Manchester was the scene of a terrible atrocity a fortnight ago – and a wonderfully healing concert only yesterday. But there's still a deep awareness that the bomb that shattered so many lives at Ariana Grande's concert at the Manchester Arena was detonated by a man claiming to act in the name of Islam.
So one church in the city's Levenshulme district was determined to make sure Muslims in the area know they are accepted and loved. St Peter's Church, which works with the neighborough St Mark's parish, is close to the Madina mosque. Led by curate Rev Daud Gill, who was brought up in Pakistan, church members approached Muslims leaving after Friday prayers and handed out flowers. The initiative was caught on a video that has been viewed thousands of times.
It's the second time Gill has been involved in this kind of witness; the previous Friday he and others handed out flowers oustide the Cheetham Hill mosque and he plans another visit to a third mosque this Friday.
He told Christian Today: 'Most people were glad to take them. Some didn't, but I don't think this was a negative sign – we had some women in the team and it might have been a cultural thing for the men. Generally they were received very well.'
While he said he had not been aware of any hostility towards Muslim in the area after the terrorist atrocities, he wanted to make sure Muslims knew they were not being singled out. 'Our idea was, if there is any tension or fear, or any dislike, we will break down those barriers,' he said.
Gill said that growing up in Pakistan he had many Muslim friends. 'We all probably know that all Muslims don't have that [extremist] view,' he said.
