Who We Are
On November 23, 2017, members of various faiths and spiritual traditions gathered inside Memorial Hall in Kingston’s City Hall to celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary since confederation. The gathering was made possible by the generous support of the Community Foundation of Kingston and Area. Individuals and groups shared how their spiritual tradition and faith contributed to the fabric of Kingston before and since the first Europeans arrived in this region.
We have continued to gather ever since. Our membership is growing and it includes individuals and/or leaders who are Bahai’, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Indigenous, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Sri Chinmoy, Unitarian, and Quakers.
Our meetings begin with the following acknowledgment:
We gather as one Kingston Interfaith Community
Like a growing Cedar tree,
our leaves are healing, fed by the sun and moon that shine on all of us equally;
our branches are plenty, they reach out to the One we know and call by many names;
our trunk is strong, held together by our faiths and spiritual traditions;
our roots are nourished by mutual growth in understanding, fed by the four directions;
and this tree is planted on this ground that many Indigenous Peoples call home now and have always done so.
We give thanks to the Creator, to the sun and moon, to this land, and to each other –
in peace, respect, and friendship.