| Posted: April 30 2005,22:55 |
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PROGRESS: Has your organization seen
progress toward a culture of peace and nonviolence in your domain of
action and in your constituency during the first half of the Decade? |
There
has been modest progress in this area since the 1999 Churchwide
Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) when the
organization made a commitment to the decade. An inter-unit Task
Force was established and it developed an outline of actions different
units could take to promote the Decade.
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OBSTACLES: What are the most important obstacles that have prevented progress?
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We
are in the process of expanding our network that will promote awareness
and action in the context of the Decade. The national political
situation has been a major obstacle. While the events of 9/11/01
and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have been disheartening to the
promotion of the Culture of Peace in the U.S., they have, conversely,
been an opportunity to articulate and encourage peaceful alternatives
and the value of peace-making and peace-building.
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ACTIONS: What actions have been
undertaken by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence during the first half of the Decade?
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In
2001, as alluded to above, the church identified a number of goals and
objectives for the ELCA that units have been working on. In early
2005 we gathered 43 people from the United States and Puerto Rico for a
two-day nonviolence training of the trainers. These people have
returned to their synods and are now teaching and trying to create a
culture of peace and nonviolence in their congregations, synods and
regions. We also have 450 people who have signed up to be part of a
national network of ELCA members committed and interested in
nonviolence and peacemaking. We plan to develop this network as a
place where resources on nonviolence can be shared and actions
celebrated.
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ADVICE: What advice would you like to
give to the Secretary-General and the General Assembly to promote a
culture of peace and nonviolence during the second half of the Decade? |
The
Secretary-General and the General Assembly need to give this effort a
higher degree of visibility than that provided through UNESCO.
While UNESCO’s efforts have been helpful, they are not as well
known as they might be. The UN Department of Information in New
York should supplement UNESCO’s work through its own expansion of
video, audio, photo and print resources that describe and promote the
work of the Decade. The Secretary-General should encourage one or
more Member States on the Security Council to hold a discussion within
the Council of the implications of its work for the Decade.
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PARTNERSHIPS: What partnerships and
networks does your organization participate in, thus strengthening the
global movement for a culture of peace? |
The
ELCA utilizes the resources of a wide variety of groups promoting peace
and nonviolence in its work. Of particular significance is our
connection with the World Council of Churches’ Decade to Overcome
Violence in which we are an active participant.
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PLANS: What new engagements are
planned by your organization to promote a culture of peace and
nonviolence in the second half of the Decade (2005-2010)? |
We
plan to follow up with the 43 national participants of the Equipping
for Peacemaking event (April 2005 – mentioned above in ACTIONS) to
evaluate the value of the training and to use our connections with
other entities within the national church body to assist them. We
plan to develop the Equipping for Peacemaking network as a place where
resources on nonviolence can be shared. We hope to create a
larger presence of nonviolence and peacemaking in our national church.
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Postal address of organization
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Division for Church in Society
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
8765 W. Higgins Rd.
Chicago, IL 60631-4101 USA
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E-mail address of organization
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peacemaking@comcast.net or dennis.frado@elca.org
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Website address of organization
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http://www.elca.org/nonviolence/
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Highest priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Education for a culture of peace
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Second priority action domain of a culture of peace
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Understanding, tolerance, solidarity
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Highest priority country of action (or international)
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United States
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Second priority country of action (or international)
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INTERNATIONAL
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