> Click here to see our PSA with prayer, study and action resources for remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Pax Christi USA will join several of our sister organization in commemorating the 76th anniversary of the sinful and criminal U.S. nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Washington, D.C. this week. The vigils are organized by the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker and everyone is invited:
- Friday, Aug. 6: Noon-1 PM in Lafayette Park near the White House anti-nuclear vigil site
- Monday, Aug. 9: 7-8 AM @ Pentagon in the designated protest area
As we remember and pray for the victims of these unspeakable nuclear atrocities, and call on the nation to repent for the nuclear sin and bring about total disarmament and nuclear abolition, we do so in solidarity with imprisoned and other members of the Kings Bay Plowshares 7, and actions taking place around the U.S. and worldwide.
“In the Presence of All Who Perished: Remembrance in the Age of the Ban Treaty” is the theme for actions that will be held across the U.S. According to the U.S. Days of Action Working Group, the purpose for these actions is two-fold:
- to note that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) has shifted the conversation about nuclear weapons from military and policy considerations to the humanitarian and environmental impacts of nuclear weapons;
- and to elevate the voices of those who have witnessed the destructive power of nuclear weapons—hibakusha, pacific islanders, downwinders. For more info click here and here.
Please join us and share this information with friends.
Co-Sponsored by:
- Assisi Community
- Jonah House
- Anne Montgomery House
- Pax Christi Metro DC-Baltimore
- Sisters of Mercy of the Americas – Justice Team
- Maryknoll Office of Global Concerns
- Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach
- Leadership Conference of Women Religious
- Franciscan Action Network
- Little Friends for Peace
- Pax Christi USA
OTHER ACTIONS
Other Pax Christi USA local groups, state chapters and regions are sponsoring actions and events to mark the anniversaries of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Here is a sampling:
> Pax Christi Memphis:
> Tiffin Area (OH) Pax Christi is hosting a lantern ceremony in memory of all who lost their lives in the bombing of Hiroshima. The organizers said, “The walk will symbolize a way forward to a better future, one without nuclear weapons and without war, where all peoples may live together in peace…”
> Pax Christi Harrisburg and the Harrisburg Peace Garden Association are co-hosting an event to commemorate the bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The evening of remembrance will be marked by a recommitment to oppose nuclear warfare.
Pax Christi Little Rock is co-sponsoring “Remember Hiroshima: Anniversary Program” on Friday, August 6th. Organizers share that “the event is a reminder of the urgency to rid the world of living under the threat of nuclear annihilation.”
Pax Christi Ft. Lauderdale is hosting a Hiroshima Vigil on August 7th.
Pax Christi Metro New York is hosting A Prayer Walk for Repentance and Transformation for Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 7th. The annual memorial consists of a presentation with discussion and concludes with a silent procession and public vigil.
Pax Christi El Paso:
Find more resources for prayer, study and action on nuclear disarmament and abolition at this link.
May all nations repudiate nuclear weaponry and work to use their talents for the benefit of all creation. The pandemic can be a time for humanity redirect our energies away from confrontation toward cooperation and for “adversaries” to realize that so much more can be gained by sharing each other’s gifts. This requires nations such as the US, Russia, China, India, South Africa, Pakistan, Iran, and others to adopt such a shift in thinking. Prayer, study, and action which commemorates those who who have suffered from horrific decisions in 1945 and works to safeguard the now and the future are needed individually, locally, and nationally and internationally. Peace!