“Just briefly, Mary. We’re not trying to convert, you know?” The ladies all howl with delight at Maha’s instruction. We all love Mary: her warm smile is always the first thing any of us notice when she enters the hall each week, but we’ve also noticed she has a tendency toward effusive and at times lengthy descriptions! Mary is from Egypt, and of the Coptic Orthodox faith. “Ok, ok, I’ll be brief!” she smiles. She begins her talk on the history and beliefs of her faith, translating into English what she is reading from a document written in Arabic. She goes on to introduce the dish she has cooked for us to share. It’s a pasta dish, taken from her culture, but this time prepared with the omission of some ingredients. She explains that this is because we’re part way through the season of Lent, and Mary’s daughter has chosen to fast. In the Coptic Orthodox tradition, this means eating each day only after noon, and avoiding some foods altogether.
On the table, along with Mary’s dish, is a beautifully presented plate of traditional Korean sushi: spiced rice inside yu-bu (beau curd parcels). Injo has prepared this to introduce us to the culture of her homeland, and has also spoken of what it is like to practice Won Buddhism, apologizing along the way for what she believes to be poor English. We all think she’s doing well, so nod and smile encouragement throughout her talk. Injo wears the traditional black and white garments of a Won Buddhist minister, and bows to each of us when she enters the room, hands held in a prayer-like gesture. We have come to recognize these small things as part of her tradition. In the coming weeks she will take us to her Temple where we will be introduced to meditation and learn more about the Buddha and the distinction of Won Buddhism as differentiated from other forms of Buddhism.
Our group: a Sikh couple, two Coptic Orthodox Christians, a Jew, a Hindu, two Mandaeans, two Muslims, a Won Buddhist, a Christian from the Uniting Church, an Anglican of Indigenous heritage, and four Melkite Catholics, have met together once a week for the past month to enjoy food from several cultures and attend tours of churches, a synagogue, and soon a Sikh Gurudwara, a Hindu Temple, a Won Buddhist Temple and a Mosque.
This programme of tours, recipe sharing and talks is the brainchild of Maha Tayar of the Melkite Welfare Association. The end product of our weekly meetings will be a beautifully presented calendar, featuring photos of each week of the programme, recipes for the dishes we share each week, and information about each of our faith traditions. The project is funded by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's “Harmony Day” initiative, (this year celebrated on 21st March, 2010) and is designed to build community through diversity. Certainly, as we sit around a table, feasting on beautiful home-cooked food and chit-chatting about clothes, religion, food, meditation, how to use chopsticks, and where to go to find the best jeans in town, I feel part of a wonderful, invigorating, diverse community.
Bronwyn Thompson