| Aliso Viejo, California
S.A.R.A.H. and the Interfaith Dialogue Club at Soka University
in Aliso Viejo, CA cosponsored an event in Founders Hall on
the Soka campus on Saturday afternoon. About 35 women attended,
a mix of Soka students from several countries (Cambodia, Japan
etc.), women from the community at large and 5 members of
S.A.R.A.H. (Spiritual and Religious Alliance for Hope - a
women's interfaith organization we founded less than a year
ago. We have about 18 core members: Muslim, Jewish and Christian.)
Our program contained: an introduction of each sponsoring
organization the opening meditation and purpose statement
sent out by Gather the Women and WOVA an introduction to the
World Peace Flame and its history a song in Hebrew and English
a presentation in Cambodian and English an open discussion
among attendees of who we are as women and what matters in
our lives an opportunity to draw our ideas of peace on 12x12"
fabric squares, to be sewn into a multi-faith peace tapestry
(S.A.R.A.H. does this at each of our public events) an opportunity
for each woman to light a personal candle from the World Peace
Flame a closing meditation which mirrored the opening meditation,
sending the energy of the Peace Flame to our sisters worldwide
I think that this group -small as it was - had a very moving
experience of the event and felt connected to the energy of
the women who answered the call worldwide. Several parts of
the program were mesmerizing. Dassie's song in Hebrew was
hauntingly beautiful. The World Peace Flame and the meditation
were deeply moving. (For more on the World Peace Flame, you
can visit S.A.R.A.H.'s website at www.sarah4hope.org. and
the link to Life Foundation International.)
We had to light our personal candles outside (as a courtesy
to our host university, which didn't want to have to clean
up any wax either inside or outside.) The flame itself was
inside a Welsh coal miner's lantern, but that was opened to
allow us to light dripfree tapers from the main flame.
There is a small lake just outside Founders Hall, and a wind
blew steadily across it toward us. Although we clustered around
the Peace Flame, the wind blew it out after the first taper
was lit. Then the taper blew out. It took several matches
and a tighter cluster to get all of the candles lit from the
main flame, and each blew out almost immediately. At that
point, a Japanese student commented on how closely our experience
mirrored the perilous, fragile state of world peace.
Life Foundation International, which originated the World
Peace Flame project, had told us that the energy of the flame
is carried in the wick. Each of the candles we lit from the
main flame would carry its energy - but the outside world
that day was clearly not a safe space for an unprotected Peace
Flame to exist. A sobering thought.
S.A,R.A.H. member Theresa cheered us all up by walking across
the narrow footbridge across the lake (barely above the waterline)
calling, "Look, I'm walking on water!" That picture
is not on our website, but the candlelighting ceremony is,
along with other snapshots of the day.
Although we had a small group, we felt our expectations were
met. We found out about the project toward the end; S.A.R.A.H.
planned and put on the event in about 2 weeks. Given the short
notice, we were happy with the turnout - and the universe
delivered the women who were supposed to attend to the meeting.
When a tapestry is made from the peace squares drawn at the
event, it will be posted on our website. The tapestry will
be awarded to Soka University, our host; in 4-6 months, they
will be asked to pass it on to another individual or organization
in the world community that is working devotedly for peace.
The travels of the tapestry will be recorded on our website
as well as on the back of the tapestry. Our goal is to have
these tapestries travel the world as emissaries of peace.
Thank you for your inspiration and all the excellent work
you did to prepare for the day. It was a very unifying, spiritual
experience.
Blessings and peace,
Karen
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