Photos provided by The Interfaith Center in New York
From the back of the church rang out a primal, yet poignant chant. Sung a capella, the prayerful Afro-Caribbean tune reverberated off the cavernous ceilings and stained glass windows, sending chills down my spine. A procession of 30 dignitaries slowly made their way down the aisle, two by two. Some were robed in austere shades of black, navy and brown; others wore bright garments of saffron, orange and white. They represented over a dozen world faiths, all sharing the same belief in unity and mutual respect. As I watched this microcosm of the earth’s religions pass by, I was moved to tears by a demonstration of world harmony that was incredibly sweet and possible.
The Annual Interfaith Prayer Service in honor of the Sixtieth United Nations General Assembly was held at St. Bartholomew’s Church in New York City on Tuesday, September 13, 2005. A bicoastal delegation of 11 people represented the Institute for Individual and World Peace, headed by IIWP’s spokesperson Leigh Taylor-Young.
It was a gloriously bright, clear and warm New York morning as we gathered in the church on Park Avenue, several blocks from the United Nations complex. Our gracious hostess Joan Beisel met the IIWP delegates at the front door and pointed the way toward our section in the pews a short distance from the altar. Other NYC attendees were Katherine Kienke, Heide Banks, Cindy Herman and Rita and Ed Whitney; the California delegation was comprised of Leigh Taylor-Young, Barbara Fiammetta (in town on business), myself and my husband Jim Tieman (visiting Boston that week); plus Jim’s mother Joan Hunt who drove down with us from Massachusetts.
Soon, the processional began as described above, and as each participant reached the altar area, they stood in a semicircle. Wizened Swami V. Bua, small in form but huge in stature, took his place at the microphone, representing the Indo-American Yoga Society. From his saffron robes he produced what appeared to be a conch shell with a mouthpiece attached; he raised it to his lips and blew a sustained, haunting note for nearly three minutes.
Next, we heard a Call to Prayer by Father Robert G. Stephanopoulous, Dean of Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral, a Welcome from Rev. Kevin Bean of St. Bart’s and greetings from the Very Reverend James Parks Morton, head of the Interfaith Center and Hiro Sakuri from the Committee of Religious NGO’s (non-governmental organizations). It was Rev. Morton who manifested the original vision of bringing together all the world’s faiths under the auspices of the UN back in 1995.
The scheduled addresses of Secretary General Kofi Annan and President of the General Assembly Jan Eliasson did not occur, as both UN dignitaries had other commitments related to the UN’s 60th anniversary commemoration. In the past, the Secretary General has participated and spoke about the United Nations mission of world peace. However, this time he sent a spokesperson to read his prepared speech, distilled here to its essence:
“By bringing together people of different faiths for this occasion every year, you provide an invaluable source of support for the United Nations community. You help to reinforce our sense of collective mission and common purpose. That is especially important in the week that lies ahead of us — not just for the United Nations, but for the entire global community … So, as all the world’s Governments prepare to meet this week, I hope you will pray that they will find the wisdom to guide the human family towards a better, safer, healthier future; and that whatever challenges confront our United Nations, we may make this indispensable instrument as effective as it can be, in the interests of the people it exists to serve.”
Following Mr. Annan’s speech in absentia, the main program commenced. Fourteen prayers and blessings for peace were solemnly delivered by clergy and other representatives of the world’s faiths, including Buddhist, Christian, Baha’i, Hindu, Jain, Voodun, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Zoroastrian, Tao, Yoruba/Lukumi, Native American and Izuo. Most prayers were spoken, others were sung or chanted. The Tao Prayer was accompanied by a demonstration of Tai Chi swordsmanship. The Rabbi provided comic relief with his humorous comment that if the program actually finished on time, all the gathered faiths would be celebrating a true miracle!
The service wrapped up with two closing blessings and a word of thanks by Matt Weiner of the Interfaith Center, who made a point of acknowledging the IIWP delegation for coming “all the way from Los Angeles to be here.” After the celebratory recessional of dignitaries, our IIWP representatives gathered on the steps of the altar for a group photo. We then attended a reception at the beautiful outdoor cafe adjacent to St. Bartholomew’s, where a delightful vegetarian buffet had been lovingly prepared for all of the delegates by Interfaith Center volunteers.
That morning in New York City, peace was most certainly present.
