Peace Network Convenes Washington Conference
Episcopal News Service. April 13, 1989 [89077D]
WASHINGTON, D.C. (DPS, Apr. 13) -- On March 30 through April 1, a national Episcopal Peace Network Visioning Conference, sponsored by the Peace and Justice Office of the Episcopal Church Center, was held in Washington, D.C. The purpose of the conference was the creation of a network of diocesan peace commissions. Fifty-three people attended the conference, representing 36 diocese.
Keynote speaker at the conference was the Rev. Jep Streit, Episcopal chaplain at Boston University. Another speaker at the conference was the Rt. Rev. Samir Kafity, Bishop of the Diocese of Jerusalem, who described the ongoing strife in his diocese and who called for the conference's support in seeking peace for all of the people of the Holy Land.
Keynoter Streit, who opened his address with a theological reflection on the nature of "shalom" and the Christian's call to make peace, spoke of the work and results of a training program undertaken in the Diocese of Massachusetts that had empowered members of congregations to realize their roles as peacemakers. Representatives from the dioceses of Los Angeles, Washington, and Minnesota, in a presentation called "Peace Work That Works," described successful peace programs in their dioceses, including programs to train clergy and laity in peacemaking, youth trips to the Soviet Union, and a traveling "Peace Train" that visited parishes interested in making peace.
In addition to presentations by diocesan peace commissions, the Peace and Justice Office at the Episcopal Church Center, and the Washington Office of the Episcopal Church, the conference offered small group and plenary sessions in which participants shared their experiences as peacemakers in a variety of settings. This sharing' played a major role in the process used at the conference to name, create, and begin implementing a broad national network.
The network that emerged from the Washington conference was named "The Episcopal Peace and Justice Network." It will be made up of diocesan peace and justice groups and will provide tools and resources to member groups for use in their work. The network will be sustained by a newsletter, a computer information system, a resource library, and an annual conference.
An executive committee was formed to facilitate the work of the network. It includes Marty Coleman of the Interfaith Center to Reverse the Arms Race, All Saints, Pasadena, California; the Rev. Thomas Daily, Grace Church, Morganton, North Carolina; the Rev. Charles Day, Hellertown, Pennsylvania; Carolyn Mok, Rochester, New York; Gail Morris (secretary), Morgan Hill, California; J.T. Moore, Ponca City, Oklahoma; Sharron Singleton (convener), Cranston, Rhode Island; and Bert Whitcomb (treasurer), Fergus Falls, Minnesota. Ellen Rawland of Laguna Beach, California, will edit the network's newsletter.
For further information about the Episcopal Peace and Justice Network, call or write the Peace and Justice Office, Episcopal Church Center, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017; tel. (800) 334-7626; New York State residents, (800) 321-2231.