“Christians and Muslims: Caring for Our Common Home” was the slogan of this year’s celebrations, during which representatives of both religions read the Bible and the Quran, prayed and held discussions.

– Islam itself, as expressed by the word “salam,” is peace—the peace sent by God—and the religion that we accept, in accordance with which we believe and which we will follow – KAI reported during the celebrations, quoting the Mufti of the Muslim Religious Union of the Republic of Poland.

In Warsaw, Catholic and Christian hierarchs met at Akademik Praski. Ambassadors of Muslim countries in Poland attended the celebrations. The host of the meeting was Bishop Henryk Ciereszko, chairman of the Polish Bishops’ Conference Committee for Dialogue with Non-Christian Religions.

– While respecting other traditions, we are to persevere and develop in the Christian faith, proclaim Christ and be His witnesses before others – this is how Bishop Ciereszko explained the idea behind the Days of Islam in an interview with KAI. – Negatives are everywhere, including in the attitudes of Christians and followers of other religions, when someone is not faithful to the path they have chosen – the bishop added.

In Kraków, the Day of Islam was celebrated at the Basilica of the Franciscan Fathers. There was also a blood drive at St. Nicholas Parish and a bone marrow donation drive at the Muslim Centre. At the Pontifical University of John Paul II in Kraków, a panel titled “Peace in the Time of Women. A Muslim Woman, a Jewish Woman and a Christian Woman Discuss What We Do and What More We Can Do for Peace Between Religions” was held.

History and knowledge

From the 16th century until the 1980s, the followers of Islam in Poland were exclusively Polish Tatars. In the 1970s and 1980s, Arabs began arriving in Poland to study. Most of them left for their home countries after completing their studies.

There are two Muslim religious associations in Poland entered in the register of Churches and Religious Associations:

  • Muslim Religious Union in the Republic of Poland, officially recognized in 1925, which currently has approximately 6,000 members and mainly brings together Polish Muslim Tatars. Their largest communities live in the Podlaskie Voivodeship (in Białystok, Sokółka, Suchowola and Dąbrowa Białostocka). Historic mosques are located in Bohoniki and Kruszyniany, where only individual Tatar families now live.
  • The Muslim League in the Republic of Poland, registered in 2004. It brings together Muslims coming to Poland to study or work, as well as people who adopt Islam as their religion. It has approximately 25,000 members.