Interfaith prayer vigil at Islamic Center of America
The Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit will convene an interfaith prayer vigil and silent procession at the Islamic Center of America at 4 p.m. Thursday, April 21, to "affirm our commitment as a community to unity, harmony and civil discourse."
The April 21 ceremony was planned after a Michigan-based extremist group announced plans to demonstrate in Dearborn on Friday, April 22. That group has since cancelled its plans, but other demonstrations are rumored to be in the works.
"We are inviting clergy and lay people from the metropolitan Detroit region to stand together in the spirit of cooperation and harmony, the essential basis of this great country," according to Robert Bruttell, chair of the Interfaith Leadership Council.
"We are calling on people to reject fear and intolerance, and to embrace the idea of doing to others as we would have them do to us."
The April 21 program will include prayers and short statements from religious leaders representing a wide range of faith traditions throughout the metropolitan region, and a silent procession outside the mosque.
Earlier this month, the Interfaith Leadership Council launched a petition, "A Simple Affirmation for Our Community" which received more than 900 signatures online in its first week, and hundreds more on paper copies being circulated among religious congregations and civic groups throughout the region.
More signatures will be collected during the April 21 ceremony. Those who want to sign the petition online can find it here.
The Islamic Center of America is located at 19500 Ford Rd. in Dearborn.
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