Demystifying Sikhism - Q&A in Church

Demystifying Sikhism - Q&A with Dilpreet Jammu and Reverend Shannon O'Hurley

On September 4, 2016, Colorado Sikhs made history at Mile Hi Church, by conducting the first Sikh service within church walls, including Langar and outreach.

Dilpreet Jammu and Rev. Shannon O’Hurley, of the Sikh and the Spiritual community at Mile Hi Church respectively, joined together to create a true multicultural community service. Knowing the importance of the event, Rev. Shannon dedicated a film crew to capture the experience.

“As a champion for Interfaith Dialog through many forms, I was delighted with the participation, support and partnership between the hundreds of Sikhs and our congregants in creating this service. I truly believe that it is because of sharing experiences such as this that we will have peace in our lifetime.”

So that I guess the way I would describe it as the oneness is everything our Holy Scriptures the Guru Granth Sahib which we'll talk more about. Yes it starts with actually a number. It is the only scripture that I'm familiar with that starts with a number and that number is 1 so in our language one means Ick and then it becomes that One God and the One God is a description of the source, the Creator, that Divine

Dilpreet Jammu is an active Interfaith partner within the Colorado Sikh and Interfaith communities and was actively sharing the news of this historic event with Sikhs in India and around the world. “When we saw the incredible response to the short videos that we posted, with hundreds of thousands of views, we knew we were tapping into a deep need to share who we are with as many of our interfaith friends as we can. Our Sikh community's participation in the documentary will support our mission to create harmonious relationships as we foster an environment of peace and mutual respect.”

The final activity for the documentary is a joint Langar in downtown Denver, Colorado in 2017. “Our communities have a true understanding for each other and the ways East meets West. We are delighted in the ways we all work together to serve so many in need," Dilpreet and Rev. Shannon shared.

For a taste of the impact of sharing together, view this 20 minute interview that occurred during the service.

The result is an interview with simple answers that anyone can use when asked about Sikhism.

Rev. Shannon O'Hurley: Tell me, because I was so moved when you first told me about the concept of 'Oneness' in Sikhism, how the first few verses in your holy scriptures speak about this. What is the feeling of Oneness in Sikhism?

Dilpreet: The way I would describe it is: The Oneness is Everything. Our holy scriptures, the Guru Granth Sahib, which we'll talk more about, starts with a number. It is the only scripture that I'm familiar with that starts with a number and that number is ONE. In our language one is 'Ik' and that becomes "ik Ongkar' a description of the source, of the Creator,The Divine. For us everything goes back to the One. The human race, the Divine, we are all part of that Divine, we are all within that Divine and we are all One together. 

Rev. Shannon O'Hurley: Beautiful... 

If you are interested in following the story of this historic event, sign up for the Interfaith/Multicultural (I AM) friend newsletter at:
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