Universal Worship at the Astana

Please come and bring friends! All are welcome!

Increasingly, people are finding they need ceremonies that go deeper, ceremonies that resonate with the basic spirituality that underlies all religion, and that can be shared and understood by people of any religion, or even no religion at all. Spiritual ceremony in the Universal Worship is done by those who have received specialized training as clergy, called Cherags from the Persian word meaning lamp or light.

Cherags perform the Universal Worship, a ceremony offering our reverence and gratitude for the message of God as it has been given to humanity through every religion. We honor the One Being in many different forms, the one light in all prophets, saints and masters of every religious and spiritual tradition, the one message in many scriptures.

The Universal Worship does not compete with any existing religion and is not a new religion. It offers teachings and guidance that enhance a fuller realization of religion and of the essential unity of being that can be attained through any spiritual path.

Please join our Astana community and Cherags Hayat Bain, Jabriel Hasan and Cathy Arhama Reynolds who lead each service, followed by a potluck social.

• April 6th—Greening w/ Life w/ Hayat Bain
• May 4th—The Perfection of Love w/ Jabriel Hasan
• June 8th—Call of the River w/ Cathy Arhama Reynolds

Please RSVP in advance to astanarva@inayatiyya.org, sharing your full name, mobile # in case there is a change, and if you are staying for our potluck social after the service. If you plan to join the potluck, you are warmly invited to bring a nourishing, vegetarian or vegan dish to share, which is optional. When emailing, please also share any special physical and/or dietary needs you may have.

Please note that the May 4th Universal Worship Service is during our Astana Open House Weekend, May 3-5th. Participants must be registered for the weekend to attend. We will open any extra spaces for the Universal Worship the week before once we know our open house numbers.

Universal Worship at the Astana is in-person only to magnetize our local community presence in Richmond. If you would like to give a donation toward the Astana and its programs, we welcome a gift of $10-$20.

To learn about the Astana in Richmond, Virginia, with details on travel, parking, hotels, and local restaurants, please visit astanarva.org.

All with a sincere interest are welcome to participate in Universal Worship! This includes:

• People of all races and ethnicities
• People of different class backgrounds
• People with disabilities, visible or invisible
• People of all sexual orientations, including gay, lesbian, bisexual, heterosexual, pansexual, queer, or others for whom none of the labels fit
• People of all genders, including people who identify as women, men, cis, trans, nonbinary, gender-queer, and others
• People of different faiths, religious traditions, faith practices (including private practices that don’t belong to a tradition), agnostics, atheists, and seekers
• People of all ages

BIOGRAPHIES

Jabriel Hasan is a graduate of Union Presbyterian Seminary and currently a student at the College of William and Mary studying counseling. He is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer and a former resident of Richmond Hill, an ecumenical Christian community and retreat center in Richmond, Virginia. He is also a founding member and officer of the Black Coalition of Change, a local community organization also in Richmond. As of spring 2023, Jabriel is an ordained Healing Cherag within the Inayatiyya.

Arhama Cathy Reynolds is an ordained Healing Cherag within the Inayatiyya. She is a certified spiritual director with an inter-spiritual and interfaith focus. She also is a lay Franciscan within the Third Order, Society of St. Francis (Anglican/Episcopal) Order. Arhama has served as a chaplain and a formation counselor, and is currently an assistant formation guardian. Arhama enjoys writing icons of angels, saints, and other inspired illuminated souls, and lives with her husband and rather rambunctious elderly parrot in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Hayat Bain is an ordained Healing Cherag, certified Dances of Universal Peace leader and mentor, sound healer, holistic healing guide, and former family and community nurse practitioner. In her fluid role with local nonprofit Coming Together Virginia, she convenes and facilitates groups and coordinates events through collaborative community connections, with the vision of a racially healed world of thriving, equitable and just communities. She is also an accomplished flutist and vocalist. Hayat lives with her husband and their rescue pup Piccolo in Richmond, Virginia.