An Interfaith Prayer for an End to Torture

Friends,

Last Thursday evening in cooperation with the the Ursuline Sisters and a number of other groups, we cohosted the presentation of a film documentary about torture and its impact on individual lives. The film was followed by a discussion and a brief interfaith spiritual service.

For the Service I composed an interfaith prayer for an end to torture. I thought I would share it with you. Here it is:


AN INTERFAITH PRAYER FOR AN END TO TORTURE


IN THE SPIRIT OF THE CHRISTIANS, who see that the Kingdom of God is literally among us, let us strive to open the eyes of those who torture so that they can see that their actions undercut God’s Kingdom.

Amen

IN THE SPIRIT OF THE BUDDHISTS who understand so well that the true meaning of the word “compassion,” is to “suffer with,” we ask God to help us all find our ways to bear the scars of those who have been tortured.

Amen

IN THE SPIRIT OF THE HINDUS, who know that God’s face is manifested in many different forms, we implore the Divine to enable us to see the face of God in the tortured and the torturer alike.

Amen

IN THE SPIRIT OF THE JEWS, who have great passion for justice, we invoke the name of God in bringing the darkness of torture to light wherever it exists.

Amen

IN THE SPIRIT OF THE BAHA’IS who believe that all persons throughout the world are connected by the love of God, we ask the Holy One to help us realize that connection by upholding the dignity of all humans through opposition to torture anywhere on our Earth.

Amen

IN THE SPIRIT OF MUSLIMS, the name of whose religion means submission to the will of God, we submit our will to the Divine who calls upon us to do all that we can to stop the use of torture by representatives of our own Government.

Amen

And in the spirit of the Quakers who speak to the fact that there is the Light of God in everyone, let us now carry into the evening the light of candles, each one representing a country in which the conflagration of torture remains to be snuffed out, in the hope that we can turn this symbolic action into reality in the days, weeks and months to come.

Amen

Fim and Food on Saturday: Michael Moore's "Sicko"

Friends, please join us Saturday night at 6:15 for our monthly "Film and Food" event at St. Matthews Episocpal Church, 330 North Hubbards Lane. The evening will include supper, view of the film and time for discussion.

The event is free. Donations to cover the cost of food are appreciated.
This month's film is Michael Mooroe's "Sicko." (details about the film appear at the end of this e-maila film that draws attention to the failures of the American healthcare system, and points out the need for quality, accessible, affordable healthcare for all.

And prior to the film, please attend an amazing conference on healthcare on Saturday Morning at IUS. For details visit:

www.kyhealthcare.org

About Michael Moore's Sicko

Writer/producer Michael Moore interviews Americans who have been denied treatment by our health care insurance companies -- companies who sacrifice essential health services in order to maximize profits. The consequences for the individual subscribers range from bankruptcy to the unnecessary deaths of loved ones.Moore then looks at universal free health care systems in Canada, France, Britain, and Cuba, debunking all the fears (lower quality of care, poorer compensation for doctors, big-government bureaucracy) that have been used to dissuade Americans from establishing such a system here. The roots of those health care systems are explored, and our failure to establish free health here care is traced to a) President Richard Nixon's deceptive support of the then-emerging HMOs pursuing huge profits and b) subsequent pressures for Congress to sacrifice sound health care in favor of corporate profit.A group of Americans who became ill from volunteering at 911 Ground Zero, but were refused health coverage for their illnesses, are ferried by Moore to Cuba, where they receive the top-rate, free care one would hope they'd get here at home.In his interviews, historical reportage, and typical sarcastic wit, Moore soundly condemns American health insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies, as well as the politicians who have been paid millions to do their bidding. He makes the case that there is something wrong with Americans that we cannot learn from the successes of other countries in providing better quality-of-health than we enjoy in the USA.

Prepare for Shavuot and Pentecost with Muslim Call to Prayer

Yesterday I shared Rabbi Arthur's thoughts about the Biblical Book of Ruth and ideas about the Jewish observance of Shavuot and the Christian observance of Pentecost, both of which occur this weekend.

Thinking about Rabbi Arthur's comments, and his deep devotion to interfaith understanding among the Children of Abraham, Sarah and Hagar (Christians, Jews and Muslims), I thought it would be appropriate to prepare for those holidays (and the Baha'i holiday that also occurs this weekend) by listening to the Muslim call to prayer.

Here is video I shot of a Muezzin delivering the Adhan, or "call to prayer" at Dar al Islam Mosque on a mountaintop above Abiquiu, New Mexico in July of 2008.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiz2kw5fbw8

And what follows is a description of the Adhan taken from Beliefnet.com

It’s the first thing recited in the ears of a newborn babe; it's often the first thing recited in a new home. And it rings out in mosques, Islamic schools, homes, and on the street in Muslim communities five times a day.

The adhan, or Islamic call to prayer, is an integral part of the Muslim faith.The adhan is one of the most lyrical, inspiring prayers for Muslims. A hadith recounts that the Prophet’s companions one day were discussing how to gather everyone for prayer. Some suggested using a bell as Christians do, and others advised using a ram's horn, following an ancient Jewish practice.

Then Umar, one of the Prophet's companions, suggested having one person call others to prayer. The Prophet agreed, calling his ex-slave, Bilal, to recite the adhan, according to a hadith from the collection of al Bukhari.

The Arabic text of the adhan is similar for all five recitations (with a slight difference in the adhan recited for the pre-dawn prayer, which adds the line "Prayer is better than sleep").

Its compelling sound is amplified by the skill of the person who recites it: The more melodius and clear the voice, the more powerful the adhan is.

Call to Prayer (the Adhan)

Allah is Most Great.

Allah is Most Great.

Allah is Most Great. Allah is Most Great.

I bear witness that there is none worthy of being worshipped except Allah.

I bear witness that there is none worthy of being worshipped except Allah.

I bear witness that Muhammad is the Apostle of Allah.

I bear witness that Muhammad is the Apostle of Allah.

Come to prayer.

Come to prayer.

Come to Success.

Come to Success.

Allah is Most Great.

Allah is Most Great.

There is none worthy of being worshipped except Allah.

And here is an Arabic Transliteration:

Allahu Akbar. Allahu Akbar.Allahu Akbar. Allahu Akbar.Ash-hadu an la ilaha ill-Allah.Ash-hadu an la ilaha ill-Allah.Ash-hadu anna Muhammad-ar-Rasoolullah.Ash-hadu anna Muhammad-ar-Rasoolullah.Hayya 'alas-Salah. Hayya 'alas-Salah.Hayya 'alal-falah. Hayya 'alal-falah.Allahu Akbar. Allahu Akbar.La ilaha ill-Allah.

Thoughts on Shavuot and Pentacost by Rabbi Arthur Waskow

What if the Bible's Ruth came to America today?
Celebrating Shavuot & Pentecost:
Can We Share Our Food? Can We Share Our Talk & Tongues?
Can We Relearn how to Share our Work & Rest?

Here's a link to Rabbi Waskow's Shalom Center: www.shalomctr.org

This coming Thursday evening, May 28, there begins the festival of Shavuot . --- In biblical times, it was seen as celebration time for the successful spring wheat and barley harvests. In Rabbinic Judaism, it has been seen as the celebration time for the harvesting of Torah at Mount Sinai, 50 days after the liberation from Egypt.The ancient rabbis assigned a special reading for Shavuot: the Book of Ruth, which focuses on harvesting, on tongues of native and of "foreign" speech, of wealth and poverty. What does Ruth mean to us today?

For Christians, that day became Pentecost, now counted 50 days after Easter (this year on Sunday, May 31), when the Holy Spirit came like the rush of a strong and driving wind, helping the early community of believers speak and understand all the languages of every nation under heaven. When do we ourselves experience the Holy Spirit, that rushing wind that intertwines all life? The Holy Breath that the trees breathe out for us to breathe in, that we breathe out for the trees to breathe in? The Holy Breath that now is in a planetary crisis? Both these festivals look beyond the narrow boundaries of nation, race, or class.

When and where we live -- In the midst of the Great Recession, when the super-wealthy have robbed the merely wealthy, when the middling classes have lost their savings and the poor their homes, when the issue of immigration is hot and the lives of immigrants are threatened -- the issues of poverty and wealth, of immigration and the homeborn, mean a great deal. And that is what Ruth is about.

In the biblical story, Ruth was a foreigner from the nation of Moab, which was despised by all patriotic and Godfearing Israelites. Yet when she came to Israel as a widow, companion to her widowed mother-in-law Naomi, she was welcomed onto the fields of Boaz, where she gleaned what the regular harvesters had left behind. Boaz made sure that even this despised foreigner had a decent job at decent pay. When she went one night to the barn where the barley crop was being threshed, he spent the night with her - and decided to marry her.But - if Ruth came to America today, what would happen?Would she be admitted at the border?Or would she be detained for months without a lawyer, ripped from Naomi's arms while Naomi's protest brought her too under suspicion - detained because she was, after all, a Canaanite who spoke some variety of Arabic, possibly a terrorist, for sure an idolator?Would she be deported as merely an "economic refugee," not a worthy candidate for asylum?Would she have to show a "green card" before she could get a job gleaning at any farm, restaurant, or hospital?Would she be sent to "workfare" with no protections for her dignity, her freedom, or her health?Would she face contempt because she and Naomi, traveling without a man, might be a lesbian couple?

Would she be water-boarded -- drowned again and again, revived at the point of death to be drowned yet again -- until she confessed that she had supplied a foreign enemy with mass-destruction weapons to attack America? When she boldly "uncovers the feet" of Boaz during the night they spend together on the threshing floor, has she violated the "family values" that some religious folk now proclaim? Or has she affirmed that love engages the body as well as the heart, the mind, and the spirit, and that sometimes a loving body comes before a wedding?Today in America, some of us are outcasts like Ruth; some are prosperous, like Boaz. He affirmed that in a decent society, everyone was entitled to decent work for a decent income.

Everyone --- yes EVERYONE! Even, or especially, a despised immigrant from a despised nation. Everyone --- not just 92% of the people. (The USA will soon be up to 10% unemployed, and that doesn't count two million prisoners, highest number in the world, most of whom are in prison for nonviolent crimes.) In ancient Israel, everyone had the right simply to walk onto a field and begin to work, begin to use the means-of-production of that era. And then to eat what they had gathered. And Boaz could not order his regular workers to be economically "efficient." They could not harvest everything: not what grew in the corners of the field, not what they missed on the first go-round. Social compassion was more important than efficiency.
No downsizing allowed.Although Boaz was generous-hearted, Ruth's right to glean did not depend upon his generosity. It was the law.Ruth was entitled not only to a job, but to respect.

No name-calling, no sexual harassment.
And she, as well as Boaz, was entitled to Shabbat: time off for rest, reflection, celebration, love. She was entitled to "be" - as well as to "do."Because Ruth the outcast and Boaz the solid citizen got together, they could become the ancestors of King David. According to both Jewish and Christian legend, they could thus help bring Messiah into the world. Help bring the days of peace and justice.What do we learn from their story today?In America today, many of us live in the place of Boaz. Many others --- more than there were just a year ago --- live in the place of Ruth. Our society has dismantled many of the legal commitments to the poor that ancient Israelite society affirmed. What are our own religious obligations?

What are our obligations --- those of us who still have jobs, who have not lost our retirement funds to the machinations of the banks -- or even those who have! -- what are our obligations to those who are living in cardboard boxes on the streets or parks of our cities? What are our obligations to those who have been evicted from their homes, to those who have no jobs? Are we obligated only to toss a dollar bill or two into the empty hats of the homeless?Or are we obligated to write new laws for our own country like the ancient laws that protected Ruth? Are we obligated to create new communities --- local credit unions insteead of global banks, food coops and neighborhood clinics, groups of caring people who turn an involuntary "furlough" from their jobs into time to learn together, sing together, plan together to make new places of shared work?

Are we obligated to create a society that rubs away the barriers between the rich and poor, between those who speak one language from those who speak another? What can we do -- what must we do -- to help bring on the days of peace and justice?Shalom, salaam, peace ---- Arthur

Here's a Powerful Muslim Leader Who Condemns Terrorism

I am frequently asked why Muslim leaders don't condemn Terrorism.

Actually they do.

A powerful example is a statement made by Fetullah Gulen to Foreign Policy Magazine after he was voted onto the list of the world's top public intellectuals.

Mr. Gulen is the central figure in a moderate Islamic movement in Turkey that bears his name. For many years he has been a highly respected preacher at mosques in his native land.

Mr. Gulen is a Sufi, a member of a form of Islam that is highly mystical and that embraces peace. In his interview in Foreign Policy he was asked directly about the problem of Islamic terrorism. Here are the question and his response.

Foreign Policy Magazine: You preach a moderate, tolerant Islam. What do you think causes terrorism?.

FG: Islam abhors and absolutely condemns terrorism and any terrorist activity. I have repeatedly declared that it is impossible for a true Muslim to be a terrorist, nor can a terrorist be regarded as a true Muslim. Terrorism is one of the cardinal sins that the Koran threatens with hellfire.

It is a fact that Muslims have lagged behind in science and technology for the last few centuries. The Muslim world suffers from internal divisions, antidemocratic practices, and the violation of fundamental human rights and freedoms. But Muslims have never been and never can be so base as to expect any solutions to their problems through terror.

[Terrorism] is formed of certain fundamental problems, [including] ignorance, poverty, and fear of others. Some people take advantage of the young and foolish. They are manipulated, abused, and even drugged to such an extent that they can be used as murderers on the pretext of some crazy ideals or goals.

To defeat terrorism, we must acknowledge that we are all human beings. It is not our choice to belong to a particular race or family. We should be freed from fear of the other and enjoy diversity within democracy. I believe that dialogue and education are the most effective means to surpass our differences.

Here's a link to Mr. Gulen's web site:

en.fgulen.com/

Interfaith Paths to Peace Announces Expanded Mission

Interfaith Paths to Peace Announces Expanded Mission,
Addition of New Associate Director
And Move to New, Larger Office Space

Contact: Terry Taylor 214-7322, 299-7591 e-mail tatduende2@yahoo.com

Interfaith Paths to Peace (IPP) will host an open house at its new office facility on the Lower Level of Diocesan House at Christ Church Cathedral on Wednesday, May 13th from 4 to 7 p.m.

The open house is free and open to the public and will feature light refreshments representing a variety of international cultures and religions. Christ Church Cathedral’s Diocesan House is located at 425 South Second Street.

During the open house, representatives of a number of the world’s great religions will visit the open house and offer words of blessing for IPP’s new space. A list of those leaders and the approximate time they will appear to offer their blessings will be made available late Tuesday or early Wednesday.

Although the executive director and the new associate director will be present throughout the open house, time will be set aside at 4:30 for a formal announcement and for the two members of the professional staff to answer questions.

At the open house, IPP’s Executive Director, Terry Taylor, will:

• discuss the organization’s newly expanded mission, with greater emphasis on interfaith education and international peacemaking;




• introduce IPP’s newly appointed Associate Director for International Interfaith Education, Jan Arnow, and explain her role in the organization;




• Explain how its new office space will be used.
  
  For more information, please contact Terry Taylor at (502) 214-7322 or (502) 299-7591. He can be reached by e-mail at tatduende2@yahoo.com.

Learning to Listen on the National Day of Prayer

Today is the officially observed National Day of Prayer in the U.S.

I was raised in the Evangelical United Brethren Church in the 1950s and early 60s. I don't remember much about the efforts that were made to teach me and other children how to pray. But, what I do remember is that I was taught how to talk AT G!D [this is the way Jewish Renewal folks use the name of the Almighty]. No one taught me how to LISTEN.

Listening is a critically important part of prayer no matter what our religious affiliation.

But what does it mean to listen during prayer? It certainly means more than just using our ears to hear a voice out of thin air.

It seems clear to me that in Christian scriptures, the Jewish Bible and other sacred books, God "speaks" to people through dreams, coincidences, synchronicities, events, books, films, and a whole range of natural phenomena.

We just need to learn to pay attention and to try decipher (perhaps with the aid of a spiritual advisor) what G!D's expressions mean.

There will be good news and bad, invitations, jokes, and certainly warnings.

If nothing else, we need to pay attention to the warnings, to the "writing on the wall" about the need to eliminate nuclear weapons, get the homeless off our streets, feed the hungry and stop poisoning our environment.

As surfers say in their charmingly Quixotic language, "We don't need a swami to tell us we're about to go over a cliff."