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.
PAX CHRISTI METRO NEW YORK HOSTS HUMAN RIGHTS DAY EVENT ON ISRAEL-PALESTINE: (from PC Metro New York website) PC Metro New York will commemorate Human Rights Day and remember Holy Innocents on Thursday, December 10th, when Rosemarie Pace, Director of PCMNY, will be presenting “A Report Back from the West Bank of Occupied Palestine” based on the recent Pax Christi Pathways to Peace Pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Ms. Pace will show photos and share stories of the Living Stones she met on this heart-wrenching and heart-warming journey. The event will take place at Casserly Hall, St. Joseph’s Greenwich Village Church, 7 p.m. For more information, go to http://www.nypaxchristi.org/events.html
PAX CHRISTI MEMPHIS RALLIES FOR THE FIGHT FOR $15: (from Paul Crum, PC Memphis) Pax Christi Memphis participated in the Memphis Fight for $15 parade on Tuesday, November 10, to show our support for raising the minimum wage to a living wage and to obtain union rights. This action is one of over 270 taking place around the nation. After the parade, the group went to the Quaker Meetinghouse for a potluck dinner to discuss the day’s events and prepare for their monthly meeting. Read more about PC Memphis activities at http://paxchristimemphis.org/
PAX CHRISTI ILLINOIS LOCAL GROUP HIGHLIGHTS DOROTHY DAY: (from Nancy Oetter, PC Illinois state co-coordinator) Pax Christi Servants/St. Thomas (IL) held a viewing of the movie “Dorothy Day: Don’t Call Me a Saint” at St. Thomas the Apostle parish in Naperville, IL. This was an attempt to educate folks about Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker movement and why Pope Francis highlighted her witness and life when he spoke about her in his address to the U.S. Congress in September. In addition to the folks who attended, the movie has been made available to individuals in the parish who would like to host future viewings.
HOLY CROSS PAX CHRISTI CAMPUS CHAPTER CO-SPONSORS REFUGEE AWARENESS WEEK: (from the College of the Holy Cross website) College of the Holy Cross students, faculty and staff, hosted “Refugee Awareness Week” at the end of October. The week helped to raise awareness of the complex social justice issues surrounding the ongoing refugee crisis around the world… The Pax Christi chapter sponsored advocacy tables set up daily in the Hogan Courtyard to offer more information about refugees around the world, a chance to sign online letters and petitions to Congress regarding the crisis, and to collect monetary donations for the Jesuit Refugee Service. … Pax Christi also sponsored a candlelight vigil as an act of solidarity with refugees from around the world. Read more at http://news.holycross.edu/blog/2015/10/27/the-holy-cross-community-to-raise-awareness-for-refugee-crisis-with-a-weeklong-series-of-events/
PAX CHRISTI NORTHERN CALIFORNIA HOSTS REGIONAL ASSEMBLY: (from Tom Webb, PC Northern California) Nearly 100 people gathered for Pax Christi Northern California’s assembly “Creative Nonviolence: Peacemaking in the 21st Century” on Saturday, October 17th. They listened carefully as a panel featuring Sr. Megan Rice, Elizabeth Murray and Rivera Sun responded to questions from Pax Christi moderator Lorin Peters examining the signs of the times and what members of the faith community could do to respond. Rice is certainly known among many in Pax Christi circles, and for those with links to Pace Bene, Rivera Sun has been a widely-followed speaker on non-violence. Murray on the other hand is new to the movement. After spending 27 years with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as a Middle East intelligence officer, Murray retired and has dedicated her life to peacemaking. She resides at the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action outside Tacoma, WA as a volunteer. She is also a regular participant in talks given by Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, founded by Ray McGovern… Read more at http://paxchristiusa.org/2015/10/20/regional-event-pax-christi-northern-california-hosts-creative-nonviolence-peacemaking-in-the-21st-century/
____________
Upcoming or Ongoing Events:
November is the International Month of Global Climate Action
Nov. 13-15: Retreat with PCUSA Ambassador of Peace John Dear at Kirkridge in Pennsylvania
Nov. 14: Pax Christi Massachusetts retreat with Sr. Helen Prejean at St. Susanna Parish, Dedham, MA; contact Pat Ferrone at patferrone@rcn.com for info
Nov. 20: Pax Christi USA gathering at the SOA in Columbus, GA
Nov. 20-22: SOA vigil and action, Columbus, GA
Nov. 21: Alliance for Fair Food National Day of Action
Nov. 29: Global Climate March
Nov. 28-Dec. 24: Advent e-Retreat with Erie Benedictines
Nov. 29: Advent begins
Dec. 4-6: Advent Retreat, “How Do Our Lives Change?” at the Birmingham Catholic Worker, contact shelleymdouglass@gmail.com
Dec. 10: International Human Rights Day
Dec. 10: PC Metro New York’s Report Back from the West Bank of Occupied Palestine, New York City, 7 p.m.
Dec. 12: Our Lady of Guadalupe observance
Dec. 25: Christmas
Dec. 27: Holy Family observance
Dec. 27-28: Feast of the Holy Innocents Retreat and Action at STRATCOM headquarters in Omaha, NE; contact frank.cordaro@gmail.com or 515 292-4781 for more info
Dec. 28: Massacre of the Holy Innocents observance
Jan. 1: World Day of Peace
Jan. 3: Epiphany observance
Jan. 3-13: Witness Against Torture Fast and Action in DC
Jan. 18: MLK Day observance
____________
Quicklinks:
PC Madison (WI) sponsored the event, “The Francis Effect: Reflections on the Pope’s Addresses to Congress and the United Nations Assembly” in October. Congressman Mark Pocan and others offered their reflections on Pope Francis’ visit to the United States … The Pax Christi Anti-Racism Team (PCART) is looking for new members … PC Metro D.C.-Baltimore members Dennis Warner and Pierre Thompson wrote an excellent article about the situation in Palestine and Israel … PC Maine members were among those protesting at Bath Iron Works the christening of a new warship … PC South Dakota has posted photos and a short write-up about their October conference with Martha Hennessy, granddaughter of Dorothy Day … PC New Jersey members participated in a ceremony dedicating the Shrine of St. Joseph as an official peace site. You can see a video of the dedication here and read about it in their newsletter here … PC El Paso (TX) continued their monthly film series. November’s film was “The Power of Nightmares: The Rise of the Politics of Fear” … PC Beverly (MA) sponsored a day of reflection with PCUSA Ambassador of Peace Nancy Small … PC Northeast Florida co-sponsored a presentation on the death penalty recently … Mariposa (CA) Pax Christi teamed up with other organizations to present a local screening of “Merchants of Doubt”, a documentary exposing a concerted strategy to create doubt about the facts of climate change … The electronic version of the Advent reflection booklet is available now … Pax Christi International’s November 2015 newsletter is online … See more local and regional updates in the Fall-Winter 2015-16 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.