Universal Worship Service

Introduction


Some of the following was taken from the web sites of the Church of All (churchofall.us) and the Cherag Library (cheraglibrary.org). Please keep in mind that this form originally came through the Sufi Inayat Khan and has been practiced and continued through an initiatic process of the organizations that have followed; thus the references to "Sufi".

About the Universal Worship

From Inayat Khan:
"In the service of the Sufi Universal Worship all services - Christian, Muslim, Hebrew, Zoroastrian, Buddhist, and Hindu - are included. Therefore the blessing of Christ is given from the altar to the seeker for Jesus Christ's blessing; the one who seeks for the blessing of Moses, to him is given the blessing of Moses; for the one who seeks the benediction of Buddha there is the benediction of Buddha; but those who seek the blessing of all these great ones who have come at different times are blessed by all.

On the altar are placed the scriptures of the religions mentioned above, and there are also candles representing all these religions. The different candles which are lighted mean our adherence and respect to all the different teachers, religions, and scriptures. They teach us that there is one light and many lamps. It is not the lamps which should first be taken to the mind; it is the light which should first be taken to heart.

It is this religion of unification which Jesus Christ came to teach; the teachings of Moses and the efforts of Mohammed were all towards this one object. All that Buddha has taught, all that Krishna has said, is summed up in one thing: that it is one light that is the divine light, and it is the guidance coming from that light which becomes the path for humanity to tread.

But although the Sufi ideal is expressed through so many forms, the Sufis also have the formless ideal of worship. The form is to help those who need to see the form, for all education is really an education of names and forms.

If there were no names and no forms we would not have learned them. But the form is only suggestive of what is behind it, of one and the same truth which is behind all religions. ... The Sufi prayers such as Saum and Salat are not man-made prayers. They have descended from above, just as in every period of spiritual reconstruction prayers were given. And there is every power and blessing in them, especially for those who believe." (HIK).

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The Universal Worship was established as the religious activity of the Sufi Order International and seeks to exemplify the underlying unity of all religious ideals. At one altar we read from the Holy Book of each religion presented on the altar. We light candles symbolically representing the wisdom brought to the world by each religion. One by one, the candles literally increase the light and figuratively bring the light of the only Wisdom, Truth, Love, Beauty, etc. to those attending. We have arrived at a new level of understanding and the message of unity is ringing loudly in many places and in many hearts. The dogmatic limitations that sufficed for former times are no longer satisfactory for those people whose hearts and minds are now embracing a more inclusive and expansive realization of Unity.
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The Universal Worship is the religious service of the Church of All and of all churches. It is so named because it aims to promote the unity of religious ideals, to give an opportunity to those belonging to different religions to worship together, and to discover that there is one source from which all scriptures have come. ... It is ... an opportunity to those belonging to different religions to worship together to pay respect to the great ones who have come from time to time to help humanity. ... Religion is something which touches the depths of the heart, and everyone has his own conceptions of religion which he holds as sacred.
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The Universal Worship Service is now being extended to all persons who desire to conduct it. This is its next step.
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Read about the authorization for you to conduct this service.

If you wish to go further, please read about the first steps and framework for learning to conduct the Universal Worship Service.

4 Talks about the service:
background, extending it now, the framework, and the first steps.

The background and some history 19:05
Extending the service more openly now for all to conduct 20:30
The framework of the service 20:30
The first steps and practices 12:01


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