Multi-faith children’s playground in Fredericia

Christian, Muslim, and Hindu children learn about each other’s culture

“Playbridge between faiths” is the name of the new children’s multi-faith playground that opened recently in Fredericia, a Jutland town of some 40,000 inhabitants, including some 2,000 Muslims and 1,500 Hindus. The playground contains 3 playhouses: a Hindu temple, a Muslim mosque, and a Christian church. The project has been supported by Fredericia Town Council, and the buildings have been constructed by the local Skills Centre (Kompetencecentret Fredericia).

 

Fredericia has a 300-year history of religious freedom and tolerance – for persecuted Jews and Huguenots, for example – and the tradition is being continued today with the three faiths. Among those representing the Christian share is Pastor Karina Dahlmann of nearby Hannerup Church: “The 3 faith-groups have each been responsible for their building, but we’ve helped one another out in the process. For example, all three faiths helped to paint the mosque! We have established friends and acquaintances along the way, so I now have good contacts to other religious communities in the town. It’s been a great success so far,” says Pastor Dahlmann, “with visits from day-care groups, kindergartens, and school classes. The playground mirrors the reality we live in and it’s enriching for all of us to learn about one another’s faiths.”

 

School and Church collaboration
Among the visitors so far is school teacher Karin Møberg with 75 3rd graders. So successful was the visit that she and Pastor Dahlmann are producing teaching material to make the next visit even more informative – and even more fun! “It’s a good place for children to ask some of life’s big questions,” she says. “They get a practical approach to the basic stories of each faith and we can build on the visit in school afterwards. The ethnic Danes were curious about our own culture, because our bi-lingual children often know more about their cultural origin. A the same time some of the bi-lingual children who don’t normally say much realised that they really could contribute with something, and that made them quite proud!”

 

Pastor Dahlmann adds: “When I ask questions about the mosque, I can see that the Muslim children straighten their backs; they can see a chance to talk about their religion and culture. When children with a Christian background hear about other children’s culture, they also want to tell them what they know about the church – for instance, that you get some strange bread over there on Sundays!”

 

Picture: Bjarne Dahlmann

 

 

By: Edward Broadbridge

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