It is such a wonderful experience to have the Calgary Interfaith community come together to celebrate our theme for this breakfast: the Canadian Faith mosaic. We have listened and shared and reflected on this Faith mosaic this morning. This exists due to the presence of all the faiths that make up Calgary – Indigenous, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, Hindus, Buddhists, Bahai’s, and so many more – essentially all of you sitting here today. Each religion adds to the rich faith mosaic of our city which is vibrant and ultimately yields a unique tapestry of our city and our country. When different faiths come together, there is an inherent strength and unity that is found amongst the diversity. This unity is so imperative to share, and foster given the current world we live in. The presence of each of us here is so important as it strengthens all faith in Calgary and ultimately strengthens Calgary.
Geographically, Calgary sits in the majestic foothills and is centered around the confluence of the Bow and Elbow rivers. The Indigenous of the area recognized this confluence and oversaw the majesty and sacredness of the 5 elements – the air, wind, water, earth and ethers. The other religious communities have migrated afterwards to this confluence to live, pray, eat, prosper, and share their teachings and ideas and hearts.
What we experienced this morning is also a confluence -a connectedness amongst the faiths present here today. Each faith represents a beautiful bead on the Rosary or Mala of God strung together by the Faith in the Divine Creator that threads through each of us and connects each and every one of us.
When we embrace this Unity, we can embrace faith diversity and faith pluralism. Although each faith has its own path to the Divine Creator God, it means that we celebrate this diversity and pluralism with the concept of the “other” dissolving away. It is not me or you …it is we. Standing together as brothers and sisters rises beyond just being nice or kind or even just striving for peace and tolerance. Diversity and plurality are an inherent component of God’s creation, as we stand together with all faiths in the God, we inherently become the same – Children of the Divine creator God. As said in the Sikh Scriptures, Siri Guru Granth Sahib ji, we reach the state where “there is no stranger nor any enemy, as I am in harmony with all. “Na ko vari nahi begana sugal sung hum ko bun ayi
This is an ideal to strive for to reach for to aim for in our City as we celebrate this Faith Mosaic of Calgary -and this morning today, we have reached for this: Today as Calgarians we stand together.
Now let us weave the faith mosaic tapestry of Calgary in real time as we come together to the front of the room. Let us create our own confluence at the front of the room. As I call your faith group, please join with us up at the podium on the stage and in front of the stage to stand together to create the unique faith mosaic…Take your time to move and come to the front please tuck in your chairs while reflecting on your faith and its presence in the city. In the end, we will have a group picture of the unique multifaith tapestry of Calgary and its celebration today.
Calgary is Buddhist -When we take spiritual journey and explore the Four Noble Truths – suffering, it’s origin, it’s cessation, and the path to ending it, when we chant Om mani padmi hum to cultivate mindfulness to focus on the present without any distractions
Calgary is Buddhist and today We stand together
Calgary is Hindu – When we pursue the meritorious life of dharma and work to fully experience the cyclicality of all life, when we fold our hands and recite namaste to honor the soul within each other and the sacredness of one another.
Calgary is Hindu and today we stand together
Calgary is Zorastrian When we look to Zoroaster as the one who one day will bring the ultimate conquest of good over evil, when we pray in praise of the four directions Namaj I chahar nimeg
Calgary is Zorastrian and today we stand together
Calgary is Bahai – When we see the unity of God, religion, and humanity as the foundation of our view of the world, When we pray the prayer of 100,000 hopes to God and reflect on the teachings of Bahullah
Calgary is Bahai and today we stand together
Calgary is Jewish -When we study Torah, and commit to realizing its truths for the sake of Tikkun Olam, repairing the world, when we recite twice daily the prayer of Shema acknowledging the Singularity of God
Calgary is Jewish and today we stand together
Calgary is Muslim -When we declare our faith in Allah, or perform the namaj 5 times a day facing mecca or fast during Ramadan to focus and reset the mind and body on spirituality of teachings of the Koran
Calgary is Muslim and today we stand together
Calgary is Indigenous- When we smudge for purification, or engage in vision quests to connect with ancestors, When we honor the land that we walk and live on, when we salute the sun in the early ambrosial hours of the morning.
Calgary is Indigenous and today we stand together
Calgary is Sikh -When we attend a gurdwara, there to feed all who enter the door, when we treat all with equality and partake in seva and when we attune ourselves to the vibrations of the prayers for the prosperity of all humankind
Calgary is Sikh and today we stand together.
Calgary is Unitarian
When each individual develops a personal faith, drawing from many different religions, when we are open to the wisdom of all religions.
Calgary is Unitarian and today we stand together .
Calgary is Christian with all its denominations
LDS-When we leave home for many months on sacred missions around the world,
Evangelical- When we are born again and commit ourselves and with hope to chart our path to the Kingdom of Heaven,
Catholic- When we receive the Eucharist, confess our sins, or purify ourselves through Baptism,
Protestant -When we minister to one another with love, and seek salvation through God’s grace,
Calgary is Christian and today we stand together
We are Calgary and today we stand together in unity in peace, in harmony, in respect, in prayer as a multifaith Tapestry
Today we Stand together
We stand together In this multifaith mosaic which so beautifully has manifest through the Grace of the Divine Creator. O God, bless our city and our country and all those in it with strength, peace and prosperity as we stand together here today. O God, May we always stand together.
Amen, Waheguru, Om.
