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Interfaith Services
CALL TO WORSHIP
From you, O Divine Mystery, has emerged the evolving universe, and the whole creation is full of your glory.
We are part of this wondrous universe and members of the Great Community of Life on Planet Earth.
Open your hearts to the miracle of being and the Divine Presence.
We open our hearts and give thanks for the gift of life and for our home on Planet Earth.
The light of God surrounds you; The love of God enfolds you; The power of God protects you; The presence of God watches over you. Wherever you are, God is!
CHANTS FROM SACRED TEXTS
HINDU
Bala Kale, Amalendu & Sujata Bagchi, Swapna Chowdhuri
A conch shell is blown to purify the space)
Truth, cosmic order, consecration, austerity, prayer and holy sacrifice: these uphold the earth. May she, the ruling mistress of what has been and what will be, prepare for us a wide and limitless abode.
Whether we stand upright or sit, whether we stay quite still or walk, and whether we start with right foot or left, may we never falter upon the Earth.
O purifying Earth, I invoke you! Opatient Earth, bearer of nourishment and strength, of bread and butter; O earth, by sacred word enhanced, we approach you with the praise due to you.
The Earth carries in her lap the foolish and the wise. She bears the death of the wicked as well as the good. She lives in friendly collaboration with the tame pig and offers herself as sanctuary to the wild boar.
O Earth, O Mother, be gracious to me that I may be at ease, O Earth, O Poet, wth grace and good fortune set me in harmony with all the divine powers.
- from the Bhumi Sukta (Atharvaveda, XII, 1, 1-63).
May there be peace in the heavens, peace in the skies, and peace on earth. May the waters be peaceful. May the grasses and herbs bring peace to all creatures, and may the plants be at peace also. May the beneficent beings bring us peace, and may the way of all creation bring peace throughout the world. May all things be peaceful, and may that peace itself bring further peace. May we also bring peace to all.
Yajurveda, 36,17
-139
