A prayer
For Common Ground on the Hill

Gracious God, You are the source of our unity as a human family and our common ground because You made of one blood all the nations of the earth; we owe our oneness, unity, and wholeness to Your marvellous creation. We joyfully and gratefully gather from time to time to celebrate the rich artistic tapestry of our various crafts, our diverse, divine, and seamless garments of colours, races, ethnicities, ages, and classes and do this in an atmosphere of mutual respect, friendships, and acceptance. As a result of teaching, studying and participating in music, art, dance, and other creative forms of expressions, we ask You to help us have:

Less suspicion and more trust;
Less separation and more unity;
Less hurt and more healing;
Less fractured community and more Beloved community;
Less monologue and more dialogue;
Less deceit and more honesty;
Less issues about turf and more about sky;
Less pre-judgement and more tolerance;
Less oppression and more justice;
Less ignorance of each other and more mutual understanding;
Less alienation and more reconciliation;
Less knothole and more panorama;
Less pride and more humility;

So we can return to that place where the paint is mixed that colours the world, to that rehearsal room where our instruments are tuned to harmonise our lives. And then, following our common human thread we make our pilgrimage to that original Common Ground where we all finally stand by virtue of Your love and mercy and our willingness to love and understand each other.

Ira G. Zepp, Jr.

'The Beloved Community', a religious and national ideal inspired by the life and teaching of Martin Luther King Jr., called for ALL PEOPLE, regardless of background, to live together in harmony, justice, and peace.