Say No to Another War in the Middle East

We urge LPF members to tell President Obama and your members of Congress that you oppose the U.S. engaging in any form of military action in response to the growing conflict in Iraq. The peace community is united around this position, and for good reason. A wide range of experts agree that military action would not be an effective and constructive response to the conflict. In fact, it could easily make a bad situation worse -- "like pouring gasoline on a fire" is how one Peace Action leader put it. So please contact your elected leaders today!

A little background: In the past decade, the US invasion of Iraq, other military action, and taking sides in regional differences (and demonizing others a "terrorist") have played a major role in deepening existing conflicts. Instead, as we have been saying for years, the US needs to join with other nations to use diplomacy and address the roots of these conflict(s) such as poverty and discrimination. At the same time, we need to help ease tensions and move toward reconciliation among the various groups (Shia, Sunni, Kurd, etc.). Such a longer-range approach has its own challenges, but imagine if a decade ago, we had begun spending even a tenth of what the war cost on development aid, supporting democratic initiatives, working with other nations.

We need to put a barrier in front of the push for military action; and move the US toward collaborative action with other nations on strategies that have a chance of success over the long-term. Contact your elected officials today!

Diplomacy Not More Arms Needed in Iraq and Syria
http://davidcortright.net/2014/06/12/diplomacy-not-more-arms-needed-in-iraq-and-syria/

As Obama Considers Drone Strikes in Iraq, Could U.S. Military Action
Worsen Sectarian Conflict?
http://www.democracynow.org/2014/6/16/as_obama_considers_drone_strikes_in

"5 Principals for Iraq," by Thomas Friedman, NY Times, 6-15-14
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/15/opinion/sunday/thomas-friedman-5-principles-for-iraq.html?ref=opinion

"Stay Out of Sectarian Civil Wars" -------could be in 2nd section
http://tomhayden.com/home/stay-out-of-sectarian-civil-wars.html

other useful links:
"The Almighty Mess in Iraq"
http://ericmargolis.com/2014/06/the-allmighty-mess-in-iraq/

"7 talking points you need for discussing the Iraq crisis" ---------could be in 1st section
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/06/talking-points-iraq-crisis

"The Iraq Mess: Place Blame Where it Is Deserved, by John Cassidy, The New Yorker, 6-13-14 blog post
www.newyorker.com%2Fonline%2Fblogs%2Fjohncassidy%2F2014%2F06%2Fthe-iraq-mess-place-the-blame-where-it-is-deserved.html

"Report from Iraq: U.S. Invasion in 2003 Helped Set Path for Crisis Pulling Nation Apart"
http://www.democracynow.org/2014/6/13/report_from_iraq_us_invasion_in

World Refugee Day

Now when they had departed, behold,( an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him." And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. (Matthew 2:13-15)

World Refugee Day, observed June 20 each year, is dedicated to raising awareness of the situation of refugees throughout the world.

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

World Refugee Day - UN
World Refugee Day - Wikipedia

The Origins of Mother's Day

It has been over 140 years since Mother's Day first came into being, yet few people know that it was originally conceived as a day for mothers to protest injustice and war. Over the years the activist observance of this holiday became squelched by its commercialization by flower and card companies who turned it into billion-dollar industry. There has been a recent movement to return Mother's Day to its original meaning. Check out LPF's new Women's Peace Resources.
read more:
The Original Anti-War Mother's Day
Soap to Ploughshares: How to return Mother's Day to its original meaning.
Mothers' Day Proclamation: Julia Ward Howe, Boston, 1870
Mother’s Day for Peace: A Dramatic Reading of Julia Ward Howe’s Mother’s Day Proclamation
Mother's Day Proclamation
Original Mother's Day a war protest


Three more takes on the origins of Mother's Day . . .

CODEPINK : Julia Ward Howe's Mother's Day Proclamation - 1870
www.codepink4peace.org
Arise then...women of this day! Arise, all women who have hearts! . . . Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have taught them of charity, mercy and patience.


The Radical History of Mother’s Day
www.nationofchange.org
There’s a good number of us who question holidays like Mother’s Day in which you spend more time feeding money into a system that exploits our love for our mothers than actually celebrating them. . . .


Mother's Day: The Radical Roots in the U.S.A.
www.allvoices.com
Mother's day in the U.S. was originally associated with two radical women activists Julia Ward Howe and Anna Maria Jarvis. Howe was well known as an abolitionist, suffragist and author . . . .

LPF is on Youtube

Lutheran Peace Fellowship is now on YouTube. We have established an LPF channel where you can check out our new promotional video as well as a wide variety of playlists with dozens of videos.

  

Please email us if you have any suggestions for YouTube videos we could add to our playlists.

New LPF Resource Offers Inspiration from Women

"A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver." 

Proverbs 25:11 (NRSV) 

King Solomon, author of Proverbs, wanted his people to "be understanding, just and fair in everything they did." (Proverbs 1:2,3, Living Bible). In this spirit, LPF's Women Initiative has compiled a new four-page resource, "Inspiration from Women." It is the final resource of five proposed for the Women's Resources series launched in mid-2013. Along with two litanies, it includes quotes such as:

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.
Eleanor Roosevelt

Effective people rarely sit back and let things happen.
 They go out and happen to things.
 Elinor Smith

Collecting encouraging quotes is an LPF tradition (see our Peace Deck). As LPF coordinator Glen Gersmehl says, "Quotes are helpful when they speak of truths that might be easily lost in our busy lives. They are brief, clever and/or witty enough to stand out and to remember later. I like to think about them in otherwise wasted moments, like waiting in a grocery or bank line. And they can remind us that we share visions for peace and justice with a whole community of people."

-- Lily R. Wu, LPF board member for the Women's Initiative

P.S. It's hard not to keep noticing concise insights even when our resources have gone to press. Here's another, from MORE magazine (Dec 2013/Jan 2014): British Journalist Caitlin Moran gives this advice to her daughter on the eve of her 13th birthday. "Life divides into amazing, enjoyable times -- and appalling experiences that will make future amazing stories."

Climate change ‘makes violence likelier’

Scientists say there is a direct link between changing climate and an increase in violence. As the food supply dwindles, the poor will be hit hardest, but we'll all be affected as the world becomes more unstable.

Hundreds of the world’s top climate scientists are in agreement: climate change is happening, we’re already feeling its effects and it’s only going to get worse. The newest report from the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change gives “the starkest warning yet” of global warming’s impacts that will worsen societal problems that we’re already facing....

learn more:


Climate change ‘makes violence likelier’

Panel’s Warning on Climate Risk: Worst Is Yet to Come

“The polar bear is us”: New U.N. report warns that the effects of global warming are already being felt

GLOBAL WARMING DIALS UP OUR RISKS, UN REPORT SAYS

IPCC report: 5 ways climate change threatens life as we know it

Climate Change is About…Water: A Resource for Teachers, Learners and Activists

Giving up War for Peace, Worship and Nonviolent Action at Beale Air Force Base, CA

Are you "giving anything up" for Lent this year?  A group of Christian peacemakers in California took action in an Ash Wednesday civil disobedience to urge the U.S. to give up drones for peace. To turn away from war to work for peace, justice, and the healing of the earth.

In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. 

“My body is tired but my soul is rested.”

Former LPF Board Chair, retired Lutheran pastor and former U.S. Marine Jerry Pedersen participated in the interfaith worship service and was arrested during the nonviolent direct action against drones at the gate of Beale Air Force Base. Military drones which are remotely controlled by satellite from bases in the US have repeatedly killed and injured scores of civilians abroad.

Actions of faith and conscience are good for the soul.  Rev. Sharon Delgado reports:

"We were quickly detained by Beale officers, taken to the guard station, cited, and released. When entering the station I greeted the officers with the words, 'Peace be with you.' We all treated each other respectfully and with good humor, with the understanding that they were doing their job and we were doing ours." 

"The young guards were impressed with Jerry's military card, which shows that he was part of the Honor Guard on the U.S.S. Missouri during the WWII surrender of the Japanese. As we were arrested, supporters were singing 'I'll be rested when the roll is called,' with the names of people who have worked for peace and justice through the ages. May it be so for all of us. May we find rest for our souls in the midst of the violence of our times."

You can read more about this Ash Wednesday Anti-Drone Protest and Arrest and statements of the issues here: http://sharondelgado.org/tag/beale-air-force-base/, also see KCRA’s coverage of the service here, and a video of the arrests below:



Rev. Sharon Delgado speaks:


see also these resources from LPF:
Resources about Nonviolence
Peace Resource Lists
Peace Links