In this caring and supportive community,
during this time of quiet reflection,
we come to be emptied...

and to be filled with the spirit that flows in and among us
and throughout the world.

We, here today, are also people of spirit.
We, too, are struck in awe before the great mystery of the cosmos.
We, too, are powerfully moved by a deep concern for our world
and our care for one another.

The spirit moves in us as in others.
(Silence)

We give thanks for this day and for these people
and all the people who have enriched our lives.

We give thanks for love,
which created us,
which restores us,
and links us to others in struggle and in joy.

We give thanks for the spirit of creativity that inspires and encourages,
that brings novelty in the midst of familiarity
and risk in the midst of comfort,
that surprises in the midst of the commonplace.

On this special day we recall all religious expressions:
through the foundations in Egypt and Mesopotamia;
through the law and the prophets of Judaism;
through the evangelism of the Apostles;
through the philosophy of the Greeks;
through the mysticism of the Celts;
through the insight of Hinduism;
through the compassion of Buddhism;
through the tolerance of Islam;
through the understanding of oneness with the natural world
of Aboriginal/Native Spirituality;
and how our Christian faith has been fed, enriched, and deepened.

May we always seek to know the presentness of the Source of Life better
through conversation with,
and learning from, the other great faith traditions.
(Silence)

May it be so.