Bridgefolk co-founder joins Vatican conference rejecting just war

by Hannah Heinzekehr
The Mennonite

A variety of peace symbols from around the world at the prayer table at the Nonviolence and Just Peace conference, April 2016. Photo provided by Pax Christi International.

In a landmark move, attendees at a Vatican conference have released a statement rejecting Just War theory and calling on Pope Francis to consider writing an encyclical letter or teaching document rejecting the use of violence. The April 11-13 conference was co-hosted by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and the international Catholic peace organization Pax Christi and drew over 80 participants from 35 countries.

The final statement says: “We live in a time of tremendous suffering, widespread trauma and fear linked to militarization, economic injustice, climate change and a myriad of other specific forms of violence. In this context of normalized and systemic violence, those of us who stand in the Christian tradition are called to recognize the centrality of active nonviolence to the vision and message of Jesus, to the life and practice of the Catholic Church and to our long-term vocation of healing and reconciling both people and the planet.”

The statement calls on the Catholic Church to develop a “new framework that is consistent with gospel nonviolence.” Continue reading “Bridgefolk co-founder joins Vatican conference rejecting just war” →

Vatican-hosted conference reassesses just-war theory

Challenging tradition, Catholics critique a principle that has justified war more often than prevented it

by Tim Huber
Mennonite World Review

A first-of-its-kind conference April 11-13 in Rome gathered Catholic educators and activists around the idea of moving beyond just-war theory to a greater emphasis on proactive peacemaking and Jesus’ life.

Pax Christi International secretary general Greet Vanaerschot and PCI co-president Marie Dennis speak with Cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, at an April 11-13 conference on nonviolence and just peace in Rome. — Gerry Lee/Maryknoll

“Nonviolence and Just Peace: Contributing to the Catholic Understanding of and Commitment to Nonviolence” was coordinated by the global Catholic peace network Pax Christi International and hosted by the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.

“The significance of this meeting is not that it said something that’s a great leap from what popes have been saying,” said Gerald Schlabach, a Mennonite who entered into communion with the Catholic church in 2004 and participated in the meeting as an invited guest. “The significance is that peace activists are now having the conversation with the pontifical council.” Continue reading “Vatican-hosted conference reassesses just-war theory” →

Bridgefolk co-founder Gerald Schlabach to participate in Vatican conference on nonviolence and just peace

The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and Pax Christi International will convene an international conference on Nonviolence and Just Peace: Contributing to the Catholic Understanding of and Commitment to Nonviolence, to be held in Rome, Italy, 11-13 April, 2016.

In recognition of the Year of Mercy declared by the Pope Francis, this carefully planned Catholic conference on nonviolence and just peace will take place in Rome. Invited participants will represent a broad spectrum of Church experiences in peacebuilding and creative nonviolence in the face of violence and war. Among the participants will be Bridgefolk co-founder and long-time co-director Gerald Schlabach of the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota.

The conference seeks to initiate a conversation about Catholic teaching on war and peace, including explicit rejection of “just war” language in favor of an alternative ethical framework for engaging acute conflict and atrocities by developing the themes and practices of nonviolent conflict transformation and just peace. It will develop clearer Scripture-based Catholic teaching and an action plan to promote such teachings in seminaries, Catholic educational institutions, Catholic media, Catholic dioceses and parishes.

For more about the goals of the conference click here.
For a National Catholic Reporter article previewing the conference click here.

The pope’s arrival and the only Mennonite in the room

Sep 28, 2015 by Sheldon Good, For Mennonite World Review

WASHINGTON — I’m sure I was the only Mennonite there.

It was a cool, clear morning, with stars visible even through the urban twilight, as I cruised the six-mile bicycle ride from northeast Washington to downtown at 5 a.m. Sept. 23. I had been to 17th and Pennsylvania Avenue dozens of times before, but this time felt different. My adrenaline was pumping. The combination of streetlights and flashlights created a mixture of illumination and shadow. Cutting through the darkness, bodies were moving, directions were being given, expectations were high.

When I covered President Obama as a senior at Goshen (Ind.) College during his visit in 2009 to Elkhart County, his first speech outside of Washington as president, I learned how political reporting can be memorable, and an honor, yet not especially dignifying. I was reminded of this recently while at the White House.

I.D., please, the Secret Service officer said. I showed it to him. He motioned for me to pass. It was really happening.

Continue reading “The pope’s arrival and the only Mennonite in the room” →

Bridgefolk 2015 explores miracle of ecumenical healing

Collegeville, MN (BRIDGEFOLK) — Meeting at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, IN, the 14^th annual Bridgefolk conference was held August 20-23 under the theme, “Ecumenical Healing and the Mystery of the Communion of Saints.”

Bridgefolk is a movement of sacramentally-minded Mennonites and peace-minded Roman Catholics who come together to celebrate each other’s traditions, explore each other’s practices, and honor each other’s contribution to the mission of Christ’s Church.

Previous conferences have alternated between Catholic and Mennonite locations in the United States and Canada. Of the ninety participants gathered for this year’s conference, about sixty were Mennonite and thirty Catholic.

This year’s conference featured an array of guests and speakers from Japan, including members of the Mennonite communities in Japan and of the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) in Japan. The keynote speakers were Prof. Nozomu Yamada and Fr. Alfonso Fausone SVD, both of Nanazan (Catholic) University in Nagoya, Japan. Continue reading “Bridgefolk 2015 explores miracle of ecumenical healing” →

Ecumenical relations mark MWC meetings

Miller Elizabeth slide

7.24. 2015 Written By: Gordon Houser, editor of The Mennonite, for Meetinghouse

Photo: Elizabeth Miller of the Moravian Church brings greetings. Photo by Dale Gehman.

During both morning and evening worship sessions on July 22 and 23 at the MWC Assembly in Harrisburg, Pa., representatives from various Christian communions brought greetings to MWC participants. Nearly all praised Mennonites for their long-standing peace witness.

In the morning worship on July 22, Gretchen Castle of the Friends World Committee for Consultation brought greetings. That evening, Larry Miller, former MWC General Secretary, brought greetings from the Global Christian Forum, followed by Monsignor Gregory Fairbanks of the Roman Catholic Church.

On July 23, greetings came from Elizabeth Miller of the Moravian Church and William Wilson of the Pentecostal World Fellowship in the morning, followed by Isabel Phiri of the World Council of Churches, Martin Junge of the Lutheran World Federation and Diop Ganoune of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in the evening. Junge received sustained applause as he expressed gratitude for MWC extending forgiveness to Lutherans in 2010 for their treatment of Anabaptists in the past.

Several workshops also addressed ecumenical concerns. Jonathan Seiling and Fernando Enns led a July 22 workshop, “Introduction to Mennonites and Ecumenism,” which introduced the reasons and contexts in which Mennonites have entered into official dialogue with other Christian denominations.

That same day, Valerie Rempel led the workshop “The MWC-Seventh-day Adventist Dialogue,” which highlighted the outcomes of a dialogue that happened in 2011-12.

On July 23, Alfred Neufeld, John Rempel and Seiling led the workshop “Trilateral Dialogue: Catholics, Lutherans and Mennonite Conversations on Baptism,” which reported on dialogues between MWC and the Lutheran and Catholic churches, a five-year process that has dealt with the healing of memories, theologies and practices that separate us, the meaning and function of a sacrament and the problem of Christian initiation.

Continue reading “Ecumenical relations mark MWC meetings” →

Francis commemorates the reformer Jan Hus on the 600th anniversary of his death

Vatican City, 15 June 2015 (VIS) – This morning Pope Francis received in audience the representatives of the Czech Hussite Church and the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, in Rome to celebrate a liturgy of reconciliation on the occasion of the 600 th anniversary of the reformer Jan Hus, distinguished preacher and rector of the University of Prague, whose execution was lamented by St. John Paul II in 1999, who included him among the reformers of the Church. Continue reading “Francis commemorates the reformer Jan Hus on the 600th anniversary of his death” →

Beatification of Archbishop Oscar Romero hailed by ecumenical leaders

World Council of Churches, 28 May 2015

Leaders of churches and ecumenical organizations have expressed respect and appreciation following the beatification of Archbishop Oscar Romero on Sunday 24 May. In the Roman Catholic Church, beatification is a significant step in the process leading to canonization as a saint. Romero was murdered while presiding at Mass in San Salvador on 24 March 1980. He had been archbishop of the capital of El Salvador for three years.

Cardinal Angelo Amato, Roman Catholic prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, has been widely quoted as saying, “Romero, from heaven, wants every Salvadoran to walk the path of peace and justice.”

Continue reading “Beatification of Archbishop Oscar Romero hailed by ecumenical leaders” →

Mennonite Daniel Hostetler becomes executive director of Parliament of the World’s Religions

Hostetler Daniel

4.14. 2015 Written By: Parliament of the World’s Religions

Daniel Hostetler, a member of Christ Community Mennonite Church in Schaumburg, Ill., is the new executive director of the Parliament of the World’s Religions. He begins this role on April 20.

He is the first Anabaptist to hold this position and will be based in Chicago, Ill.

Since their first worldwide gathering, or “Parliament,” in the year 1893, the Parliament of the World’s Religions has sought to bring followers together in peace so that knowledge and acceptance of attendee’s diverse religious and cultural beliefs could reduce the ignorance and confusion that creates conflict.

See the full news story at The Mennonite and an introductory biography on the Parliament Blog.