Presbyterian Peace Discernment Process Holds Consultation at Montreat This Weekend
Across the Presbyterian Church (USA), congregations and presbyteries are being asked to participate in a church-wide Peace Discernment conversation to “seek clarity as to God’s call to the church to embrace nonviolence as its fundamental response to the challenges of violence, terror,and war; and to identify, explore, and nurture new approaches to active peacemaking and nonviolence.” This Peace Discernment Process was initiated by the 219th General Assembly (2010) in response to overtures from several presbyteries, and it was reaffirmed by the220th General Assembly (2012). We hope that you are engaging your congregations and presbyteries in this conversation.
This weekend, the Presbyterian Church (USA) is holding a consultation on “NewApproaches to Peacemaking and Nonviolence for the 21st Century” at Montreat, in North Carolina. The event is bringing together college chaplains, faculty members, and students from 27 Presbyterian-related colleges and universities, as well as others engaged in actionand reflection on peacemaking and justice seeking. About 140 participants are expected. They will look at:
Jesus,the Early Church, and Nonviolence
The Challenges of Terrorism and War
The Challenges of Structural Violence and Oppression
Nonviolent Approaches to Peacemaking
Teaching Peace in the 21st Century
The keynote speaker is Andrea Bartoli, Director of the Institute for Conflict Analysis & Resolution, George Mason University. Other speakers include South African theologian/activist Allan Boesak, Pakistani Christian Charles Amjad-Ali, Cris Tofollo of the US Peace and Justice Studies Association, New Testament scholar Margaret Aymer Oget, Singer/Songwriter David LaMotte, West Point Graduate and Iraq War Veteran Paul K. Chappell, author Richard A. Horsley, and Tommy Ross, Senior Intelligence & Defense Advisor to Sen. Harry Reid.
You can follow this event and the wider peace discernment conversation going on across our denomination via social media: on Facebook (PresbyterianPeaceDiscernment), on Twitter (@PeaceDiscern #DiscernPeace), and on the Web (www.pcusa.org/peace-discernment).