God's October Suprise

At just the moment of history when religious conflict, violence, terrorism, and war have coalesced in a lethal brew for our different communities and our shared planet, God has given our spiritual and religious traditions a gift of time:

During October 2005--and then again in the fall of 2006 and 2007--a confluence of sacred moments in several different traditions invites us to pray with or alongside each other and to work together for peace, justice, human rights, and the healing of our wounded earth.

To begin with, two strands of time that are celebrated in two communities now often at odds with one another are this fall woven together in a way not seen for three decades: The sacred Muslim lunar month of Ramadan and the sacred Jewish lunar month of Tishrei, which includes the High Holy Days and Sukkot, both begin Oct. 3-4.

But there is more: Oct. 4 is the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi; October 2 is Mahatma Gandhi's birthday and Worldwide (Protestant/Orthodox) Communion Sunday. And in mid-October, parallel to Sukkot, there are major Sikh, Buddhist, and Hindu festivals.

Remembering Francis of Assisi is more to the point today than many may realize. For at the very moment when almost all of Christian Europe was calling for Crusades, Francis was one of the few Christians of his day who opposed the Crusades, who learned in a serious way from Muslim teachers, and who was deeply dedicated to kinship with the earth and all living creatures.

The spiritual depth of "God's October surprise" stems from making a coherent whole of the medium--interwoven celebration and learning--with the explicit message--peace and reconciliation. Together we can face down the blood-stained, intolerant practices that some adherents in each of our traditions have mistakenly identified with God's will, and together we can work out ways to transcend them through action as well as learning.

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