Interfaith group to hold peace vigil in Center Park
Wareham Faith in Action members hold signs during a June peace walk along Main St. File photo
Wareham Faith in Action members hold signs during a June peace walk along Main St. File photo
All that Wareham Faith in Action wants is peace.
The interfaith organization, which started last year, will be spreading its message of peace and unity among all humans during its first peace vigil on Saturday, Oct. 10.
The group has held three peace walks around Wareham since April, but the Rev. Daniel Bernier of Church of the Good Shepherd suggested making a change.
"His idea was to be in a very visible place and bring people together," said Lisa Govoni, the co-chair of Wareham Faith in Action.
That visible place will be Center Park, between Main St. and Gibbs Ave.
A guest speaker will be at the vigil, and the organizers will provide candles. Dogs are allowed too — as long as they're on leashes.
Holding the vigil in one place makes it more inclusive to all people, Govoni said. She said many people who wanted to participate in the peace walks weren't able to. At this event, people can bring their own chairs and stay in one central location.
Govoni said that the organization began holding peace walks, and now the vigil, in response to the growing divide across the world.
"In general, the amount of anger and discord," she said. "It's just trying to combat that, trying to remind people of 'Oh, no, we can create peace in our world. We have to choose it, but we can create it.'"
Wareham Faith in Action opposes the current war in Iran, Govoni said. But while the group is "under the umbrella" of Wareham Law and Democracy, it's a non-political organization. Political signs are discouraged at its events.
Govoni said that one of the group's members is Baháʼí , and according to their faith, they cannot be openly political. She said that the group remaining non-partisan was "sort of a way to honor that."
The message of the vigil, which starts at 3 p.m. on Oct. 10, is "Light a candle. Hold a hope. Stand for peace." The event will begin with a few people lighting their candles from a central flame, and then using those to light other people's candles.
Govoni said that it's "a way of spreading that light of hope and peace to people you don't even know, just being the light out in the world."
