhsin Hendricks was an imam who was known for his willingness to reach out to interfaith couples and same-sex couples who wanted to get married.

The good fruits of his commitment to God were plainly visible in the way that he encouraged love and reconciliation. The bad fruits of those who killed him, or who have sought to justify his murder or have kept silent about it, are also plainly visible.

Whatever our faith tradition, each one of us has an opportunity to open our hearts to receive God’s all-merciful love and then share the fruits of that love with others – during Ramaadan, during Lent and throughout the year.

dennis hurley centre

Celebrating unity: the interfaith Iftar at the Denis Hurley Centre