Public Ramadan celebration on Friday invites all ages to attend

Irish people of all faiths, backgrounds and ages are being invited to take part in the Muslim celebration of Ramadan at sunset this weekend at St Patrick’s Park, Dublin.

It has been organised by a group of young Irish Muslims who hope to encourage communication and understanding among Irish people at a time when followers of Islam are being increasingly stigmatised. The three-day event runs from Friday to Sunday.

Ramadan is the annual month on the Islamic lunar calendar during which Muslims abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset. It runs from May 27th to June 25th this year with the final day marked by the feast of Eid-ul-Fitr, or fast-breaking.

The Under One Tent initiative, which will see a large marquee set up at St Patrick’s Park this weekend, will give those interested in learning more about Islam and meeting members of Ireland’s Muslim community a chance to join together for a celebration of food.

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“Under One Tent’s aim is to focus on the great things we share as humans; a sense of community and friendship,” said one of the organisers, Hajar Akl. “You’ll get to see all these people who are very different individually but together, we’re just one big group of people enjoying a nice evening of food, desserts and games.

“You get to experience an ideal world where ‘difference’ is not a bad thing but something that is celebrated and something that brings people closer together.”

Expanding the celebrations

Fatih El Sayed, who is running the event, said the group decided to expand the celebration after the success of last year’s public Ramadan tent in the city centre.

“The idea is to bring as many people as possible from different backgrounds and faiths and open the door to get to know more about Ramadan and break down any barriers.” He added that the group decided to hold the event in a public park rather than a mosque to make it more accessible to the public.

“This is our way of inviting the public at large to join us over a meal. This allows more integration.”

Doors for the Under One Tent family-friendly celebration open at 7.30pm from Friday-Sunday with food and drink available from 8pm. Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Dr Diarmuid Martin will join Sr Stanislaus Kennedy in speaking at Friday’s event with a number of lawyers, academics and charity workers speaking to attendees over the weekend. All ages are welcome and the evening feast will run till 11pm.