Working for interfaith harmony happens every day by URI Cooperation Circles all over the world. World Interfaith Harmony Week (WIHW), the first week of every February, is a special time to celebrate and make real the vision of interfaith harmony for all. Enjoy these inspirations for WIHW.
Inspiration for WIHW - Prayer for Religious Leaders
The following prayer has been used by The Australian National Dialogue of Christians, Muslims and Jews. Religious leaders of different faiths are invited to use it as source of common wisdom and inspiration.
The Leaders’ Prayer
Our Lord,
We stand before you not merely as individuals but as members of communities, and as children of a common humanity.
We recognize that in truth we are no better than those we seek to serve and who have appointed us to our offices.
We, as leaders, and our communities are making our way towards greater understanding, fuller love and deeper humility. We are making our way towards You.
As we advance, we recognize that we have a special role to play, for the benefit of others.
We are called to remind others of the goal, but for this we must remember it ourselves.
We are called to embody the faith, but for this we must ourselves be filled with faith.
We are called to model the highest ideals, but for this we must not lose sight of them.
We therefore ask you:
Make us worthy instruments in the service of a higher truth.
Let us remember that whatever we are able to accomplish, we do so not by our own power, but by yours.
Help us to keep our sights on the highest goals and not to compromise them in our weakness.
Protect us and help us not succumb to the temptations of power, greed and ego
Let us embody a spirit of true service to all
Let our hearts be full of compassion to all
Let the spirit of true humility inform all our actions
Oh Lord,
May we be instruments of unity, within our individual religions and between our diverse traditions
May we be inspired by divine wisdom, as we navigate and guide our faiths and our faithful
May we be beacons of useful, effective and living knowledge, that nourishes the souls of the faithful and guides them in their spiritual lives.
May we be fully transparent to you, recalling at every step that it is not we who are guiding our traditions, but it is you, our Lord.
Written by Rabbi Alon Goshen-Gottstein, 2009 Founder and Director of Elijah Interfaith Institute
Want more? See other quotes and sources of WIHW inspiration in the rest of this series.