The Service of Universal Worship was created in 1921 by Hazrat Inayat Khan.  He wanted diverse faith traditions to discover how much they held in common.  He hoped that this understanding would lead to harmony and peace among the diverse faiths of the world. Our Services of Universal Worship are adapted to be presented monthly via Zoom to Facebook Live, in order to keep us safe during the pandemic.  Each month authentic representatives of 8-9 faith traditions present short readings and music or poetry on a chosen theme.  This February 7 World Interfaith Harmony Week theme was Love. The Greeks had eight words for love.  Perhaps the best known are Eros, or sexual passion, Philia, or deep friendship, and Agape, or love for everyone.  There were also words for playful love, longstanding love, love of the self, familial love, and hospitality.  As a language teacher, I learned that language reflects culture.  Our popular culture seems to limit love to romantic love.  But our language does makes distinctions, by adding adjectives, such as brotherly love, or unconditional love. It might deepen our understanding of love, if we remembered that we are all interconnected with each other and with all living things.  Indigenous people considered even rocks, the sun, and the moon, as familial beings to which we are interconnected, and which give us gifts.

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