Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day
Sunday, 8th of May 2022
Bristol Bristol Multi-Faith Forum (BMFF) is organising this year’s Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day on Sunday, the 8th of May 2022 from 9.30 am to 5 pm. Over the years many places of worship have opened their doors to the general public and to members of other faith communities as part of this event, which is unique to Bristol.
Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day 2022 Leaflet: Pages 4 and 1
Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day 2022 Leaflet: Pages 2 and 3
The Multi-Faith Trail at the Gurdwara
Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day celebrates the religious diversity of Bristol, giving communities the chance to experience each other’s cultures and learn about each other’s beliefs; and offering the opportunity to visit a range of places of worship and discover the many faith communities that exist in Bristol.
The theme of this year’s Diverse Doors Open Day will be Spirituality and Mental well-being, and BMFF will collaborate with Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust to pass on the message to the community.
BMFF will arrange a scheduled tour providing minibus transport for people who have signed up for the tour in advance, for a small donation of £5. The Faith Trail will pass through a Buddhist shrine, a Greek Orthodox Church, a Black Christian Church, a Muslim Mosque, a Sikh Gurudwara, a Jewish Synagogue, a Hindu Temple, and a Bahai Centre. Due to the epidemic restrictions, seats are limited on the tour. Please email info@bristolmultifaithforum.org.uk to book your seats in advance.
2022 Diverse Doors Multi-Faith Trail will start at 9.30 am on Sunday, the 8th of May 2022 from the BMFF office at the Barton Hill Settlement, 43 Ducie Road, Bristol (BS5 0AX), and will finish by 5 pm. We request all those who are interested, to join this year’s Diverse Doors Multi-Faith Trail.
2021 Diverse Doors Open Day
2021 March 13th Saturday, through a virtual platform: An article by the Bristol Post enclosed herewith
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-diverse-doors-2021-could-4963456
Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day organised by the Bristol Multi-Faith Forum usually in mid-February, offering people the chance to visit different places of worship around the city and learn about each other’s beliefs, will be held virtually in 2021. This would have been its 14th year, but the ongoing pandemic means that it is not safe or legal for people to mix.
Organisers at Bristol Multi-Faith Forum are considering holding a virtual event instead, but have confirmed that the usual talks, tours and ‘faith trail’ around religious landmarks will not take place in person. The forum’s chairman Tom Aditya said: “The beauty of the Diverse Doors open days is that it’s more than just visiting a place of worship. “People talk about faith and life, they share food and customs and ask questions.
“The Multi-Faith Forum is about [encouraging] community cohesion and social harmony, and also to promote health and wellbeing in the community.” He said it is for that reason, for everyone’s safety, that the event cannot go ahead, as usual, this year.
Despite not being able to organise the open day, members of the Forum have still been busy, having embraced another important role, the vaccine roll-out. They have been helping to engage with BAME communities to encourage take-up of the COVID-19 vaccine, helping to dispel misinformation and overcome language barriers.
Tom, who is also a Bradley Stoke councillor, referenced studies that suggest there is widespread hesitance among some communities to have the jab. He said: “We are promoting ideas of health and wellbeing, those are our core values.”
During Diverse Doors last year, 12 different places of worship took part and hundreds of people attended. A faith trail was created around six of those venues, including a Buddhist shrine, a mosque, a Greek Orthodox church, a gurudwara, a synagogue, a Hindu temple and a Baháʼí Centre.
Tom said the aim of the event is to unite people regardless of their faith and allow people to ask questions. Former Bradley Stoke mayor Tom said: “I feel that religion should not be blind, it should question itself, that’s the way forward. “People can be inward-looking, in their own world. “Many people used to ask if I’m a Hindu, Sikh, Muslim – personally I’m a Christian, but it doesn’t matter. “One of our mottos is to discourage fundamentalism. Even though we represent faith communities, we want harmony and a better way of life.”
The Multi-Faith Forum was set up in 2004 by Bristol City Council, as an agency for “inter-faith and intercultural community cohesion”. It proudly describes Diverse Doors as an event “unique to Bristol”.
Tom has been chairman for two years but became involved prior to that to oversee its blood and organ donation campaign. In a blog post marking World Religion Day last month, he wrote: “We are hoping to host Diverse Doors Open Day again, once the situation gets better.
“We are fortunate to have the advantage of modern technology and social media platforms, which helps to deliver the message to the wider audience effectively.
“Let’s save lives by staying at home and spreading the message of kindness.”
2020 Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day
2020 February 23rd, Sunday:
Pictures of the 2020 Diverse Doors Open Day are available on our Facebook page: BMFF Facebook page 2020 DDOD
The Bristol Multi-Faith Forum has been organising the Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day for many years:
- celebrating our religious diversity, giving a flavour of the many faiths in Bristol;
- giving communities the chance to experience each other’s cultures and learn about each other’s beliefs; and
- offering the opportunity to visit a range of places of worship and discover the many faith communities that exist in Bristol.
Over the years many places of worship have opened their doors to the general public as part of this event, which is unique to Bristol.
Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day 2020 will be on Sunday, the 23rd of February 2020. This annual event organised by the Bristol Multi-Faith Forum offers the opportunity to visit a range of places of worship in Bristol. It aims to give a flavour of the many faiths in the city of Bristol. Bristol Diverse Doors Open Day 2020 is coordinated by BMFF Chair, Mayor Tom Aditya with the cooperation of the faith communities in Bristol and harmonised by BMFF support officer Lily Khandekar and BMFF Steering Group members.
This year, 12 places of worship will open their doors and in addition, 6 venues will be formed as a designated ‘Faith Trail’, each representing a different faith. The faith trail includes a Buddhist Shrine, a Mosque, a Greek Orthodox Church, a Sikh Gurudwara, a Jewish Synagogue, a Hindu Temple and a Bahai Centre. At each of these 6 core venues, there was an opportunity to participate in a tour and a discussion. So people could follow the designated ‘Faith Trail’ at the specified times or visit any of the venues at their convenience. You can follow the faith trail, in our specially provided buses. For bookings please email, support@bristolmultifaithforum.org.uk or call on 07394 913290.
The Faith Trail starts at 9.30 from the BMFF office at the Barton Hill Settlement, 43 Ducie Road, Bristol (BS5 0AX). The BMFF had arranged special buses to transport people around the various venues on that day. The cost of the ‘faith trail bus’ is £5 per person (to be paid on the day), but places are limited so you need to book in advance.
The Faith Trail will be at Amitabha Buddhist Centre (Old Vicarage, Gloucester Road, Bristol BS7 8NX) by 10 am and will pass through the Greek Orthodox Church, the Easton Islamic Dargah, the Bristol Sikh Gurudwara, the Bristol Progressive Synagogue and finally culminates at the Hindu Temple by 4.30 pm. Please click the BBC radio link of the 2020 Diverse Doors Open Day to know more about it: https://youtu.be/h_ovkRbrjvU.
The details of this year’s Diverse Doors Open Day are enclosed in the leaflet below. Please join in.
For more details contact us on 07789 040267 or email us at info@bristolmultifaithforum.org.uk
2020 Faith Trail Details
| Time | Place |
|---|---|
| 09:30-09:45 | Faith Trail Departure: Barton Hill Settlement 43 Ducie Road, Bristol, BS5 0AX |
| 10:00-11:00 | Amitabha Buddhist Centre Old Vicarage, Gloucester Rd, Bristol, BS7 8NX |
| 11:15-12:00 | Bristol Greek Orthodox Church,
St Peter’s and St Paul’s Greek Orthodox Church |
| 12:15-13:00 | Easton Islamic Dargah
(Greenbank Mosque) Greenbank Road, Bristol BS5 6HE |
| 13:15-14:30 | Bristol Sikh Gurdwara
(Shri Guru Nanak Prakash Singh Sabha Gurdwara) |
| 14:45-15.30 | Bristol Progressive Jewish Synagogue
Bristol and West Progressive Jewish Congregation |
| 16:00-17:00 | Bristol Hindu Temple 163A Church Rd, Bristol BS5 9LA |
| 17:30 | Passing through Bristol Bahai Centre, finishing the ‘faith-trail’ at Barton Hill Settlement 43 Ducie Road, Bristol, BS5 0AX |
2019 Doors Open Day details
For photos of the 2019 Diverse Doors Open Day, see here
The 2019 Information Leaflet is here for all the details of the day, including all 15 participating venues.
The 2019 poster is here
2019 Venues
The ‘Facilities’ on the table are Wheelchair access, Disabled toilet, Refreshments and Trail venue.
| Venue | Facilities | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Amitabha Buddhist Centre Old Vicarage, Gloucester Rd, Bristol, BS7 8NX |
WDR | Opening time: 10.30 am to 1 pm |
| Bedminster Quaker Meeting Hall Wedmore Vale, Bedminster, Bristol, BS3 5HX |
WDR | Between 10:30 am and 12.30 pm, we will be holding our usual Sunday Meeting for Worship followed by socialising. Visitors are very welcome to join us, but we ask them to stay for the whole time of the worship. |
| Bristol and West Progressive Jewish Congregation 43/47 Bannerman Rd, Bristol BS5 0RR |
WDRT | |
| Bristol Bahá’í Centre 8 Church Road, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, BS5 9JA |
RT | |
| Bristol Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church 31-35 Ashley Road, St Werburgs, Bristol, BS6 5NJ |
WD | |
| Bristol Hebrew Congregation 9 Park Row, Bristol BS1 5LP |
||
| Bristol Hindu Temple 163A Church Rd, Bristol BS5 9LA |
T | |
| Bristol Jamia Mosque Green Street, Totterdown, Bristol, BS3 4UB |
RT | People can observe the midday prayer starting at 1 pm |
| Easton Islami Dargah Greencastle House, Greenbank Rd, Bristol, BS5 6HE |
WD | |
| Easton Jamia Mosque 66 St Marks Road, Bristol, BS5 6JH |
W | |
| Shah Jalal Jame Mosque 470 Stapleton Rd, Bristol, BS5 6PA |
WDR | Prayers from 1 to 1.20 pm and 3 to 3.30 pm |
| Shri Guru Nanak Prakash Singh Sabha Gurdwara (Bristol Sikh Temple) 71-75 Fishponds Road, Eastville, Bristol, BS5 6SF |
T | Opening time: 10 am to 3 pm |
| Siri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara 301-307 Church Rd, St George, Bristol BS5 8AA |
W | Opening time: 10 am to 3 pm |
| St Anne’s Church St Leonard’s Road, Eastville, Bristol BS5 6JN |
WR | Opening time: 9.30 am to 4 pm Services: Eucharist at 10 am and evening prayer at 3.30 pm; all are welcome to participate or observe; children are welcome to Godly Play during our 10 am service |
2018 Details
See our 2018 Information Leaflet here.
See photos from our 2018 event here.
2017 Details
See photos from our 2017 event here.
