Different faiths come together for Mayor's service Sunday, February 07, 2010, 17:17 A united message of charity, love and happiness was heard at the Mayor of Bath’s annual multi-faith gathering. More than 150 people attended the service at the Guildhall to listen to representatives from a variety of religions from across the city talk around this year’s theme of A Lifetime of Change. Members of the Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Baha’i and Sai Baba faiths used speeches, music and presentations to urge people to embrace positive change in their lives. They also talked about the importance of showing compassion to others and selflessly helping through charity. The Mayor, Councillor Colin Barrett, said he had enjoyed seeing the community come together to share its different beliefs. He said: “It is my first year’s experience hosting this, but having been invited to many faith gatherings I understand the importance of meeting to exchange views. “This is an opportunity for us to all come together and express our feelings and thoughts. “Bath is a much, much richer city as a result of us uniting and respecting each other’s religious views and aspirations.” The service was led by the Mayor’s chaplain the Rev Neville Pearce, who welcomed everyone who had attended. He said: “It is very heartening to see so many people from so many diverse spiritual backgrounds joining together in this way for the benefit of the community and the well-being of all those who belong to it.” The first presentation was from the Baha’i religion, which included a musical performance as well as a speech explaining the background to the faith. After that the Imam from Bath mosque Rashad Azami spoke about how change can be a positive force in people’s lives. Then Christian Tom Dunne gave a talk about how religious retreats can help people gain quiet reflection on their faith, before Kelsang Chonden spoke about his Buddhist beliefs. There was also a Sikh presentation about the importance of charity and a question and answer session led by Clare Pageter, from the Sai Baba faith, explaining how people can lead a more fulfilled life. Lynn Johnston gave a speech entitled Judaism and Change and members of the Hindu community, led by Satyen Gadher, sang a song about change. Mr Gadher said the event was the perfect way for people to experience a little bit about different faiths. He said: “It is unity in diversity. “It is a bit like a shared supper. Everybody brings a lovely something, so that we can have a taste of everyone’s delicious cooking. “It is a big shared meal and it is important because otherwise we would never come together and there would never be an opportunity to share this.” Bath MP Don Foster attended the service and said he was proud of the strong cultural cohesion in the city. He said: “It is fantastic. “We have got a very large multi-cultural, multi-faith community here and what is wonderful is that there is huge co-operation between them. “People of all faiths have gone out of their way to work together and at an event like this you can celebrate that. “I think that is wonderful.” http://www.thisisbath.co.uk/news/Different-faiths-come-Mayor-s-service/article-1811883-detail/article.html
