CONFLICT IS A PAINFUL HABIT BORN OF TRAUMA AND PERPETUATED IN SYSTEMS.
IS THERE A WAY OUT?
SYSTEMS, TRAUMA, AND BECOMING A RECONCILING CHURCH
Jay Wittmeyer is Executive Director of the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center, https://lmpeacecenter.org/all-events/, the premier training center for conflict resolution in congregations and a creative force for peace across racial, religious, and political divides. Grounded in Bowen systems psychology and the Anabaptist Peace Church tradition of Christianity, their mission is to proclaim Christ’s good news – the gospel of peace and justice – and to be active in the sacred ministry of reconciliation wherever and whenever we can. All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. – 2 Corinthians 5:18. Jay is a noted mediator, consultant, and trainer.
We all carry trauma in our body memories. Our communities, essential as they are, tend to perpetuate old habits of feeling. Jay will introduce the basic principles of the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center Shalom webinar series and other training programs to help congregations step out of old ruts to become examples of and forces for healing, peace, and liberation in their wider communities.
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/epf-peacebuilding-online-project-trauma-systems-and-reconciliation-tickets-157826949655
Read, listen, or view this program using the links below:
Did you miss our April 3 Peacebuilding Online presentation with Fred Vergara? Here is the link to watch, and share!
Episcopal Peace Fellowship's series of free, one hour, online presentations continues on Sunday, April 3 at 4:00 pm Eastern with learning from the Rev. Canon Dr. Fred Vergara, "Race and Church Growth: The Relationship Between Mission and Advocacy." We hope to see you there. Bring a friend!
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/epf-peacebuilding-online-project-race-church-growth-tickets-163060613685
| RACE and CHURCH GROWTH Anti-Asian and Pacific Islander hate crimes surged 149% in 16 of America's largest cities in 2020. Clearly COVID sparked many of the hate crimes. But AAPI people have been maginalized and subject to attack for a long time. "Chinatowns" have been burned to the ground going back into the 19th Century in San Jose, Tacoma, Santa Ana, Honolulu, and other cities. The Asian Ministries Network challenges the Episcopal Church to face up to the racism directed against AAPI people and seek reconciliation. Is there a correlation between congregational development and advocacy? Does racism hinder the growth of the church? Conversely, does racial healing promote the growth of the Church? Relating Scriptures and history, Canon Vergara will relate how the racial reconciliation will provide answers towards the revival and growth of the Episcopal Church especially in the AAPI community. Learn more here: https://www.episcopalchurch.org/ministries/asiamerica-ministries/ The Rev. Canon Dr. Winfred (Fred) Vergara has lived, studied and served in three countries. Living with wife, Angela, in New York City, Fred currently oversees the Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, South Asian, Southeast Asian, Pacific Islanders, Arab/Middle East convocations and the Asian American Youth and Young Adults. He pioneered the Asia-America Theological Exchange Forum gathering theologians from Asia to dialogue with theologians from North America. He is also founded MEMS (Mission to End Modern Slavery), an ecumenical and international non-profit organization advocating for victims and survivors of human trafficking. He has written several books including “Filipino Ministry in American Context,” “Mainstreaming Asians in the Episcopal Church,” and the best-seller, “Being Episcopalian.” He is active in social media as Fred Vergara and writes a blog: http://Travelinasian.blogspot.com. |
Read, listen, or view this program using the links below:
Did you miss our February 6 Peacebuilding presentation by Dan Hines? Here is the link to watch, and share!
Episcopal Peace Fellowship's series of free, one hour, online presentations continues on Sunday, March 6 at 4:00 pm Eastern with community organizing with Robert Hoo, "STORIES LEADING TO SUPRISING FRIENDSHIPS AND EFFECTIVE ACTION." We hope to see you there. Bring a friend!
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/epf-peacebuilding-online-project-loving-your-neighbor-in-action-tickets-157329925041
BROAD-BASED COMMUNITY ORGANIZING: LOVING THY NEIGHBOR IN ACTION
Robert Hoo is the Lead Organizer for One LA-IAF, a non-partisan, non-profit organization of congregations and community institutions dedicated to organizing and acting together to improve the quality of life for all Angelenos.
Broad based organizing uses stories to step beyond ideologies, both left and right, creating common ground and advancing the common good. One LA has achieved access to health care for 150,000 undocumented immigrants and leveraged hundreds of millions of dollars in investment in low-income communities. One LA is an affiliate of the Industrial Areas Foundation, the oldest and largest community organizing network in the country.
Robert Hoo has over fifteen years of organizing experience with the Industrial Areas Foundation in Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Sacramento. Robert received a B.A. in Political Science and a J.D. from Yale University, where he was an Arthur Liman Public Interest Fellow.
Episcopal Peace Fellowship's series of free, one hour, online presentations continues on Sunday, February 6 at 4:00 pm Eastern with learning from Dan Hines, "A Hidden Wholeness: Exploring a Circle of Trust." We hope to see you there. Bring a friend!
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/episcopal-peace-fellowship-peacebuilding-online-project-courage-hines-tickets-156345332097
| A HIDDEN WHOLENESS: EXPLORING A CIRCLE OF TRUST Mentored by the activist and writer Parker J. Palmer and the Center for Courage & Renewal, Dan Hines serves as an international freelance speaker, therapist, workshop facilitator and leadership consultant in various contexts and communities. His workshops and programs have taken him to China, Central America, throughout Canada and the U.S., and on sailboats and hiking trails. Dan, an Anglican priest, is co-founder of the intentional community, RareBirds Housing Co-operative, has run for public office, and has managed a zoo! www.danhines.ca Our “hidden wholeness” is our safe haven amid the violence of the storm around us. Parker J. Palmer writes about this blizzard that swirls around and within us as “fear and frenzy, greed and deceit, and indifference to the suffering of others. We all know stories of people who have wandered off into this madness and been separated from their own souls… it’s easy to believe that the soul -- that life-giving core of the human self, with its hunger for truth and justice, love and forgiveness -- has lost all power to guide our lives”. We seek refuge from the storm to pause, to look inward, and to catch a glimpse of the soul and to listen deeply to that small voice inside of you that speaks the truth about you, your work, and the world. In this introduction to the Circle of Trust® workshop, we will renew our courage and capacity to weather the storm in an inclusive, safe, and disciplined space of ‘solitude in community’. We will explore the theme of wholeness using the practices of storytelling, evocative readings and poetry, inner reflection, guided meditations, and facilitated discussions. See Dan's website for more events: www.danhines.ca www.couragerenewal.org |
What do the following compelling titles have in common? We'll be reading and discussing them as we continue the Episcopal Peace Fellowship Peacebuilder's Book Club in 2022. Join us: learn, share and connect with other justice-minded disciples as we explore living into non-violence and peace.
Third Saturday each month at 3:00 pm Eastern.
Email epfactnow@gmail.com for the Zoom link.
(Note: this is not the same as our Peacebuilding Online Series!
This is a separate, more informal time for sharing our own wisdom and insight.)
The Schedule:
Isabel Wilkerson, Caste (led by Harry Gunkel in January, 2022)
Valarie Kaur, See No Stranger (led by Mike Wallens in March, 2022)
Amanda Henderson, Holy Chaos (led by the author in April, 2022)
Nelson Mandela, Long Walk To Freedom (led by Rob Burgess in May, 2022)
Lisa Schirch, The Little Book of Strategic Peacebuilding (led by Randy Heyn-Lamb in July, 2022)
Arthur C. Brooks, Love Your Enemies (led Bryan Hinson in August, 2022)
John Lederach, The Moral Imagination (led by Richard Wineland in September, 2022)
John Dear, The Nonviolent Life (led by Cody Maynus in October, 2022)
Michael Nagler, The Third Harmony: Non-Violence and the New Story of Human Nature (led by Chris Sabas in November, 2022)
Joyce Penfield, Before you Die, Plant a Tree (led by the author in January, 2023)
Resmaa Menakhem, My Grandmother’s Hands (led by Shannon MacVean-Brown)
Walter Wink, Jesus & Nonviolence: A Third Way
Krister Stendahl, The Roots of Violence
Patricia Raybon, My First White Friend
Mohandas Gandhi, Pathways to Nonviolent Resistance
Michael Battle, Reconciliation: The Ubuntu Theology Of Desmund Tutu (led by Kathy McGregor)
Vandana Shiva, One Earth, One Humanity Vs The 1%
Arlie Russell Hochschild, Strangers In Their Own Land
Coline Covington, For Goodness Sake
Read, listen, or view this program using the links below:
Did you miss our January 2 presentation by Dr. Catherine Meeks? Here is the link to watch, and share! Deep racial healing is at hand!
Episcopal Peace Fellowship's series of free, one hour, online presentations continues on Sunday, February 6 at 4:00 pm Eastern with learning from Dan Hines, "A Hidden Wholeness: Exploring a Circle of Trust." We hope to see you there. Bring a friend!
Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/episcopal-peace-fellowship-peacebuilding-online-project-courage-hines-tickets-156345332097
| A HIDDEN WHOLENESS: EXPLORING A CIRCLE OF TRUST Mentored by the activist and writer Parker J. Palmer and the Center for Courage & Renewal, Dan Hines serves as an international freelance speaker, therapist, workshop facilitator and leadership consultant in various contexts and communities. His workshops and programs have taken him to China, Central America, throughout Canada and the U.S., and on sailboats and hiking trails. Dan, an Anglican priest, is co-founder of the intentional community, RareBirds Housing Co-operative, has run for public office, and has managed a zoo! www.danhines.ca Our “hidden wholeness” is our safe haven amid the violence of the storm around us. Parker J. Palmer writes about this blizzard that swirls around and within us as “fear and frenzy, greed and deceit, and indifference to the suffering of others. We all know stories of people who have wandered off into this madness and been separated from their own souls… it’s easy to believe that the soul -- that life-giving core of the human self, with its hunger for truth and justice, love and forgiveness -- has lost all power to guide our lives”. We seek refuge from the storm to pause, to look inward, and to catch a glimpse of the soul and to listen deeply to that small voice inside of you that speaks the truth about you, your work, and the world. In this introduction to the Circle of Trust® workshop, we will renew our courage and capacity to weather the storm in an inclusive, safe, and disciplined space of ‘solitude in community’. We will explore the theme of wholeness using the practices of storytelling, evocative readings and poetry, inner reflection, guided meditations, and facilitated discussions. See Dan's website for more events: www.danhines.ca www.couragerenewal.org |
