Hovea, Australia
report by Elaine Bowkett
Our guests were welcomed to our Symphony of Peace Prayers celebration this year with the natural bush surroundings, our venue rejoicing in the sunshine, clear skies and the sound of the digeridoo being played by our special guest, Jonathon Lewis.
Along with this, the space where our ceremony was being held had an atmosphere of peace lovingly created by our volunteers, with the unique and invaluable gift to humanity of our set of hand-painted flags being a perfect platform for our program to unfold.
Our program started with a Welcome by our Master of Ceremonies, Soheil Chinniah, together with the Resident Teacher of the Ashram and co-organizer, Manita Beskow, and then an Acknowledgement of Country by Amir Abadi. Our guests were then individually gifted with an olive branch and peace greeting together with a presentation of our Multi-faith United Prayer for All Nations by peace advocate MaryAnne Rath.
A beautifully performed and moving Peace Dance by 11-year-old Eva Szauter followed. Young Eva is the granddaughter of original SOPP Western Australia facilitator, Eva Gault. She first came to May Peace Prevail on Earth events as a baby and has developed a very strong resonance with the May Peace Prevail on Earth prayer. This was witnessed in each of her movements.
We moved on to prayers and insights from different faiths and spiritual traditions, which included Islam, Baha’i, Brahma Kumaris, Christianity, Quakerism, Universal Great Brotherhood, and a spiritual story by Liz Mistry.
Next, we honoured the UN member countries through their flags. A country’s flag is a powerful symbol representing its history, culture, and national identity. Each colour and symbol on a flag is carefully chosen to convey specific meanings and values that are important to the nation. Our presenter, BK Gail, talked about the significance behind these handmade flags that surrounded us. Gail paid special attention to the two Australian flags—the traditional Blue Ensign and the Australian Aboriginal Flag.
Everyone then joined in the singing of three rounds of the Baha’i Faith Song, ‘Strive,’ which has as its core message that actions, when guided by God’s will, become a form of prayer. This was facilitated by Baha’i follower Veronica Anderson.
To close, we thanked all guests and participants, and a peace crane, handmade with love for each guest by our delightful Eva Szauter, as well as a Brahma Kumaris blessing and sweet, were gifted to all. Following the ceremony, we shared afternoon tea and some stimulating conversation.
