Anniversay of the Founding of the Community in 1982

The first Saturday of October

To honor St. Francis of Assisi whose feast day is October 4 and who is the Patron Saint of ecology, and after whom Agape’s main house is named, this annual event is connected to Gandhi’s birthday, October 2 and Therese of Lisieux, October 1. All of these saints represent the prayer, poverty and witness in the world, which are Agape’s founding principles.

Past St. Francis Day — Agape Anniversary Celebrations have included Daniel Berrigan SJ, Sr. Merriam Therese MacGillis, Vincent Harding, David Dellinger, The Hibakusha (A bomb survivors of Hiroshima); a interfaith gathering after 911, including Rabbi Sheila Weinberg, Muslim community members, Episcopal priest Fr. Philip Jacobs, monks of the Buddhist Peace Pagoda in Leverett; 20th Anniversary at Holy Cross and Agape with Bishop Thomas Gumbleton of Detroit, MI; 25th Anniversary with grandson of Mahatma Gandhi; 26th Anniversary with inter-racial, multi-ethnic panel on an election year.


In this photo, Arun Gandhi is third from left; second from left is a translator from Iraq, and Sabah Kadar, next to Gandhi , who lost his wife when American troops fired at them; his son, age 4 was grievously wounded and has undergone hundreds of operations at Children’s Hospital in Boston.