The two schools participating in our interreligious project entitled “What connects us – What distinguishes us?” are a grammar school in Werl, Germany (Städtisches Marien-Gymnasium) and a grammar school in Temeswar, Romania (Nikolaus Lenau Lyzeum). At the school in Werl parents and students are given a choice when it comes to the overall focus of their school career from the first year of tuition. One of these particular ‘profiles’ is named “Growing Together”. It focuses on the bilingual aspect (German and English) as well as uniting it with intercultural and social aspects. The partner school in Romania is a high school that teaches the German minority present there, hence, many subjects are taught through German. As both schools teach pupils of different cultural backgrounds and religions, we are convinced that our project will contribute in the long term to a climate of mutual acceptance. By examining different religious beliefs, possibilities of respectful understanding will be developed and the similarities will be emphasized. This is of great importance to Werl, where several faiths such as Catholics, Protestants and Muslims live along side each other. Similarly, the coexistence of Orthodox Christians and Jews in Temeswar is a relevant topic in the local community. During our planned mutual visits, 12 pupils (from each country) as well as two or three accompanying teachers will work together on the following topics: • similarities and differences between Judaism, Christianity and Islam • knowledge and prejudices about religions • the common roots of the three Abrahamic religions • customs and traditions • each religion’s images or concepts of God To begin with, the participants create a questionnaire concerning the similarities and characteristics of Judaism, Christianity and Islam and conduct a survey in the local community. Using the obtained results, the pupils will be motivated to uncover and question existing prejudices as they progress through the project, acquiring knowledge about the religions. This happens (amongst other things) through visits to a synagogue, various churches and a mosque as well as museum-educational elements. In order to involve the public in Temeswar and Werl, the participants prepare a bilingual (German / English) flyer and a newspaper, prepare an exhibition and write articles for local newspapers as well as the website of the respective schools. The participants gain experience in interreligious dialogue by speaking directly with Muslims and Christians. An interreligious festival involving various local religious communities will also promote interreligious dialogue. By working on this project, the participants will realize that tolerance and respectful interaction are essential for the peaceful harmony of different religions. They question their own attitudes and beliefs by communicating with believers of different religions. They thereby develop a higher level of acceptance and tolerance. In today’s ever more global and plural world, this will prove beneficial to them. In addition, our project raises the awareness of Europe's cultural heritage, which is imperative for the present and future of Europe. In addition to that, the work on the project and cooperation between Romanian and German pupils also ensures that participants become more open to people from other parts of Europe. Last but not least, the linguistic skills of all participants are promoted through the use of the German and English languages. The participants will learn that both English and German are languages that connect people from different European countries. Participation in a European project such as this will broaden their views of Europe and thus act as a pilot project. Our goal is to extend Erasmus + at our schools. Through communicating with the various religious communities, we seek to reduce prejudices in both the schools and the public in Werl and Temeswar whilst strengthening social cohesion in both cities. The goal is to reach as many people as possible - even those who are not actively involved in the project.
The two schools participating in our interreligious project entitled "What connects us? - What makes us different?", are the Städtische Marien-Gymnasium in Werl, Germany and the Nikolaus Lenau Lyceum in Timisoara. The Städtisches Marien-Gymnasium offers, among other things, the profile "Growing Together" from grade 5 onwards, which combines bilingualism (German, English), interculturality and social commitment as focal points. The partner school from Romania is a high school that is primarily dedicated to the German minority from Romania and for this reason many subjects are taught in German at this school. Since students from different backgrounds and religions are taught at both schools, we are convinced that the project will contribute to a climate of mutual acceptance in the long term. By dealing with different religious convictions, possibilities of respectful understanding were developed and commonalities emphasized. In Werl, this concern is particularly significant due to the coexistence of Catholic and Protestant Christians and Muslims in particular, and in Timisoara, among others, Orthodox Christians and Jews. During the visit of the Romanian students in Werl the following topics were worked on: Similarities and differences between Judaism, Christianity and Islam; knowledge and prejudices; the common roots of the three Abrahamic religions. First, the participants conducted a survey on the similarities and characteristics of Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the local communities with the help of questionnaires they had prepared themselves. In the process, they uncovered and questioned existing prejudices and acquired initial knowledge about the religions. This was done, among other things, through visits to various churches and through museum educational elements. Due to the Corona restrictions, the two groups deepened their knowledge, also on the topic of "Images of God", in a division of labor, among other things by visiting the synagogue in Timisoara and the mosque in Werl. Unfortunately, an exchange took place only digitally by video conference. In order to involve the public in Timisoara and Werl, the participants wrote articles for local newspapers and the school homepage. The participants gained experience in interreligious dialogue by talking to Muslims and Christians. Through their work on the project, the participants realized that tolerance and respectful interaction are essential for the peaceful coexistence of different religions. They questioned their own attitudes and beliefs by entering into dialogue with followers of different religions, and thus developed a higher level of acceptance and tolerance. This is essential for both the present and the future of Europe and benefits the students especially in a globalised world. In addition, our project raises awareness of the importance of Europe's cultural heritage. Furthermore, the work on the project and the cooperation between Romanian and German students also made the participants more open towards people from other parts of Europe. Last but not least, the use of the German and English languages enhanced the language skills of all participants. The participation in a European project will further open the view on Europe. Through the dialogue with the different religious communities, we have tried to break down prejudices both in the schools and in the public in Werl and Timisoara and to strengthen social cohesion in both cities.