MUKILTEO — Fifty candles were lit inside the sanctuary of Pointe of Grace Lutheran Church on Wednesday evening — a quiet statement of grief and hope for healing as part of an interfaith gathering.
It was a chance for about 250 people to come together after Sunday’s mass shootings at a gay bar in Orlando, Florida, which left 49 people and the shooter dead.
Some of those who attended the event said it helped underscore the message: It’s even more important for Christians and Muslims to reach out and better understand each other.
Dana Wilber, of Mukilteo, said Wednesday’s event was even more important because of the shooting. “We need to find ways to come together and be a platform for our kids growing up to ensure they have ways of responding to fear,” she said.
The evening began with people reaching out to shake the hands and introducing themselves to others they did not know. There were readings from sacred texts from Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths and a moment of silence in honor of those who died in Florida.
In Everett, gatherings were planned Wednesday evening in a church and in the street along Hoyt Avenue to remember the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting and to show support for the LGBT community around the country.
One group of supporters got together for a march from the Artspace Everett Lofts to Bar Myx, an Everett gay bar.
Ru Otto was one of the march organizers. The 70-year-old moved from Gainesville, Florida, to Everett six years ago. She said she thinks people would be surprised to know how many of their neighbors are gay or lesbian.
“We are your people. We are your neighbors,” she said. “There’s no reason to be afraid of us or hate us.”
The Mukilteo event included two Seattle religious leaders known nationally for their interfaith work — Imam Jamal Rahman, a Muslim Sufi minister at Seattle’s Interfaith Community Sanctuary, and Rabbi Ted Falcon, who writes and speaks on religious and interfaith issues. They joined Mohammed Riaz Khan, president of the group that plans to build a mosque in Mukilteo, the Islamic Center of Mukilteo.
The gathering originally was planned as an opportunity for non-Muslims to learn more about Islam and to discuss the mosque, which is planned for a site on Harbour Pointe Boulevard.
Khan earlier said he wanted to speak for the local Muslim community. “We pray for the day when love overpowers hatred and each human life is valued and protected. May God help us all to unite to defeat violence.”
Rahman said he hoped Wednesday’s event “would begin the process of establishing a relationship” in the community among people of different faiths. “This is our greatest hope, that hearts and minds will open up on all sides,” he said.
The evening ended with a dinner, which for Muslims marked the breaking of the daily fast that occurs during Ramadan.
Plans for the gathering were announced last month by Paul Kramer, of Mukilteo. Kramer said he wanted the event to help build understanding so that there can be a “smooth integration of the Muslim community into the fabric our community.”
Controversy over the planned Islamic Center of Mukilteo arose in April when an anonymous postcard was sent citywide. It included an email address: mukilteostaysafe@gmail.com.
Wendy Zieve, of Seattle, whose brother, Peter Zieve, sent out the citywide postcard, came with her daughter, Nina Matthews, of Shoreline. Wendy Zieve spoke out against the actions of her brother. Nina Matthews said she was proud of her mother’s work “to spread getting along among religions.”
Anti-Muslim fliers also were posted last month on the site where supporters plan to build the mosque. No arrests in the case have been made.
Falcon said he was happy to see the event was organized by someone from Mukilteo. “When citizens take it upon themselves to bring healing to a challenging situation, that’s hopeful,” he said.
In Everett, Otto planned to read the names of the Pulse victims aloud and have a moment of silence for them, then light candles and march the five blocks to Bar Myx.
At the same time, Trinity Episcopal Church held a prayer and memorial service. The plan for the service included communion, prayers, music and the ringing of the church bell for each of the 49 people killed in the Orlando massacre.
The Rev. Rachel Taber-Hamilton said there are three reasons the community needs to pray together. The first is to show that her parish has decided to be openly accepting of people regardless of sexual orientation. The second is to share the grief that people across the country are feeling.
And third, “we feel it’s very, very important for all faith traditions to put a public message of acceptance and inclusion to the world,” Taber-Hamilton said. “No faith — whether it’s Christianity, Judaism, Islam — is free of the history our faiths share of the persecution of gay people.”
It’s time for people of all faiths or no faith to say without hesitation or apology that they stand with those killed or who lost loved ones in Orlando, and that they stand with each other, she said.
“Whatever we believe, and whatever orientation of love we have, we are called to transcend differences and recognize our humanity,” Taber-Hamilton said. “For people who say prayer is not enough, they’re right. I think that our action begins with prayer, but it doesn’t end there.”
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.
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