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| ZAMWI's building form the outside |
I walked into the ZAMWI's building (Zoroastrian Association of Metropolitan Washington Inc.). To my left were bathrooms. To my right was a hallway that led to a room, that I later found out will soon be their sanctuary. Ahead of me was a wide doorway that opened into an auditorium.
I stepped into the auditorium to see people gathering. The room was long and rectangular with high ceilings. It looked more like a dining hall than a place for religious gatherings. I wasn't sure what to think. I looked around to see people of various ethnicities gathered about. Most of the people had some kind of Persian background. They were Iranian, Pakistani, Afghan and Indian. There were a few people of European ancestry in the room as well. Most of them had come to Zoroastrianism through marriage.
As I began to talk to some of the people I learned a lot about their perceptions of religion. A woman who had grown up in India talked about her view of religion. "In India, we worship each other's gods. It's not about believing in them, it's a way of respecting each other. Before the British came, Muslims, Hindus and other got along well. The British divided us." The development of the Sikh religion makes me question how accurate that statement was, but it's true that people of differing belief systems usually get along until some power-hungry person comes along and amplifies divisions to gain power.
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| Their auditorium is built like a dining hall. During class chairs and a podium were present. |
I helped the community prepare for their service. As the service began, everyone put white hats on their head. They had extras and I followed suit. The children assembled in chairs at the front of the auditorium and the adults stood around almost in a circle. A woman made announcements. After this, the priest spoke. His message focused on the children. He told them to
- Greet God in the morning and at night
- Make their beds
- Wash their dishes
- Do their part at home, school and elsewhere
The simple message took about 5 minutes. After this he blessed one of the children. I think it was for the child's birthday. When this portion of the service was over, everyone grabbed hands for a quick prayer. After the prayer, we went to class. There wasn't a worship service in the way Christians would think of one, just the short lesson, the prayer and then class.
The class, too, was unlike anything I've ever had the opportunity to witness. The group I met with was discussing what they ought to study together in the future. They'd agreed to study the Gathas (the central part of the Zoroastrian text), but were discussing whether or not to focus on anything else in their studies. Everyone agreed that the Gathas were the most important part of their tradition. These are the oldest sections. They're attributed to Zoroaster himself. These portions of the text, as I understand it, are purely monotheistic and don't emphasize the rituals that later came to be associated with Zoroastrianism.
The question in the group was how tightly to hold onto the things that had been added to the religion in the thousands of years since Zoroaster had received his revelation. The most radical of the members believed that the rituals could be completely done away with. Others disagreed and were in fact working to turn one of the rooms into a kind of sanctuary where rituals could be performed by a priest.
During class, I asked how one becomes a Zoroastrian. The response was interesting. I learned that no one could tell me whether I was or wasn't a Zoroastrian and that if I wanted to attend their meetings as a Zoroastrian that I could. I asked whether everyone would except me. "Most people here would," I was told. Most of the clerics in India wouldn't. I don't recall them saying anything in particular about the community in Iran.
What I observed was a community searching for itself. I asked and the observation was affirmed. "Zoroastrianism used to be associated with Persia, but that doesn't exist any more," I was told. They were trying to decide what it meant to be Zoroastrian without a state or even a completely unifying culture. It was interesting to see this conversation in person. I wondered what Mary Boyce would have thought.
While the Zoroastrians aren't evangelistic, they were more open to people joining than I expected. I wondered if they were thinking what I think. "It would be a pity if this tradition died. It's one of the most important religious traditions in world history, even if most people today don't know about it." I expect they do think this, though it's probably more personal to them than it is to me.
The class, too, was unlike anything I've ever had the opportunity to witness. The group I met with was discussing what they ought to study together in the future. They'd agreed to study the Gathas (the central part of the Zoroastrian text), but were discussing whether or not to focus on anything else in their studies. Everyone agreed that the Gathas were the most important part of their tradition. These are the oldest sections. They're attributed to Zoroaster himself. These portions of the text, as I understand it, are purely monotheistic and don't emphasize the rituals that later came to be associated with Zoroastrianism.
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| A framed rug for the sanctuary. On the left is the king, on the right Zoroaster - the Holy Spirit hovers over each |
The question in the group was how tightly to hold onto the things that had been added to the religion in the thousands of years since Zoroaster had received his revelation. The most radical of the members believed that the rituals could be completely done away with. Others disagreed and were in fact working to turn one of the rooms into a kind of sanctuary where rituals could be performed by a priest.
During class, I asked how one becomes a Zoroastrian. The response was interesting. I learned that no one could tell me whether I was or wasn't a Zoroastrian and that if I wanted to attend their meetings as a Zoroastrian that I could. I asked whether everyone would except me. "Most people here would," I was told. Most of the clerics in India wouldn't. I don't recall them saying anything in particular about the community in Iran.
What I observed was a community searching for itself. I asked and the observation was affirmed. "Zoroastrianism used to be associated with Persia, but that doesn't exist any more," I was told. They were trying to decide what it meant to be Zoroastrian without a state or even a completely unifying culture. It was interesting to see this conversation in person. I wondered what Mary Boyce would have thought.
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| A Statue of the Holy Spirit to be used in their sanctuary in the future |
While the Zoroastrians aren't evangelistic, they were more open to people joining than I expected. I wondered if they were thinking what I think. "It would be a pity if this tradition died. It's one of the most important religious traditions in world history, even if most people today don't know about it." I expect they do think this, though it's probably more personal to them than it is to me.
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