Heading God’s Call – A gathering on Peace

Heeding God’s Call — A Gathering on Peace, was held in the Arch Street Friends Meetinghouse in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, January 13 – 17, 2009, at the invitation of the Historic Peace Churches: Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Mennonite Church USA, and the Church of the Brethren. Five Moravians joined more than 300 other Christian peacemakers from 23 traditions, along with Jewish and Muslim observer/participants. Reflections by four of them follow.

Sue Koenig, Pastor, Schoenbrunn Community, Schoenbrunn, Ohio:

The theme of the Gathering was “Strengthening our witness and work for peace in the world by inspiring hope, raising voices, taking action.” “This is the year of the Lord’s favor,” proclaimed the Rev. Dr. James Forbes, Jr., Senior Minister Emeritus of Riverside Church, NYC. In the midst of violence here and abroad, in the midst of poverty, climate change, discrimination, world hunger, and a world-wide economic crisis, we heard this word proclaimed.

Raising our voices in prayer and lament, we cried out, “How long, O God, before peace and justice come?” We were called to search our souls, the soul of the church, and the soul of our nation, for answers to the question: “What must die in us for new growth and new life to come forth?” And we were confronted with the notion that whatever we have that we do not need, does not belong to us.

When the call for action came, I was compelled to respond, to stand in public witness against the illegal sale and use of handguns responsible for many deaths in Philadelphia. I learned in an instant, confronting my own fears, that standing for peace and justice involves risk, but it is a risk the church must take.

Rick Stamm, Lititz Moravian, Lititz, Pennsylvania:

Historic Peace Churches called us together. The Moravian Church was the very first “peace church.” We are no longer. Will the current “historic peace churches” lose their way as we have done? Can we all be “Living Peace Churches” and true disciples of the Prince of Peace? Why isn’t every church a peace church?

It was a three-day journey with hundreds of kindred spirits led by giants in the religious community of peacemakers, an awesome experience but an even more awesome responsibility. The call of Jesus to be non-violent, action-oriented peacemakers cannot be denied.

We saw Jesus’ life in the context of empire; revisited the hope of Martin Luther King; heard stories from current day prophets; wrestled with action plans and our own limitations to carry them out. Our leaders made clear that the tools exist, beginning with the Bible and the teachings of Jesus.

Bringing the message back to our home churches seemed to be the challenge for each delegate to this historic event. We left inspired and encouraged. Just knowing there are so many of us committed to this mission was helpful. May God lead us once again to be counted among those called “Peace Church.”

Ray Shiffer, West Side Moravian, Green Bay, Wisconsin:

Today I read Richard Rohr: “Many of our so-called non-negotiables are at major variance with what Jesus clearly emphasized. How can you read the Eight Beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mount and not believe Jesus was teaching nonviolence? It’s impossible.”

As Brian McLaren says, instead of teaching forgiveness and love of enemies, we taught an evacuation plan for the next world. None of the Christian nations has a record for peacemaking. We have to go to our Mennonite and Amish and Quaker brothers and sisters who, thank God, retained the peace witness of the church.

McLaren is a Franciscan Priest, but his words apply to any mainline church, including the Moravian Church. We do not teach nonviolence if we praise our children for going off to our nation’s wars, if we worship with national flags in our sanctuaries. It was encouraging to learn that the Peace Churches DO take seriously Christ’s call for peacemaking. “War is contrary to the will of God,” was a prominent theme at the Gathering.

Peace takes many forms. Ending war is one of them, bringing good news to the poor is another. Peace involves public actions, such as that to reduce gun violence in Philadelphia, which was an integral part of our gathering. It is my prayer that Moravians will once again see clearly our calling to forgiveness and love of enemies, becoming truly Christ-centered, following him in nonviolent love.

Marian L. Shatto, Lititz Moravian, Lititz, Pennsylvania:

One of the recurring themes of the Gathering was Micah 6:8. God requires us to seek justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God. Understanding that seeking justice involves right relationship with all that God made, I attended the workshop titled “How can we restore our relationship with the earth and find justice for all God’s creation?” We reflected on how our actions have in many ways broken the Covenant between God and humanity. We learned how processes such as strip mining, factory farming, dumping of toxic wastes, and pollution of air and water have done substantial harm to the earth. Following the example of the Psalmist, we lamented our failure to act as good stewards of creation.

In the second session we sought signs of hope, lifting up stories of acts of restorative justice. As a member of the Eastern District Church and Society Commission, I was delighted to learn of all the resources available to congregations on this subject.

It is increasingly clear that competition for the earth’s resources is at the root of many global conflicts. A peaceful world must include just distribution of the resources necessary for life abundant. Clean water, nourishing food, and adequate shelter are the minimum required, yet today many are denied these basics. We as Christian peacemakers are called to work to change the structures which perpetuate these injustices.