Week to celebrate harmony

THE Ballarat Interfaith Network will lead the city’s World Interfaith Harmony Week festivities from next Monday.

Network chair Margaret Lenan Ellis said the United Nations traditionally dedicates the first week of February to the celebration each year.

“Its key message is love of god, or love of the good, and love of the neighbour,” she said.

“The prime intention of this initiative is to provide a focal point from which all people of goodwill can recognise that the common values they hold far outweigh the differences they have, and thus contribute a positive influence of peace and harmony to their communities.”

To launch the week, the Network’s annual civic flag-raising ceremony will be held at St Peter’s Anglican Church, Sturt Street at 11am.

“Indigenous member of the community Peter Lovett will open with didgeridoo playing and an acknowledgement of country, and Member for Wendouree Juliana Addison will welcome participants.

“After the flag raising, the keynote speaker within St Peter’s itself will be Ballarat’s Anglican bishop, Garry Weatherill, following a virtual address given by Assistant Minister for Multicultural Affairs Jason Wood, and virtual performances from two choirs,” Ms Lenan Ellis said.

The musical ensembles have respectively been commissioned by Ballarat Regional Multicultural Council and the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’i community.

Tuesday, 2 February from 10am to 12pm, will see morning Buddhist rituals at Mount Helen’s own temple, Wat Thai Bhavana, to meditate, learn some Buddhist history, and how to chant suttas with the monks.

“The theme of World Interfaith Harmony Week is expressed in the Noble Eightfold Path, the principal teaching in Buddhism, which advises how to achieve ethical conduct by applying right understanding, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort and right mindfulness,” Ms Lenan Ellis said.

Spots are limited, with registrations via [email protected].

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is running a family history day on Thursday, 4 February from 1pm.

“To Latter-day Saints, families are seen as the core units of society, and genealogy, the study of one’s ancestors or family history, enables temple rites, including baptism, to be performed by proxy for those of their ancestors who have died,” Ms Lenan Ellis said.

The local Sikh community, Virasat-e-Pujabn, will run their own celebration of the week with prayer, singing, a community dinner and introduction to Sikhism on Sunday, 7 February from 3pm to 5.30pm.

World Interfaith Harmony Week runs from Monday, 1 February to Sunday, 7 February.

Contact [email protected] for more information or to register attendance for events.