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Montreal, September 20, 2018 - "Let's Spread Happiness; encourage coexistence; sow the seeds of mutual support! "

In front of an audience of 150 people, these words were voiced by a young girl of Iranian origin whose fellow citizens were the cause of various conflicts across the Middle East! This 19-year-old girl is deeply involved in volunteer work and service to humanity in Montreal. Thus, the world is transformed in a constructive way, one heart at a time! She was delighted to see the Bahá’ís were involved in community activities and expressed the desire to participate in the the projects initiated by the community!

Since 1981, the year of the declaration of the International Day of Peace, the Bahá’í community of Montreal in association with the municipality of Saint-Laurent celebrate this day in Beaudet Park, now called the Peace Park. The celebration took place at noon in the presence of the acting mayor of Saint-Laurent, Mr. Francesco Miele, the municipal counsellors, the community affairs Officer for the Bahá’í Community, the municipal police, the representatives of the Lion club, the students of the several schools of the district as well as some hundred residents of this borough.

In his address, the acting mayor of the borough emphasized the ongoing work of the Bahá’í community for the establishment of world peace for 170 years of existence of the Faith and the work of many volunteers in the locality. In her address, Community Affairs Officer for the Baha'i Community of Montreal, Gigi Vidal, highlighted the borough's ongoing collaboration in building harmony among the people for several decades. The borough of Saint-Laurent is composed of close to a hundred ethnic and linguistic variety, a perfect example of unity in diversity throughout Quebec.

Several spaces were reserved for the participants, children or adults, to express themselves through drawings or writings, their ideas to improve our harmonious relationship with our neighborhoods and the way we can create a service oriented community! Students from the schools in the borough participated in this very interesting exercise! The musical entertainment was provided by our friend Gustavo, (called otherwise one man orchestra!), with songs and rhythm of his Djembe!

On September 6, 1912, the Montreal Gazette published an article following a speech delivered by 'Abdu'l-Bahá the evening before, in the Unitarian Church of St. James regarding world peace: 'Abdu'l- Bahá also spoke of the compelling need for education, and the destructive madness of racial and patriotic conflicts. As in His other speeches, He was extremely worried about the arms race in which all European nations were now engaged and reached a level previously unknown. At the time, no one suspected that this situation would worsen and give birth to the Great War, a disaster that, as we know today, will have killed 9,000,000 people among the countries at war, and caused terrible suffering around the world.

Later, in the last talk He gave aboard the RMS Cedric on His way back to the East, he declared: "... God created men to love one another but, rather, they kill each other cruelly and shed each other’s blood. God created humanity to cooperate and meet in harmony; instead, they ravage, plunder and destroy each other in the midst of bloody battles. God created them to bring happiness and peace; instead, discord, groans, and anguish spring from the hearts of the innocent and the afflicted.

After a minute of silence and meditation for peace, 125 cake balls were offered to participants on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Borough of Saint-Laurent.

Photos : - Some 150 people representing various associations as well as City counsellors attended the celebration.

 -Deputy Mayor of Saint-Laurent with the Officer for Community Affaires of the Bahá'í Community as well as Lions Club members and various Associations of the borough.

-Sample of drawings to express Peace and 125 cake balls to represent 125th anniversary of Saint-Laurent Borough.

 



 

Bahá'í Center

 

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