Lao-tzu
"Use
the light that is in you to recover your natural clearness
of sight”
"Between
all great religions of the world there are many points
of similarity; and so startling is this likeness, at
times, as to suggest the idea that in many particulars
the different religions have copied from one another.
This act of imitation has been laid at the door of different
religions; but that it's a superficial charge is evident
from the following facts:
Religion is fundamental in the very soul of humanity;
and as all life is the evolution of that which is within,
it, of necessity, expresses itself through various peoples
and nations.
The language
of the soul is one, the languages of nations are many;
their customs and methods of life are widely different.
Religion is of the soul and finds expression through
various nations, languages, and customs." ---- Swami Vivekananda
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WHAT WILL SUCH A SHRINE LOOK LIKE?
There are may options and ways of designing the interior of the Temple. But the central shrine of Temple Universal will have to draw upon the symbols of all religions. Each symbol will compliment and strengthen the meaning and power of the other symbols. There should be no hidden agendas in this temple environment.
The whole idea is that religions are supplementary, not alien to one another. They embellish and empower each other, each arousing and stimulating our mind in its own unique way. Recognizing and emphasizing this will give rise to a new kind of spiritual synergy which will energize our modern world. We desperately need this and the time is now! Why wait? ---- Swami Brahmavidyananda
"Religion should unite men everywhere; instead it sunders and separates them. Religion has proved a razor among men, when it should have healed all their wounds..." ---- Abdul Baha
THE APPARENT CONTRADICTION OF THE PERSONAL AND THE IMPERSONAL
The obstacle to an integrative view of religion exists because some religions believe in a personal God, whereas others believe in an Impersonal Reality. In the background, this is always a stumbling block to interfaith dialogue. The Impersonalists like the Buddhists, Taoists and Orthodox Vedantins have the Impersonal as their basis, and have little regard for the personal God. The Personalists, such as the Christians, Jews, Muslims or Parsees have the personal God as their basis, and feel great anxiety when talking about the Impersonalist view of religion. So, there remains this unspoken rift between these two major schools of thought. An underlying distrust, or we could say, confusion, pervades the situation. Neither system is clear as to how to assimilate a seemingly opposing, and for some, an even threatening system into consciousness
"God is like a mirror. The mirror never changes but everyone who looks at it sees a different face...." ---- Midrash Tanhama
TEMPLE UNIVERSAL SEEKS TO INTEGRATE BOTH
Philosophy should include both the personal God and the Impersonal absolute. In Insight Spirituality (the basic approach of Temple Universal), the personal God is active within relativity and the phenomenal universe. However, if our intuitive insight transcends relative consciousness, our consciousness then gives way to a larger framework of the Impersonal, all inclusive, transcendent Reality.
Please notice the consistency and continuity that's found in the sayings of the mystics, saints and sages of all religions! They're always talking about the same lager, spiritual experience.
"You are related to God as a drop of water is related to the Ocean. The drop and the ocean are not different, they are essentially the same. Except for one thing - you cannot sail a ship in a drop of water and you can sail a billion ships in the ocean...." ---- Shantidasa
In this way, devotional practices and beliefs are encouraged as central to attaining higher states of consciousness. Sing and cry in the name of the Lord. Eventually, a perception of personal Deity will occur along with a feeling of unity with God. And as one persists and one's mind becomes more open, one is able to intuit an even deeper unity underlying creation at large.
In "View From the Center" and "The Way Home" Swami Vivekananda sums it up beautifully.
"Do not despise the world, for the world too is God..." Mohammed
Yet, meditations on the Impersonal can be practiced as well. Commit yorself to the ground of Being as the source out of which this changing, phenomenal world has arisin, just as the ocean is separate from its waves. Live your life in light of this larger Ocean of Reality. Eventually, your consciousness will calm down and you'll have a primal experience of Unity. 
The point is that at Temple Universal, we're free to approach God or Reality in our own unique way, because the goal is ultimately the same.
JOIN IN FOLKS, IT'S REALLY THE SAME PHENOMENON! LET GO OF TRYING TO EMPHASIZE YOUR OWN SYMBOLS! THIS IS AN AGE OF INDIVIDUATION. LET'S ALLOW THIS AGE TO EMERGE. GIVE EVERYONE THE SPACE TO CHOOSE THEIR OWN WAY TO SALVATION!!!
In all religions it's the opening of consciousness and the manifestation of inner divinity, either through devotional attitudes, selfless service or discriminating and focusing on the Impersonal.
And throughout, there always remains the necessity of fundamental moral truths, which are found to be largely identical within every religion.
SWAMI BRAHMAVIDYANANDA
