What if the pedagogical methods of religions, when shared outside the confines of religious communities, could provide a more inclusive learning experience?
Daniel Moulin
University Associate Professor in Philosophy and World Religions
A quarter of a century has passed since Michael Grimmitt published the seminal Pedagogies of Religious Education. This influential volume summarised the various approaches to religious education generated in England after the 1988 Education Act, which first made the inclusion of the “world religions” statutory. Grimmitt noted that all the classical pedagogical models, though fundamentally different, shared the same secular and foundational assumption: the methods for religious education must lie outside of religious traditions.
In an era of curriculum review, Daniel Moulin, who leads the training of Religious Education specialists at the University of Cambridge, was keen to flip the script: What if the pedagogical methods of religions, when shared outside the confines of religious communities, could provide a richer, more inclusive learning experience, and one that promotes even greater understanding?
To explore this, Moulin worked with the Cambridge Interfaith Research Forum to host a one-day symposium featuring three interactive workshops, each based on a specific religious tradition’s approaches to learning and teaching. Participants included teaching professionals, the current Religious Studies PGCE cohort, plus a mix of Cambridge researchers from postgraduate upward.
Exploring the rabbinic imagination
Rabbi Shoshana Boyd-Gelfand explained the Hebrew roots of inquiry (m-d-r-sh) and study buddies (h-v-r) Cambridge, 2026
In the first workshop, Rabbi Shoshana Boyd-Gelfand introduced midrash as a mode of enquiry, inviting attendees to work in twos and threes to interrogate the passage of Torah where Cain kills Abel (Genesis/Bereshith 4:1-16). Three rules shaped this task: no word is superfluous (so pay attention to repetition and other peculiarities); consider the “space” between words (what is missing?); and work with a buddy (hever) primed to challenge trains of thought.
The prominent ellipsis—what Cain says to his brother before killing him—offers an archetypal textual gap, a space for interpretation. After around 10-15 minutes’ direct textual engagement, Shoshana introduced chunks from the 7th-century CE Midrash Rabbah, where rabbis suggested different causes of the fatal argument—competing ownership, claim on God’s affections, and sex. A poem from Dan Pagis and a song by Alicia Jo Rabins provided contemporary examples of midrashic engagement with the same passage.
Qur’anic learning
Daniel introduces Dunya Habash and Farah Ahmed (photograph by Arwa Al-Qassim, 2026)
Dr Dunya Habash and Dr Farah Ahmed offered an auditory stimulus, playing and replaying a section of Quranic recitation. The reciter was Sheikh Abdul Basit Abdul Samad (1927-1988). The passage was from Surah Al-Alaq, the opening of the Angel Gabriel’s revelation to the Prophet Muhammad. For those who knew no Arabic, a repeated silence between phrases was among the striking features. On the second listening, we were invited to attend to the opening injunction iqra, “Read/recite”—learning the difficulty of clearly enunciating.
This provided an entry point for considering the layers of attention as children are encouraged to memorise (hifz), pronounce (tajwīd), and gradually make sense of oral tradition. Addressing a possible misapprehension, Shoshana explained that while a diversity of interpretation is facilitated through midrashic reading, when reading aloud great care is taken to learn the correct Hebrew sounds—so we noted similarities between Jewish and Muslim practice on this point. Wrapping the second workshop, the group sat in a circle to try and then reflect on the dialogic approach of ḥalaqah —as embedded in the Shakhsiyah Islamiyah approach Farah has developed. Attendees were struck that the same methods can be used across the curriculum, including—for example—in maths and science.
Finding God in all things
After lunch, Paul Nicholls SJ introduced the Ignatian practice of Examen: St Ignatius (born 1491) started out as a mercenary soldier. Rehabilitating after serious injury, he developed his own reflexive practice, reshaping medieval spirituality to form an “accompanied programme of discernment”. He went on to train for the priesthood, rising through Parisian academia. A circle of keen followers helped establish the Society of Jesus to share Ignatius’s approach, with a teaching mission.
Under Paul’s guidance, we undertook an exercise: stilling ourselves and taking gratitude as a starting point before looking backwards over the past day with attention to key moments (good or bad). In religious terms, we were invited to consider what God had been doing. In secular terms, we could ask ourselves what had energised or given us life. We then turned our attention to the immediate future and our needs.
The task stood out as internally focused, cultivating or forming the self—in line with the Jesuit endorsement of a set of virtues. In twos and threes, we shared something of our reflection, before a more thorough group discussion of this exercise—including the difference between “virtues” and “values” and what these terms suggest about the role of faith in pedagogy.
Reflections
Looking back across the day and thinking specifically about the potential for applying these experiences within a pluralist religious education, attendees offered a range of reflections:
The possibility of debate including disagreement left teaching professionals feeling challenged and encouraged to incorporate a dialogical approach in their work. Sitting in a circular formation or picking at ellipses offers a possible corrective amidst the proliferation of screentime and AI.
It is possible to teach as if religions were museum pieces—the cumulative engagement experienced in midrash, recitation and reflection offer an embodied alternative. The workshops had presented a distinctive opportunity to “step into” traditions, to experience insider practice and appreciate cultural logics.
Experiencing the workshops as part of a single event had enabled comparison between traditions, nuancing understandings and provoking further discussion. While the workshops were independently planned, there was a poetic element to the move from debate to gratitude—and all were thankful to Daniel for taking the care to curate this event.
Next steps
The coming of a new era for Religious Education is a moment of opportunity. Daniel explained that he is exploring possibilities to co-create resources with an Engineering colleague (Dr Nazia Habib). There was enthusiasm to know more and be part of such collaborations.
Speaking briefly on behalf of the Cambridge Interfaith Programme, Dr Iona Hine explained how the linked Research Forum connects Cambridge researchers working to take religion seriously (including Daniel and Nazia). Participants were encouraged to subscribe to CIP communications, as Iona highlighted opportunities including the Believe in Climate Action project working with schools across England, chance for faith communities and professionals to engage with the SEND White Paper, and poetry resources linked with Inter Faith Week 2026 and the Cambridge Festival of Islamic Arts (19-29 November).
We closed with an obligatory group photo.