Cultivating a Culture of Peace – United Nations Day of Peace 2007 Leadership visionary Margaret Wheatley says, “There is no power greater than a community discovering what it cares about.” As SNJM sisters, associates, co-workers and students, we care about peace. Two Mary’s from different generations, geographies and ministries came together to dialogue about how we care about peace. We invite you to do the same. What inspires you from our Christian and Holy Names traditions to cultivate a culture of peace? Mary Garvin: Our General Chapter Acts continue to inspire and challenge me. We desire God. We desire what God desires; not only knowing God’s desire for peace but ourselves desiring to know intimately the God of Peace. The God of peace speaks through the prophet Jeremiah (29:11), “I know what plans I have in mind for you, plans for peace, not disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” The God of peace speaks through Jesus, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9). “Peace be with you.” (John 20:19). Our SNJM spirituality animates us no matter what our age or ability, for we are faith and justice educators called to be peace bearers, like Mary of Nazareth who first received and then shared. Mary Medved: I am drawn to the line from John’s Gospel, “I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly” (10:10). God’s desire for each of us is fullness of life, not just mere survival. In 1972 Pope Paul VI stated this vision powerfully in his New Year’s Day Peace message, “If you want peace, work for justice.” Authentic peace is integrally connected to the presence of social justice so that human persons and all creation can flourish. I am also inspired by our recent General Chapter Acts that invite us to deepen our understanding and experience of interdependence – our interdependence with creation, with persons impacted by HIV & AIDS, with persons of other cultures and religious traditions. This understanding and experience of interdependence is, I feel, the foundation for realizing social justice and peace in our hearts and in our world. What inspires you from the contemporary reality to cultivate a culture of peace? Mary Garvin: Two opportunities for travel have heightened my awareness and desire to work for peace. I visited the United Nations through UNANIMA for the 10th anniversary of the Beijing Conference on women. Seeing thousands of women, many of them from impoverished and war torn countries, led me to read and pray over the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the U.N. Millennium Goals as foundations for peace. Similarly, I attended a meeting of Caritas Internationalis in Rome. While attending Mass in their small Vatican chapel, I noticed a simple glass container in front of the altar. It contained earth from all the places in the world where war was waging. The earth was brought there by those who are ministering in places of conflict, to remind all gathered around the altar to pray and work for peace. Mary Medved: Recently I read the heroic autobiography, Left to Tell, by Immaculée Ilibagiza which depicts her experience of discovering God amidst the Rwandan holocaust in 1994. Immaculée, a Tutsi, survived by hiding in a Hutu pastor’s tiny bathroom with seven other women for 91 terrifying days. Strengthened by prayer throughout the ordeal, Immaculée was able to do the unthinkable after finding safety. She went to the prison and told Felicien, the person who masterminded the killing of many of her family and neighbors, “I forgive you.” Immaculée now works at the United Nations, fostering international cooperation and development. Immaculée also believes that, “we can heal Rwanda – and our world – by healing one heart at a time.” How are you being personally inspired to cultivate a culture of peace? Mary Garvin: I take peace education seriously in my courses on church and ministry, highlighting the vision of Vatican II and our role as women of the church, leaders and witness to peace and dialogue. I hope to make the vision of Gaudium et Spes real: “Peace cannot be obtained on earth unless people’s welfare is safeguarded and people freely and trustingly share with one another riches of their minds and hearts” (78). I attended a Peace Conference at Gonzaga University and heard Betty Bigombe, described as “one of the world’s most influential peace makers,” eloquently state that to accomplish peace in our global reality we must “become friends with the people.” I reflected on how we SNJMs call each other “sister,” we who live in various places in the world - North America, Brazil, Peru and Lesotho. My dream is that as we get to know each other better, we will not only call each other sister, we will be able to call each other friend. Mary Medved: I have been involved in education and advocacy for peace and justice since I was a teenager. Right now I also find myself drawn to cleanse myself of fear – well, at least attempt it! Dealing with cancer this year, I learned concretely how destructive fear and anxiety can be to sustaining the life system of my body. On a societal level, I feel bombarded as the media and politicians constantly name new persons and groups of whom I should be afraid. As cancer has taught me, hope is more powerful than fear. Staying focused, listening and naming often what God desires for me and for our world keeps me hope-filled. We can also share ideas during our first conference call on September 13th on ways to participate in this very important day. Submitted by
Sister Mary Annette Dworshak and
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