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Ottawa Celebrates World Religion Day

Faith groups unite around theme of Children Leading the Way to a Unified Community

Children and youth from various religious and community group celebrate World Religion Day in Ottawa

Representatives of Ottawa’s spiritual communities gathered in Ottawa City Hall on Sunday January 15, 2006 to celebrate World Religion Day. This year’s event was formally proclaimed by Ottawa Mayor Bob Chiarelli, and focused on children and youth around the theme of “Children Leading the Way to a Unified Community”.

World Religion Day was first commemorated by Bahá’í communities in the United States in 1950, and is now celebrated in numerous towns and cities around the world. World Religion Day was first held in the amalgamated city of Ottawa in 2002, and has been held every year since. Held on the third Sunday of January, the 2005 event focused on the importance of the environment in all spiritual traditions.

The program for the 2006 celebration covered a diverse range of dance, music and drama performances by various groups including the Dandelion Dance Company, the Hindu Temple of Ottawa-Carleton, the Ottawa Buddhist Community, Faith and the Common Good, the Ottawa Sikh Society, the Ottawa Jewish Community and the Ottawa Bahá’i Community.

Promoting the essential unity of all major religions, over 150 people attended the celebration, which ended with a moving rendition of "We Are the World" sung by a choir composed of all the children and youth in attendance.

The event was a great success and left a lasting positive impression with old and young alike of how religions can work together to demonstrate unity in diversity.

Photos: copyright Louis Brunet. To view all photos, click here.