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<date>
The Editor
<your local paper>
Dear Sir
As a local member of the Baha’i Faith, which this year marks the centenary
of its establishment in this country, I have been reading with interest
recently, news of the various local plans to mark the Millennium.
I wonder, though, if there is not a place for one more commemoration of the
passing of 2000 years (by traditional dating) since the birth of Jesus?
A recent paper produced jointly by the Government and the Inter Faith Network,
"Marking the Millennium in a Multi-Faith Context"*, noted that
"A significant dimension of life in Britain at the end of the twentieth
century is the presence of communities of the world’s major religious
traditions: Baha’i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jain, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh
and Zoroastrian, ...."
As we seem to have in this area at least some of these religious communities, I
wonder if anyone has thought to organise an inter faith commemoration? It would
offer an opportunity to build mutual respect and trust, recognising that all of
us at times fall short of the ideals of our own traditions and are prone to
compare our own ideals with other people’s practices.
As we look forward to the Third Millennium, surely respect and trust are worthy
qualities to cultivate? A commemoration that encouraged folk of all faiths to
forgo religious contention, submerge theological differences in a spirit of
mutual forbearance, and work together for the advancement of human
understanding and peace, would be a fitting start to the third millennium.
Speaking for the local Baha’i community, I am sure we would be most
willing to support such a project.
Yours faithfully
<signed>
* Editor: a copy of the statement, "Marking the Millennium in a
Multi-Faith Context" is enclosed for your information, in case you have
not seen it.
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