Thursday, July 22, 2010

On an Interfaith Prayer for the G8 World Religions Summit: Ever unite us

 
Most religious traditions put an emphasis on thanksgiving.  The prayer below gives grateful recognition to the unique and diverse gifts of the world’s spiritual traditions.

Reader: We give thanks for the world’s religions and the richness they bring to our lives.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Baha’i brothers and sisters, for their genuine openness and desire for unity.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Buddhist sisters and brothers, for their sense of peace and relinquishing of self.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Christian brothers and sisters, for their message of love and ethic of compassion.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Hindu sisters and brothers, for their openhearted acceptance of others and kindly disposition toward those of other faiths.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Humanist brothers and sisters, for their emphasis on the dignity and worth of all persons.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Muslim sisters and brothers, for their commitment in prayer and faithfulness in worship.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Jain brothers and sisters, for their deep respect for life and practice of nonviolence.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Jewish sisters and brothers, for their enriching symbols of worship and cherishing of tradition.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Aboriginal brothers and sisters, for their reverence of nature and their ancient and still-living culture.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Shinto brothers and sisters, for their affirmation of ritual and awareness of the natural world

People: We give thanks

Reader: We give thanks for our Sikh sisters and brothers, for their warm hospitality and public witness of faith.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Taoist brothers and sisters, for their sense of the connectedness of all things and pursuit of harmony.

People: We give thanks

Reader: we give thanks for our Unitarian sisters and brothers, for their openness to truth and commitment to freedom, reason and tolerance.

People: We give thanks.

Reader: We give thanks for our Zoroastrian sisters and brothers, for their devotion to right though, right speech and right action.

People: We give thanks.

Leader: We give thanks for every faith tradition, named and unnamed, for the variety and richness of their spiritualities, for their united quest for truth, for their common dedication tot he pursuit of peace, reconciliation and healing of the spirit.

Congregation: We give thanks.  Ever unite us as one community of joy, hope, love and peace.  Ever inspire us to live more genuinely and authentically, celebrating diversity, affirming unity, pursing peace, not just for better relations among  philosophies, but for a new and more just world.  Amen.

“Ever Unite Us” -- An Interfaith Prayer for the G8 World Religions Summit
 
 
The blogger here reposts this prayer as an example of a bad thing. Baha'is know the limitations to what the interfaith movement can accomplish, but the direction people of faith must inevitably take is clear, towards ever higher levels of unity. -gw

Posted via email from Baha'i Views

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