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Contents:
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MCC
Great Lakes Peace and Justice Newsletter
December,
2002
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Centering thought
"Do not be afraid", the refrain spoken by angels to humans
in a long ago time surrounding the birth of Jesus, still echoes in the
world. Today this may be one of the most comforting phrases we can hold
to our hearts. There is much despair and many anxieties to paralyze us
in fear. Terrorism, the economy, job security, pending war, violence,
and sickness to name a few. The angel's message was followed by a message
that brought good news, a reason to hope, a baby announcement. As an adult
this baby's life would point to the reality of God's kingdom on earth.
Zechariah spoke words from the prophets of old. The mercy of God is breaking
in like ‘light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of
death, to guide our feet into the way of peace'. The message spoken and
lived by this grown baby was an antidote to fear, love from God, love
for people and love for the earth. This love frees us to put our trust
in God, build trusting relationships with people near and far, and collaborate
with the earth to bring renewal where there is destruction. The angel
speaking to the shepherds seemed to say, ‘Trust me, I'm bringing
you good news that is for everybody, trust me.' ~ LHN
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Upcoming Events:
Africa and the Middle East Advocacy Days, February 23-26, 2003. Put
your faith into action. You are invited to participate in an ecumenical,
educational, and advocacy event for people of faith committed to working
for just U.S. policies toward Africa and the Middle East. This gathering
in Washington DC begins Sunday evening and ends Wednesday afternoon. It
offers two distinct learning/advocacy tracks, one focused on Africa and
the other on the Middle East. For more information call our office 574-537-9390.
Lombard Mennonite Peace Center (LMPC) Spring 2003. God's Own Peace:
Systems Theory and Spirituality - April 30, 2003, Tacoma, WA; May
8, 2003, Brookfield, WI. Designed for clergy and church leaders, or for
anyone who desires to ground daily life more intentionally in their relationship
with God. Healthy Congregations May 9-10, 2003, Omaha, NE. Using the insights
from family systems theory to help church leaders become more effective
stewards of their congregations. Mediation Skills Training Institute for
Church Leaders May 19-23, 2003, Columbus, OH. Designed to equip church
leaders with the skills necessary to deal effectively with interpersonal,
congregational, and other forms of group conflict.
For more information and registration brochure on the above workshops,
please contact: Lombard Mennonite Peace Center
1263 S Highland Ave, Suite 1N, Lombard, IL 60148-4527, Ph 630-627-0507,
Fx. 630-627-0519, www.LMPeaceCenter.org
Resources:
Daryl Byler of MCC Washington: ‘I think one of the misunderstandings
of pacifists is somehow that we are passive in the face of evil. The idea
behind Christian pacifism is that you are willing to suffer and absorb
evil, but not to inflict and to respond in kind.'
Follow this link http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/week507/feature.html
for more of the interview with Daryl on Oct. 19 with Religion and Ethics
Newsweekly. Feel free to share this with anyone who would be interested.
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Issues for Action:
World AIDS Day, December 1.- Though the ‘official' day to
think about it is gone, we cannot forget about it. Today there is much
fear and many words flying around regarding smallpox, anthrax, and other
germs, while these are potential health threats we need to be aware of
an existing disease that is killing multitudes. HIV/AIDS is a growing
reality all over the world. What is the role for believers? The church?
In many countries where the pandemic rages the church is making a significant
contribution. In Africa church leaders are choosing to overcome the tradition
of not speaking of sexual issues. They are providing leadership in the
struggle with this deadly reality. Churches have moved from condemning
people with AIDS to realizing that the disease is touching every member
of every family in every congregation that they must respond with compassion.
This example is one that we in the United States may do well to learn
from. Have we as believers been willing to speak about sexual issues?
Are we willing to move from condemning those with HIV/AIDS and treating
them as invisible to speaking with wisdom and acting with compassion?
Check for the hotline call for action on the Presidential Initiative
on Global HIV/AIDS on the MCC Washington web site: http://www.mcc.org/us/washington/index.html
Middle East:
Prayer Requests:
December 4, 2002 - Pray for workers in the occupied territories. One of
these organizations, the World Food Progamme, affiliated with the United
Nations, recently had its food warehouse in the northern Gaza town of
Beit Lahiya destroyed by soldiers who blew up the building with dynamite
after it had been surrounded by six Israeli tanks. The WFP notes that
the warehouse contained food worth $271,000 dollars, food aid which had
been destined for more than 40,000 Palestinians facing severe economic
hardships because of two years of Palestinian-Israeli violence. In another
development, according to a press release, "international UN staff
today took the unprecedented measure of calling on Israel to hold its
military to account and protect all UN and other aid workers operating
in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) from harm, in accordance with
international humanitarian and human rights law. The demand is an independent
initiative taken by over 60 international staff from 22 countries. The
call for justice follows the death of a UN worker, Iain Hook, a 53 year
old British citizen, who was shot in the back by an Israeli sniper on
November 22, 2002 while negotiating an evacuation of Palestinian civilians
and UN staff from a UN compound in Jenin refugee camp. Following the fatal
shooting, the Israeli military further refused to permit the access of
an ambulance to assist Mr Hook." [For further details see http://www.reliefweb.net]
(I would add to this prayer request that we keep MCC workers and CPTers
in mind as well. Our brothers and sisters are being the hands and feet
of Christ in that region and we need to lift them up in prayer, for God's
wisdom and protection.)
December 3, 2002 - Pray for schoolchildren throughout the occupied
Palestinian territories being denied an education by weeks-long curfews.
In Nablus, many schoolchildren have stopped attending school, with their
parents fearing to send them out in streets patrolled by Israeli tanks,
jeeps and armored personnel carriers. In Bethlehem, schools managed to
fit in an abbreviated day of study while the curfew was lifted from 1
pm to 5 pm: this was the first day of school in 10 days of nearly continuous
curfew.
Act locally: A recent article in the Washington Post was an encouragement
to those opposed to war with Iraq. Many
different groups in the anti-war movement were highlighted. Our encouragement
to you is to find out what is happening in
your community and get involved. Finding ways to open dialogue with those
with different perspectives can be a
challenging but is a helpful project. So with the words of Larry Guengrich
remember - Keep on working! We are not alone http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61647-2002Dec1.html
Article from Mother Jones Magazine
No Child Unrecruited
Should the military be given the names of every high school student in
America?
David Goodman
November/December 2002
Sharon Shea-Keneally, principal of Mount Anthony Union High School in
Bennington VT, was shocked when she received a letter in May from military
recruiters demanding a list of all her students, including names, addresses,
and phone numbers. The school invites recruiters to participate in career
days and job fairs, but like most school districts, it keeps student information
strictly confidential. ‘We don't give out a list of names of our
kids to anybody,' says Shea-Keneally, ‘not to colleges, churches,
employers - nobody.'
But when Shea-Keneally insisted on an explanation, she was in for an even
bigger surprise: The recruiters cited the No Child Left Behind Act, President
Bush's sweeping new education law passed earlier this year. There, buried
deep within the law's 670 pages, is a provision requiring public secondary
schools to provide military recruiters not only with access to facilities,
but also with contact information for every student -- or face a cutoff
of all federal aid.
"I was very surprised the requirement was attached to an education
law," says Shea-Keneally. "I did not see the link."
The military complained this year that up to 15 percent of the nation's
high schools are "problem schools" for recruiters. In 1999,
the Pentagon says, recruiters were denied access to 19,228 schools. Rep.
David Vitter, a Republican from Louisiana who sponsored the new recruitment
requirement, says such schools "demonstrated an anti-military attitude
that I thought was offensive."
To many educators, however, requiring the release of personal information
intrudes on the rights of students. "We feel it is a clear departure
from the letter and the spirit of the current student privacy laws,"
says Bruce Hunter, chief lobbyist for the American Association of School
Administrators. Until now, schools could share student information only
with other educational institutions. "Now other people will want
our lists," says Hunter. "It's a slippery slope. I don't want
student directories sent to Verizon either, just because they claim that
all kids need a cell phone to be safe."
The new law does give students the right to withhold their records. But
school officials are given wide leeway in how to implement the law, and
some are simply handing over student directories to recruiters without
informing anyone -- leaving students without any say in the matter.
"I think the privacy implications of this law are profound,"
says Jill Wynns, president of the San Francisco Board of Education. "For
the federal government to ignore or discount the concerns of the privacy
rights of millions of high school students is not a good thing, and it's
something we should be concerned about."
Educators point out that the armed services have exceeded their recruitment
goals for the past two years in a row, even without access to every school.
The new law, they say, undercuts the authority of some local school districts,
including San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, that have barred recruiters
from schools on the grounds that the military discriminates against gays
and lesbians. Officials in both cities now say they will grant recruiters
access to their schools and to student information - - but they also plan
to inform students of their right to withhold their records.
Some students are already choosing that option. According to Principal
Shea-Keneally, 200 students at her school -- one- sixth of the student
body -- have asked that their records be withheld.
Recruiters are up-front about their plans to use school lists to aggressively
pursue students through mailings, phone calls and personal visits-even
if parents object. ‘The only thing that will get us to stop contacting
the family is if they call their congressman,' says Major Johannes Paraan,
head U.S. Army recruiter for Vermont and northeastern New York. ‘Or
maybe if the kid died, well take them off our list.'
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What You are Doing:
I recently visited North Clinton Mennonite church in Wauseon OH.
I was pleased to learn of the faithfulness this church has
in welcoming the stranger. Many newcomers have arrived in the area, and
when North Clinton realized that God was
putting something in their lap - instead of rejecting it they began to
ask "How can we steward this?" I was pleased to learn
that not only do they provide Spanish language bulletins, translations
of the sermon and power point notes, they also offer a
class for English speaking folks to learn Spanish. Now that is thinking
out of the box! That is welcoming the stranger. That
says I care enough about you to reach out to you, walk in your shoes -
I also want to learn a new language. There are
many more things that are happening at North Clinton in regards to welcoming
the stranger, they aren't experts at it yet, but
their hearts are open to it and that is awesome. Way to go North Clinton!
~AO
Service Opportunities
Interested in a hands on service experience? Check out www.mcc.org/service
for up to date job openings and descriptions.
Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if
you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear
what they fear; do not be frightened." But in your hearts set apart
Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who
asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this
with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those
who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed
of their slander. 1Peter 3:13-16
Anita Barahona Oliver and Lois Hess Nafziger
Peace & Justice Educator/Advoctaes for MCC Great Lakes
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