Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Prayer Service
Spirit of peace and harmony in action, thanks to the noble, fine goodwill and sincere efforts of Interfaith Clergy Association of Southington!
Respecting the diversity of honored faith traditions on Tuesday, Nov. 22, all faiths in Southington gathered for an evening service to offer Interfaith Thanksgiving Prayers. Thanks to the host congregation of St. Aloysius Roman Catholic Church, 254 Burritt St. in Plantsville, and the Rev. Kevin M. Dillon for their generous hospitality.
This year participants were:
- First Baptist Church of Southington
- First Congregational Church of Southington
- Gishrei Shalom Jewish Congregation
- Grace United Methodist Church
- Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar (Sikh Faith)
- Mary Our Queen Roman Catholic Church
- Plantsville Congregational Church
- St. Aloysius Roman Catholic Church
- St. Domnic Roman Catholic Church
- St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
- Ujaro Deepa (Sikh Faith)
- Southington-Cheshire YMCA
- Southington Town Council
- Zion Lutheran Church
- Bread for Life Southington
Highlights of this service:
1. The service started with the welcome address by the Rev. Kevin M. Dillon.
2. The Rev. Ronald P. May offered Thanksgiving prayer, stating “Lord, we thank you for the goodness of our people and for the justice that fills this nation.
3. The musical hymn offered by Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar (Sikh Faith) that carried the theme of ‘Oh Lord, pardon my mistakes, take me in your Sanctuary and protect my honor. Such isYour Forgiving Nature.’
4. Rev. Jerrie S. Matney presented A Litany of Thanksgiving, which states that “it is good to give thanks to the Lord.”
5. Cheshire High School Women’s Chorale carried beautiful words in a musical form (Translation is: The world is sustained by three things; by truth, by justice and by peace).
6. Cheryl S. Lounsbury represented Southington Town of Council and read a Thanksgiving Proclamation.
7. A reading from the Sacred Sikh Scripture, Sri Guru Granth Sahib Jee, by Manmohan Singh Bharara of UjaroDeepa (Sikh Faith) carried a theme of the day: Giving thanks, earning an honest living and sharing with the needy is joyful. Embarking upon this path will bring showers of Blessings - what a wonderful way to live - is one of the teachings of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikh Faith.
8. Every participant uplifted the occasion either with the scripture reading, a prayer or musical. The inspiration and vibrations of Thanksgiving feelings and Holiday Season were felt throughout the service.
9. The Benediction by the Rev. James Debner was quite a good word of enthusiasm and positive completion of the service. It was an icing on the cake.
The purpose of Thanksgiving occasion is to give thanks, and not just for the obvious things like food and shelter but for the thousands of fortunate moments that we experience in our daily life.
Unfortunately, it's easier to remember bad things than it is to remember good things. Feeling truly grateful isn't always as easy as it sounds. Blessed are those who carry always, a never ending state of bliss and a divine joy, irrespective of the circumstances – good or bad, pains or sufferings – around them.
This special occasion reminds us not to focus on what you don't have, but rather to focus on what you do have. For example:
"I'm so fortunate to have a warm place to sleep."
"I'm so fortunate to live in a safe neighborhood."
"I'm so fortunate to have time to relax."
And the list continues…
At the same time, it is an occasion to remember the deprived ones and share; not just on Thanksgiving or Holiday Season, but making sharing, giving and conveying thanks a part of the daily life. That's Godly and is a greatest worship. May God give us that Divine wisdom and strength to live such a style of life! The celebrations of these occasions uplift and inspire us to that level of wisdom.
Sometimes, it seems that we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand, which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-efficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.
Any prayer service is good and inspiring that reconnects us with God and enhances human relations by celebrating the many forms of prayer and honoring the benefits of spiritual, cultural and natural diversity.
I feel blessed being a part of this service in Southington for the last 12 years.
We are thankful to Interfaith Clergy Association of Southington to organize this Diversified Service that brings Divine blessings to the whole Town of Southington!
Special thanks to the unsung hero of this town: E. Richard Fortunato to coordinate the publicity of this great interfaith prayer service.
A portion of the Proclamation of Thanksgiving by the President Abraham Lincoln (Washington, D.C. October 3, 1863):
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"It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at the sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwell in the heavens.”
Have a Happy Holiday Season!!!
(Author: Manmohan Singh Bharara is a co-founder of Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar, Southington CT and founder of Ujarodeepa.org, A Sikh Faith organization for Spiritual Enlightenment)
