Clergywomen sign peace declaration, call for end to Iraq war
Aug. 17, 2006 News media contact: Linda Green * (615) 7425470* Nashville {490}
NOTE: Photographs and related coverage are available at http:umns.umc.org.
By Linda Green*
CHICAGO (UMNS) - United Methodist clergywomen have signed on to a declaration of peace that encourages the United States to bring its troops home from Iraq by Sept. 21.
The Declaration of Peace - endorsed by numerous civic, nonviolent, faith and interfaith peace groups, including Methodist Federation for Social Action - is a call for nonviolent action to end the U.S. war in Iraq.
The declaration calls for people to "engage in peaceful protests" if there is not a plan for troop withdrawal established and begun by Sept. 21, just days before Congress adjourns for the fall elections.
United Methodist clergywomen attending the 2006 International Clergywomen's Consultation in Chicago signed the declaration to "call to end this war - and a commitment to take action to translate this call into a concrete plan for peace."
The Rev. Kathryn Johnson, director of the Methodist Federation for Social Action, said the idea to gather signatures arose after a group of the women talked on Aug. 15 about what they could do related to peace in the world. Clergywomen participating in MFSA's resource table the next day also shared ideas about what to do in local churches and as people of faith "to create a culture of peace."
As clergywomen exited the convention hall, they were met by two lines of women singing songs about peace and spirit, and holding posters proclaiming an end to the war and calling for the troops to be brought home. The singers encouraged the clergywomen to sign the document and join policymakers and citizens, people of faith and people of conscience to "take tangible, nonviolent action to end this war and to declare a new era of peace and justice."
The declaration calls the situation in Iraq "the U.S. war in Iraq" and describes it as "an endless fire consuming lives, resources and the fragile possibilities of peace."
According to the flier announcing the declaration and encouraging action, nearly 70 percent of people in the United States oppose the war in Iraq and want a concrete plan that include withdrawal of U.S. troops, the closure of U.S. bases in Iraq, support for a peace process in the post-occupation transition, and reconstruction and reparations in Iraq. In the declaration's goals, the "comprehensive and concrete plan" must be completed no later than March 19, 2007.
Some signers of the declaration will participate in a "peaceful action" at the Congressional offices in Washington Sept. 21-28 "if a comprehensive, concrete, and rapid plan for an end to the U.S. war in Iraq is not established and begun by Sept. 21."
The peaceful engagements will include rallies, marches, vigils and demonstrations.
"The declaration calls on the United States to support the Iraqi people in rebuilding their society and creating the country that they need," Johnson said. "We believe that our military forces are currently fueling the fighting in Iraq. We believe that we need to withdraw our military presence and we need to support efforts of the people of Iraq to continue to rebuild their own country, and we need to support that."
Nonviolence, she added, is one of the core commitments of MFSA, an unofficial social justice network. "Our peace work is an expression of our faith."
More information about the declaration can be found at www.declarationofpeace.org online.
*Green is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Linda Green, (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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United Methodist News Service Photos and stories also available at: http://umns.umc.org
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