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The Inward
Journey of
Spiritual Nurture
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We are called to enter with God into the process of
living peace and promoting justice by:
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Developing awareness,
through our worship service, of God's call to peace and justice |
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Offering up in prayer all
victims and perpetrators of injustice, oppression, and war |
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Reflecting on the biblical
and theological ways of shalom |
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Nurturing and celebrating
hope, giving each other strength to continue trying to change the world |
Comments by Lou Aderman from the Justice and Peace Worship Service
3/19/06 |
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The
Outward Journey of
Community Outreach
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We shall find
ways that we can use our congregational and individual gifts in witness to
our local and global communities by
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Identifying and encouraging volunteer opportunities
in existing programs of peace and justice |
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Identifying programs needed and encouraging their
development |
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Making God's peace visible through our corporate
and individual actions |
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Identifying
other groups with whom we may collaborate to demonstrate, individually
or collectively, our beliefs in peace and justice |
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Sharing our resources in the interests of peace and
justice |
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The
Inward Journey of
Education
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Recognizing that there are no easy answers to the
problems of justice and peace, we shall nurture the peacemaking journey of
our congregation and of our individual members by
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Developing educational programs about the ways of
peace |
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Encouraging our youth to grow in ways of peace and
justice |
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Being vigilant and calling attention to evolving
needs for peace and justice work |
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Providing forums for discussion and helping each
other understand diverse opinions |
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Providing and promoting the use of library materials on justice and
peace |
Comments by Lewie Mitchell from the Justice and Peace Worship Service
3/19/06 on The Inward Journey of Education |
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The
Outward Journey of
Political Action
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We are called
to witness God's peace through exercise of the responsibilities of
citizenship by
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Being a church where openness and diversity of
opinions are encouraged and respected |
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or identifying opportunities for congregation members to express their
opinions to elected officials, in discussion forums, etc. |
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Now, more than ever, we covenant, among ourselves and with God, to seek the
ways of justice and peace. Courage in the struggle for peace and justice is
central to the identity of our church.
JUST PEACE is our understanding of God's will for people. More than an
absence of war, it is a condition in which each part of God's creation acts
harmoniously for the good of the whole.
The concept of JUST PEACE stems from the Bible. The Old Testament speaks of
"shalom" - the ordering of our lives for wholeness, healing, justice, peace,
equality, unity, freedom, and community. In the New Testament, Jesus told his
followers, as he looked at Jerusalem's corruption, violence, and injustice - "If
you only knew today what is needed for peace."
View the original Justice and Peace Covenant approved by our congregation in
1989.
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