Compiled by Johnny Zokovitch
Each month, “On The Line” features news items and announcements from around the nation featuring Pax Christi members, local groups, regions and partners.
BLUE WATER (MI) PAX CHRISTI WORKS FOR CHILD REFUGEE RESOLUTION: (from the Port Huron Times Herald) While the issue of housing Central American children in Michigan has sparked protests in some areas, a group in Port Huron is asking for compassion for their plight. “If there are children standing on our border who have been abused and trafficked, and that won’t move you to compassion, I don’t know what will,” David Frank said. A lawyer working for Blue Water Safe Horizons, Frank is a member of Blue Water Pax Christi. “It is the official international peace movement of the Catholic church,” he said. “The group locally, nationally and internationally supports peace and social justice.” Frank composed a resolution concerning the children from Central America to be presented to the Port Huron City Council at its Sept. 8 meeting.… Read more coverage of this effort at http://archive.thetimesherald.com/article/20140822/NEWS01/308220014/Pax-Christi-seeks-compassion-refugee-children
PC METRO DC-BALTIMORE MEMBER COMMITS CD AT RALLY FOR IMMIGRANTS: More than 140 protesters, including Pax Christi Metro DC-Baltimore’s Bob Cooke, were arrested on August 28th outside the White House while staging a sit-down rally to demand protection from deportation for millions of illegal immigrants. The demonstrators, representing more than 20 organizations, said the arrests were part of a civil disobedience campaign aimed at putting pressure on President Barack Obama to enact broad leniency for illegal immigrant families and workers as part of his announced review of U.S. immigration policies… Read more at http://paxchristiusa.org/2014/09/04/immigration-pax-christi-member-bob-cooke-does-cd-at-white-house/
PC MEMPHIS MEMBERS FEATURED IN ARTICLE ABOUT VETERANS: PC-Memphis members Ed Wallin and Janice Vanderhaar (PCUSA Ambassador of Peace) were featured in a recent article in The Commercial Appeal on veterans. The article includes the following: “Many of our sick and elderly veterans are being transferred from the VA to local nursing homes, which I believe are incapable of giving the best care and treatment for war-related illnesses and old wounds, including traumatized brain injuries,” said Ed Wallin, a retired Air Force chaplain. Wallin, 86, a former priest who served two tours of duty in Vietnam, is vice president of West Tennessee Veterans Home Inc., a nonprofit formed in 2010 to bring a veterans nursing home to Shelby County. Wallin and his wife, Janice Vanderhaar, a former nun and one of the community’s better-known pacifists and peace activists, are among those leading the effort. “This is a justice issue for me,” said Vanderhaar, a co-founder of the local branch of Pax Christi, a Catholic peace organization. “I’m opposed to war but not to veterans. We have a responsibility to take care of the veterans we send to war. They and their families carry a heavy burden.”… To read more, visit http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/columnists/david-waters/david-waters-wounded-aging-veterans-need-more-than-applause_41032681 (subscription required)
PAX CHRISTI METRO DC-BALTIMORE TO PUBLISH AD IN NCR REJECTING JUST WAR THEORY: We’re excited that Pax Christi regions from around the country are uniting to launch a campaign to move the Catholic Church away from 1600 years of just war teaching, and to embrace Gospel nonviolence and the growing just peace tradition. As a first step in this campaign, we are sponsoring an ad to run in the National Catholic Reporter this October (prior to the annual U.S. bishops’ meeting in November), saying that it’s time for the Church to reject “just war” as inconsistent with the teaching and example of Jesus. We are trying to get at least 300 signatories and are reaching out to Pax Christi members and groups and others around the country. Will you please help us by signing on to the ad and helping defray the cost of publication? … To read the ad and offer your support, go to http://www.paxchristimetrodc.org/2014/08/please-sign-on-to-pax-christis-ncr-ad-rejecting-just-war/
PCUSA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WRITES ON CIVIL RIGHTS ANNIVERSARY FOR USSCB BLOG: (from the USCCB blog, written by Sr. Patricia Chappell, SNDdeN) As we commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the modern Civil Rights era, Pax Christi USA, (PCUSA), the national Catholic peace and justice movement, continues its commitment to confront the evil of racism and all forms of oppression, as we witness to the Gospel call of nonviolence and peace with justice. Traditionally, Pax Christi USA didn’t reach out to communities of color. It was not until people of color joined the national council that an intentional anti-racism initiative began to take shape. This ongoing commitment began in a process in 1999 when Pax Christi USA, with its majority membership of white Catholics, embarked on a 20-year initiative by: 1) creating a document “Brothers and Sisters All” and 2) creating the Pax Christi Anti-Racism Team, PCART, as an integral section of PCUSA… To read the entire reflection, go to http://paxchristiusa.org/2014/08/27/civil-rights-pax-christi-usa-continues-the-vision-of-the-civil-rights-era/
INTERVIEW WITH PC METRO NEW YORK’S YOUNG PEACEBUILDER AWARD RECIPIENT: (from “Conversations with Sr. Camille” in NCR) Sr. Camille: Katy, the head of Pax Christi Metro New York, Rosemarie Pace, presented you with its first Maloof Family Young Peacebuilder Award for the good work you do to make your world — be it at home, at school, in your neighborhood, throughout the city, our country, or overseas — a better place. That’s a lot of territory for someone so young to have traveled. Would you please tell us what you’ve done in these far-flung places? Let’s start with the overseas experience. Did you really go to Tanzania? Katy Donchik: Tanzania was amazing. There’s no other word to describe this experience. My family and I decided to travel there through an organization called Global Volunteers. We wanted to have a charitable vacation. We wanted to be able to experience the country of Tanzania for what it really is and not simply look at the tourist areas… To read the entire interview, go to http://paxchristiusa.org/2014/07/04/interview-student-brings-peace-building-skills-to-her-many-talents/
Upcoming or Ongoing Events:
Sept. 17-Oct. 20 – Nuns on the Bus Tour, http://www.networklobby.org/bus2014/events
Sept. 20 – South Dakota Pax Christi Peace Conference, “Human Trafficking: Modern Day Slavery,” with Sr. Ruthmary Powers, HM and Sr. Josie Chrosniak, HM in Watertown, SD; http://www.presentationsisters.org/events/event/south-dakota-pax-christi-peace-conference/
Sept. 21 – International Day of Peace, http://www.un.org/en/events/peaceday/
Sept. 21 – People’s Climate March, http://paxchristiusa.org/2014/09/05/climate-change-pax-christi-usa-endorses-the-peoples-climate-march-september-21/ (Pax Christi USA is a partner)
Sept. 21-27 – Campaign Nonviolence week of actions, http://paceebene.org/programs/campaign-nonviolence/ (Pax Christi USA is a partner)
Sept. 23 – Pax Christi International leaders speak in MD, http://paxchristiusa.org/2014/09/03/special-event-leaders-from-pax-christi-international-to-speak-in-md-on-september-23/
Sept. 26 – UN Day for the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, http://www.unfoldzero.org/index.php?p=action_sep26
Oct. 4 – Global Day of Action Against the Use of Drones for Killing and Surveillance, http://globaldayofaction.nationbuilder.com/
Oct. 4-11 – Keep Space for Peace week, http://www.space4peace.org/
Oct. 17-19 – Pax Christi Michigan’s State Retreat, “Conversations with Peter Dougherty,” in Roscommon, MI; http://www.paxchristimi.org/#!retreat-2014-registration/c1q8q
Oct. 25-26 – Pax Christi Florida’s State Assembly calling for an end to the death penalty, Tallahassee; http://paxchristiflorida.org/
Nov. 1 – Pax Christi Massachusetts state assembly with Rev. Sam Smith at Holy Cross College on “The Militarization of Our Youth and the ‘I Will Not Kill’ Campaign”; http://paxchristima.org/
Nov. 7-9 – Call To Action in Memphis, TN, http://cta-usa.org/
Quicklinks:
Ruth Zemek of Pax Christi Phoenix (AZ) will be awarded the 2014 Casa Peace Prize along with Father Eddie Fronske, OFM, on Sept. 21 … PC El Paso hosts an excellent monthly film series focusing on peace and justice … PC St. Cloud (MN) member and director of Pax Christi’s Peace Studies e-list Ron Pagnucco has just published an excellent new book aimed at college students … PC New Jersey hosted PCUSA Teacher of Peace Colleen Kelly for an event during the anniversary week of 9/11 … Read a report from the PC delegation at the UN on a recent conference … Deacon James Rauner of Pax Christi Michigan wrote the following reflection on “When the Catholic Church becomes a peace church” … PC Metro New York will be gathering with the peace contingent at 10:30am on Sept. 21 for a Peace, Justice, and Climate Rally as part of the People’s Climate March. The location is Central Park West north of Columbus Circle … PC Metro DC-Baltimore member Mary Liepold is in the trailer for the new movie Disruption. Look for her at the 1:28 mark … PC Michigan members joined the Lansing community in attending a Prayer for Peace on September 3 in response to the Michael Brown murder … David Frank of Blue Water (MI) Pax Christi was quoted in this article asking the Port Huron city commission to approve a resolution welcoming refugee children … Pax Christi International’s September 2014 newsletter is online … See more local and regional updates in the Summer 2014 edition of The Peace Current …
- Send your news items, announcements, photos and links to stories about Pax Christi groups or members to jzokovitch@paxchristiusa.org.