On two recent Sundays, Latter-day Saint congregations on opposite sides of the globe experienced the sweetness of friendship and interfaith connection through a centuries-old tradition: Noah’s pudding.
On July 28, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Chantilly, Virginia, welcomed guests from the American Turkish Friendship Association. Two weeks later, on Aug. 10, Latter-day Saints near Sydney, Australia, received Muslim friends from the Affinity Intercultural Foundation and Galaxy Foundation.
At both gatherings, visitors brought servings of Noah’s pudding — also known as ashura — a traditional dessert that carries spiritual symbolism across several faith traditions, including Islam, Christianity, Judaism and the Baha’i faith.