Fr. John Dear, a Pax Christi USA Ambassador of Peace, says that meeting Philip Berrigan in 1982 as a 22-year old Jesuit novice was a life-changing event, like meeting Ezekiel, Jonah, or Jeremiah. Phil (Pax Christi USA’s 2001 Teacher of Peace, along with his wife Elizabeth McAlister and Fr. Louis Vitale) spoke the truth fiercely, talked about nuclear disarmament passionately, and urged everyone he met to engage in nonviolent civil disobedience and resistance to the culture of war. Fr. John writes that no one could not remain neutral in Phil’s presence. He told everyone he met to get involved, come to the next protest, speak out for peace, and risk arrest for disarmament.
Wars are constantly being fought, but our nation, Phil repeated, is the greatest force of war and death not only in the world today but the history of the world. The United States builds, maintains, and sells weapons to every nation and on all sides of every war, and we continue to prepare for nuclear war and upgrade our nuclear weapons as if this were a reasonable, even spiritual necessity, and it has got to stop, Phil would insist.
Phil wanted us to name the idolatry, blasphemy, and heresy of war as the ultimate social sin which we all participate in to varying degrees. He thought the God of peace was calling us to non-cooperation with the culture of war and the insanity of nationalism, corporate greed, racism, and violence. His whole life was like one long intervention against our systemic addiction to violence and war.
Join Fr. John on Saturday, August 3 when he welcomes Brad Wolf to talk about Wolf’s new book, the first ever collection of writings by Philip Berrigan, A Ministry of Risk, just published by Fordham University Press.
To register, visit www.beatitudescenter.org.
The program will begin 11am Pacific/ 12pm Mountain/ 1pm Central/ 2pm Eastern time. You will receive the zoom link a few days beforehand, so be on the lookout, and a recording link afterwards. Scholarships are available.
Cancellation policy: Refunds will not be honored after the zoom link is sent out. If you have any questions, please email Kassandra at: beatitudescentermb@gmail.com