In the name of Allah, the beneficent, the merciful.
Praise be to the Lord of the Universe who has created us and made us into tribes and nations, that we may know each other, not that we may despise each other. If the enemy incline towards peace, do thou also incline towards peace, and trust in God, for the Lord is the one that heareth and knoweth all things. And the servants of God, Most Gracious are those who walk on the Earth in humility, and when we address them, we say “PEACE.”
— A Muslim Prayer for Peace, based on the Koran, 49:13, 8:61
One of my very earliest memories of serving as minister of UUCC is my first Friday afternoon in the Owen Brown Interfaith Center building. I was sitting in my office, which at the time was across the hall from the sanctuary where members of Dar Al-Taqwa Islamic Center gathered for Friday prayers. When the call to prayer began, I was stunned. It was an exquisitely beautiful and moving sound. Undeniably sacred.
It is a privilege and a gift to share worship space with many different congregations — Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Unitarian Universalist. I know that our building and our lives are enriched by the faithful presence of such a variety of observant communities.
And so it was with heartbreak and fury and love and fierce determination that members of UUCC and our friends gathered to welcome members of the Muslim Family Center as they arrived at the interfaith center for Friday prayers today, in the wake of the horrific massacre of praying Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, earlier today.
The members of MFC faithfully gathered for their act of worship, knowing that together they can bear the grief and fear.
We witnessed with them for love and for faith and as a demonstration of condemnation against hate-filled violence.
All of you are invited to gather for an Interfaith Solidarity Event at Dar Al-Taqwa Mosque this Sunday, March 17, 2019, at 6:00 pm: “Dar Al Taqwa Mosque is hosting a Community Wide Solidarity event in the wake of the horrific Tragedy at Christchurch Muslim Congregation in New Zealand. We have invited our interfaith Brother and Sisters from Churches, Synagogues, and Temples. Please come and support this solidarity event.”
Peace be upon us all,
Paige
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