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Since October 7th many Muslims and Jews the world over have stopped talking and in some cases turned on each other. Amid this turmoil a Rabbi and an Imam managed to keep their friendship alive and have launched this podcast to show the power of dialogue in bridging divides between the two communities. This bi-weekly podcast will explore how Imam Nasser Kurdy and Rabbi Dovid Lewis have, despite their many disagreements, managed to stay friends while war rages thousands of miles away. They are two men of faith who speak to each other in 'good faith.' Imam Nasser Kurdy, originally from Jordan, is a Manchester-based surgeon and lay Imam. Rabbi Dovid Lewis, is a native Mancunion and has led the south Manchester Jewish Community since 2011. They’ve been friends since 2012, but became closer after Nasser was stabbed in his neck outside his mosque (as reported in The Guardian) in South Manchester in 2017. Together, they’ve championed dozens of interfaith initiatives across schools and premiership football clubs in the north west of England since October 7th. For example, they recently co-led an assembly for teenagers on navigating difficult conversations about Israel-Palestine. Imam Nasser Kurdy: "The Israeli-Palestinian conflict affects relationships within our local communities. Jews and Muslims are having great difficulty speaking to each other. There's no dialogue. Hence this podcast, it's about dialogue." Rabbi Dovid Lewis: "In our own communities, we might like to think we are influential: Nasser leads the mosque, I lead the synagogue. However, neither of us are able to make a direct difference to what's happening in Israel, Palestine, Gaza, the West Bank. But what is our responsibility? It is to make sure that it doesn't spill over into our communities, into the friendships that we have made with one another." Subscribe now to join the conversation This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Check latest episodes from The Rabbi, The Imam and The Power of Dialogue podcast

Big News: Why the King Honoured This Imam

2026/01/23

A mysterious letter arrived at the end of last year New Year with huge news from the King. In this special episode, we reveal why Imam Nasser was awarded an MBE and what this recognition means for the future of Muslim Jewish dialogue. From a local initiative to visiting the House of Lords and Buckingham Palace, join Rabbi Dovid and Imam Nasser as they discuss this incredible milestone and ask you to help shape their next conversation. This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Bondi Beach Attack: Finding Light in the Darkness

2025/12/16

Recorded on Monday 15th December - 1st day of Chanukah Rabbi Dovid Lewis and Imam Nasser Kurdy respond to the anti-semitic terrorist attack on Bondi Beach in Australia on Sunday 14th December, which claimed the life of Dovid’s second cousin, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, and fourteen others attending the menorah-lighting celebration on the first night of Chanukah, including another rabbi and a Holocaust survivor. Dovid and Nasser talk about: how their Sundays unfolded; the ‘stranger’ who reached out to console Dovid; Nasser’s reflections on the extraordinary bravery of Ahmed Al Ahmed, the Muslim man who ran towards the gunman in Bondi and saved many lives; and, together, they try to find hope and inspiration in the story and message of Chanukah – known as the 'Festival of Lights'. This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Terror, The Tears and The Hope

2025/11/27

After a short break Imam Nasser Kurdy and Rabbi Dovid Lewis are back for a brand new series. From their time off‑air, they’ve plenty to talk about and reflect on: from the terror attack on Manchester’s Heaton Park Synagogue, and the tense vigil that followed, to how they moved an audience member to tears at an inter‑faith event, and how Nasser made history at one of British Jewry’s oldest institutions. All is explained in this edition of The Rabbi, The Imam and The Power of Dialogue. This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the digital world driving Jews and Muslims further apart?

2025/07/22

Imran Ahmed, CEO and founder of the Center for Countering Digital Hate talks to Rabbi Dovid Lewis and Imam Nasser Kurdy about why social media algorithms are helping to drive us further apart by feeding our urge to click and share only the most biased and distressing news. Imran is the go-to expert for governments and policy makers around the world who want to understand the way social media firms capture our attention by keeping us in a constant state of anxiety and anger, and often spread misinformation and disinformation. He recently gave expert evidence before a parliamentary inquiry into the social media's role in the 2024 UK summer riots. He's guested on the BBC and NBC, and is regularly quoted in the New York Times, the Sunday Times, the Guardian, the Independent, just to name a few. Although Imran is currently living in the United States he is a native of Manchester and this podcast draws on his deep connection to the city, with the many personal relationships he developed in his formative years with members of the Jewish and Muslim communities there. The wide-ranging conversation addresses the complexities of establishing truth during events like the Gaza war, and the challenges Jews and Muslims face when trying to connect in digital spaces. But it's not all doom and gloom as he suggests ways in which the two faiths can still build real understanding across community lines. This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is true empathy between Jews and Muslims on Gaza possible?

2025/06/18

Dovid and Nasser discuss the difficulties of showing empathy between Muslims and Jews, especially during times of conflict. They share their own experiences and explain how personal pain can make it hard to recognise the suffering of others. Drawing on lessons from their faiths, they highlight the value of compassion and respect for others, and offer advice on how listeners can develop empathy towards people from different backgrounds. This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why the word Zionism connects some and divides us all

2025/06/04

Zionism is a deeply complex and contested word, which acts as idea, a movement and a label. For many Jews Zionism represents the fulfilment of a centuries-old longing for self-determination, safety, and a homeland in Israel. It has served as a unifying force, giving a sense of purpose, identity, and collective belonging. For these people, Zionism is a source of pride and connection—spiritually, culturally, and historically. At the same time, Zionism is a source of profound division—between Jews and non-Jews, Israelis and Palestinians, and even within Jewish and broader communities. Its association with nationalism, the founding of the State of Israel, and the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict makes it a flashpoint for political, religious, and ethical debates. For Palestinians and many others, Zionism is linked to displacement, loss, and ongoing struggle, while for some Jews it has come to mean different things depending on their relationship to Israel and diaspora life. In this episode The Rabbi and The Imam discuss the origin of the word Zionism, how its meaning has evolved through the centuries - from its ancient religious roots to modern political manifestations - and what it means to both of them today. On this journey Nasser explains why his upbringing initially made him an anti-Zionist, Dovid tries to distinguish between religious and political zionists, and both discuss how the idea of Zionism has been weaponised by all sides in this conflict. Links to topics mentioned in the show Roots This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Whose side are you on?

2025/05/21

Imam Nasser Kurdy and Rabbi Dovid Lewis explore the roots of their connections to the land at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, questioning whether an attachment to a land is about ownership, heritage or spiritual longing. They discuss what it means to care so deeply about a place neither was born in, and how faith and religion have shaped their perspectives as a pro-Palestine Muslim and a pro-Israel Jew - both living in Manchester. Can a sense of belonging be shared by different peoples with overlapping histories? This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Who are we? And how October 7th changed everything

2025/05/07

In this first episode we get to know Imam Nasser Kurdy and Rabbi Dovid Lewis; how they met, whether Kosher food is also Halal, how Nasser’s stabbing changed their relationship and why October 7th changed everything in their lives. Background to podcast In the very best of times, it’s rare for an Orthodox Rabbi and Imam to become such good friends - but how much more so since October 7th? Since that day, Muslims and Jews the world over have stopped talking to each other, and in some cases turned on each other - leaving communities worldwide heartbroken. Yet Nasser and Dovid, religious neighbours in south Manchester, England, not only choose to keep their friendship alive but are trying to use it as a force for good. This is how our podcast came about. This bi-weekly series (every two weeks) will explore how a 'pro-Palestine' Muslim and a 'pro-Israel' Jew, have maintained a friendship through open and honest dialogue, even as war rages thousands of miles away and is affecting relationships within their local communities. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions about the podcast please email [email protected] or [email protected] This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New podcast series - coming Wednesday May 7, 2025!

2025/05/02

Trail for a new podcast series about The Rabbi, The Imam and the Power of Dialogue. This is a Mark Schweiger and Larchmont Productions co-production. If you have any comments or suggestions about the podcast please email: [email protected] or [email protected] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.