A multi-faith service aiming to provide a quiet place to reflect on the current conflict in the Middle East is being held in Dumbarton this week.
St Augustine’s Church will host the event tomorrow Wednesday (November 6), which will bring together Christians, Jews and Muslims to offer their hopes for peace in the region – following more than a year of violent conflict.
The event was the brainchild of West Dunbartonshire Provost Karen Murray Conaghan, who has worked with Reverand Heller Gonzalez of St Augustine’s Episcopal Church and Levette Callander, of Dumbarton Churches Together, to bring together faiths for a night of quiet reflection.
Explaining the idea behind the project, Levette – who has worked with charity Embrace the Middle East for a number of years – said: “It all started from a private conversation with Karen Murray Conaghan. She said that she had so many people, just the man in the street, all saying that they didn’t know what they could do.
“A lot had donated, we’ve had three really successful fundraisers, but the people were saying that they’d done that. They were saying that they felt guilty for not wanting the news. But got more and more frustrated by watching it, and were struggling to cope.
“Karen came up with the idea of a service where people could sit quietly and reflect. We decided we could make it an interfaith service. People hear of the baddies and the goodies if they watch the news. But we don’t need more like that.”
Provost Murray Conaghan continued: “Like many people I find watching the news heartbreaking.
“To see and hear of so many innocent people being killed and maimed, so many children orphaned is horrendous. Also in my mind was the terrible situation of the hostages and the impact on their families.
“I got in contact with Levette as I felt she would be the right person to take the idea I had for a service of reflection and make it very meaningful.
“This is about people affected by this horrific conflict coming together to sit in stillness, to pray together, to reflect on how things might be, and I hope those who come along might find some comfort from it.
“It isn’t about who is right or wrong, it’s reflecting on the impact on the innocent people of the Middle East and a desire for their suffering to end.”
Levette was keen to stress that the service will be totally apolitical – focusing on what we have in common, and not what has divided people.
She continued: “The idea is that it’s a service of readings. And the readings are relevant to all three faiths; Christian, Jewish and Muslim. And to those with no faith. Some of these will be with the three people standing beside each other. And then there would be moments of stillness with relevant quiet music playing
“The readings would be done by someone from the Muslim faith, someone from the Jewish faith and some from the different churches.
“We’re stressing that it will not be about politics or about hate or anger. It will not be about preconceived ideas of prejudice.
“It’s about being still, walking in the shoes of those who are suffering, remembering the lost, sharing the peace and believing in the future.”
The service starts at 7.30pm at St Augustine’s tomorrow (Wednesday November 6), with all welcome.