Coexist House is a charity for interfaith dialogue based at Inner Temple in London, England.

The mission of Coexist House is:^[1]

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 KBE.

As of January 2024, Coexist House's board of trustees comprises Sir Bernard Rix, Professor Malik Dahlan and Professor Tim Winter.^[1] Previous trustees included Sir Roger Gifford (who died in 2021) and Robin Griffith-Jones.^[2] The charity has been led by Michael Wakelin and Fatimah Mohammed‐Ashrif.^[3][4]

Launch of Coexist House

In 2013, the Coexist Foundation and the University of Cambridge Interfaith Programme launched the Coexist House initiative to establish a centre for multi-faith understanding and education in London.^[5][6][2][7] According to Sir Bernard Rix, 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.^[8]

The project was conceived by David Ford, Regius Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge, with an advisory board comprising the Coexist Foundation, the Cambridge Interfaith Programme, the City of London Corporation, the Victoria and Albert Museum and Inner Temple. The project was formally launched in 2013 at a dinner at the Mansion House, hosted by Sir Roger Gifford, where the Archbishop of Canterbury gave a speech in support.^[9]

In 2015, Coexist House had support from The Prince of Wales, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Bishop of London, the Chief Rabbi, the Attorney General, and Princess Badiya bint El Hassan of Jordan.^[10][11] Eric Pickles, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Minister for Faith, announced government support for Coexist House at a speech at Temple Church in 2015.^[12][2] 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 created the design and business plan.^[2]

In 2018, Coexist House was registered as a charity with the Charity Commission, and the Coexist Foundation was dissolved.^[13][1]

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.^[14][15] The exhibition initially comprised 14 ancient and modern works, including by Bill Viola; Jacopo Bassano; Michael Takeo Magruder; Terry Duffy; Jacob Epstein; Leni Dothan; G. Roland Biermann; and Guy Reid.^[16][17][18] The exhibition was hosted in 2016 in London (with support from the Cambridge Interfaith Programme, King’s College London and Art and Sacred Places) – at the National Gallery, the Tower of London, Methodist Central Hall, and St Paul’s Cathedral; in 2017 in Washington, D.C. – at the National Cathedral, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, adjacent to the Supreme Court and at the American University; and in 2018 in New York City – at The Cloisters, the Cathedral of St John the Divine and the 9/11 Memorial.^[19][20][21]

In 2017, Coexist House collaborated with Ernst & Young (EY) and Professor Adam Dinham from Goldsmiths, University of London 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.^{[22][23][24][14][25]}

In 2018, Nicola Green 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 Dalai Lama, Ali Gomaa, Jonathan Sacks and Justin Welby. The exhibition was shown at St Martin-in-the-Fields in London.^{[26][27][28][29]}

In 2018, Coexist House collaborated with British Muslim TV, Church Times and Jewish News 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, and participated in a business plan competition with investors, sponsored by KAICIID. The competition winners included Mohammad Ryad Khodabocus, from the Luton-based organisation Grassroots, and Josephine Davidoff.^[30][31][32]

In 2019, Coexist House collaborated with Temple Church to convene a symposium at Middle Temple 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, and Lord Woolf.^[33]

In 2019, Coexist House participated in the Greenbelt Festival, together with the Cambridge Interfaith Programme and Rose Castle.^[14]

In 2020, Coexist House partnered with St George’s House, the Lincoln Theological Institute and the MB Reckitt Trust to host 'Climate change among the religions: A forum for engagement'.

Coexist Foundation

The Coexist Foundation (stylised COEXIST or ☾OE✡︎IS†) was a charity founded in 2005 by Mohammed Jameel KBE and registered as with the Charity Commission in 2006. Its activities were transferred to Coexist House in 2015 and the charity was dissolved in 2018.^[13][34]

Coexist Foundation

Founded	2005
Founder	Mohammed Jameel KBE
Dissolved	2018-02-09
Type	Charity
Registration no.	1113284
Focus	Interfaith dialogue
Area served	Worldwide
Revenue	£3.15 million (2017)[13]

References