Urge Mayor De Blasio to Declare First-Ever Sacred Music Week: NYC
- by: Michael Weis
- recipient: Mayor William De Blasio
Religion, all too often, is portrayed as a divisive force in the world, serving only to drive people apart. Every new atrocity committed by ISIS, Boko Haram or any number of other extremist groups around the world serves as media fodder to once again "prove" that religion has no role other than to bring violence, repression and death.
But religion, though it can spawn them, is not really "about" any of those things. At its core, religion is about nothing less than the deep, universal and oh, so human yearning for transcendence. This transcendence comes in many forms and is known by many names in many languages. While we are often fooled by the forms and the languages into thinking that adherents of different faiths have little in common, the truth is that, whether we know it or not, we all share the same yearning. And across cultures and across time, all religions have shared a single, unifying feature to express that yearning: music.
Hans Christian Andersen once wrote, "Where words fail, music succeeds." As bold as the extremists have been to divide, we must be bolder to unite. And so, we, the clergy, sacred singers, performers, scholars and citizens of New York City, call upon Mayor William De Blasio to declare the week of October 30 through November 6, 2016 "Sacred Music Week."
This week-long sacred music festival will feature interfaith concerts, music lectures, discussions and interactive educational experiences throughout the five boroughs and beyond, at religious and secular venues large and small. Sacred Music Week: NYC will be an unprecedented coming together of religious groups from across NYC's vast religious landscape, along with spiritually-oriented secular organizations with musicians, performing groups and scholars who specialize in the presentation and study of sacred music.
And all this will be done with one singular focus in mind: to build bridges of understanding and friendship across religious lines, one blessed song at a time.
Dear Mayor De Blasio,
On behalf of the signers of this petition, I call upon you to declare the week of October 30 through November 6, 2016 "Sacred Music Week: NYC."
At no time in human history has the call to people of faith, including peace-loving citizens who don't adhere to any particular faith community, been stronger to be bold and audacious in our response to those who would hide under the cloak of religion to sow terror, division and mistrust in the world.
We, the citizens of NYC, the single most diverse cultural, racial and ethnic metropolis on the planet are standing together to say "no" to racism, bigotry and fanaticism. To deliver that message, we intend to use the only language that is common to all races and religions from prehistoric times to the present: music.
All human beings are linked by the use of music to express the deepest yearnings of the human soul. And in no case is that truer than in the creation and utilization of devotional music used throughout history. Sacred Music Week: NYC will be a celebration of the holy music that New Yorkers or all races and creeds use to pour their hearts out to the source of meaning in their lives.
At it's core, the purpose of Sacred Music Week, NYC is to advance the causes of brotherhood and friendship across religious and ethnic lines one blessed song at a time. Through interfaith concerts, talks, lectures, and discussions in venues large and small, religious and secular, Sacred Music Week: NYC will be the ultimate statement that religion doesn't have to be the divisive and repressive force the media makes it out to be. Sacred Music Week: NYC will unite New Yorkers in a way that few other events have ever done.
Mayor De Blasio, we the clergy, sacred singers, performers, scholars and lovers of peace and harmony call upon you to declare the week of October 30 through November 6, 2016 "Sacred Music Week: NYC."
Very truly yours,
Hazzan Michael Weis
The Brotherhood Synagogue
Gramercy Park, NY
By signing, you accept Care2's Terms of Service.
You can unsub at any time here.
Having problems signing this? Let us know.