WCF Celebrates 90 Years at Global Retreat Centre
The World Congress of Faiths (WCF) celebrated its 90th Anniversary at the Global Retreat Centre, Oxfordshire on 15th July. It was in 1936 that Sir Francis Younghusband, a British army officer and explorer, founded WCF, as the inner, spiritual exploration and also the teachings and practices of other religions – and particularly those of the East – became increasingly important to him. It was a lovely, warm-hearted and meaningful gathering of friends old and new from different faiths and traditions. As well as appreciating some of the key figures and events in inter-religious friendship – there was also the honouring of the excellent work taking place today and inspirations and hopes for the future.
Sister Maureen welcomed everyone, appreciating how the work of WCF is “really very spiritual in nature because we aim to look at where we meet in terms of the spiritual experience and the mystical side of faith.” She went on to share how the destinies of WCF and the Brahma Kumaris have been “intertwined from the beginning”:
- both organisations are celebrating their 90th anniversary this year.
- Sir Francis Younghusband and Brahma Baba (founder of the Brahma Kumaris) were both born in pre-partition India, in what is now Pakistan. Born in 1863 and 1884 respectively, they were nearly contemporaries.
- both founders experienced a series of mystical experiences that ultimately led to the establishment of their respective organisations. Sir Francis Younghusband was posted to Mount Abu in 1897, which since 1950 has served as the spiritual headquarters of the Brahma Kumaris.
- Dadi Janki, the former head of the Brahma Kumaris, served as a patron of WCF and was very supportive of their shared work in promoting peace.
Sister Maureen especially thanked Rev. Marcus Braybrooke, former Chairman of WCF for his friendship, his great work and for “being the best mentor in interfaith”.
In his opening remarks, WCF Chairman Alan Race recalled Sir Francis Younghusband’s words of 1936 calling for a “livelier world consciousness”. An audio recording of Swami Vivekanda’s historic speech to the 1893 Parliament of the World’s Religions was played as well as an archive BBC broadcast on the life of Sir Francis Younghusband.
After lunch together, a Multi-Faith Service was held in which Sister Natalie read a text by Dadi Janki entitled ‘Child of God’ and we listened to each others’ chants, prayers, readings, and music with great interest and love for the sacred in each tradition. The day was interspersed with lively and open discussions, along with updates on current and future interfaith matters from WCF’s Administrator and Projects Officer Warwick Hawkins and others, and closed with a final meditation on gratitude from Sister Maureen.
