April-June 2012 The Journal of the Baptist Peace ... 32_2.pdf · 4 The Baptist Peace Fellowship of...

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The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America gathers, equips and mobilizes Baptists to build a culture of peace rooted in justice. We labour with a wonderful array of peacemakers to change the world.

The Journal of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America Vol 32 No 2

April-June 2012

—From Banquet of Praise, a book of worship resources from Bread for the World, edited by Joel Underwood. Art by Susan Daily.

Living God, open our hearts, that we may feel the breath of your spirit.

Unclench our hands, that we may reach out to one another. Open our lips, that we may drink in

the delight and wonder of life. Unclog our ears, to hear your agony in our humanity.

Open our eyes, that we may see Christ in friend and stranger.

Breathe your spirit into us and touch our lives with the life of Christ.

Amen.

April-June 2012 Baptist Peacemaker2

The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America is an independent, 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Funding comes primarily from membership dues and contributions.

Staff:Katie Cook, Editor, Baptist PeacemakerEvelyn Hanneman, Operations CoordinatorAllison Paksoy, Information ManagerLeDayne McLeese Polaski, Program Coordinator

BPFNA membership: Annual dues for 2012 are: •Household-$40 •Studentorlowincome-$20 •Institution/church-$50 •Librarysubscription-$60

Contributionsandmembershipduesaretax-deductibleintheUnitedStates.(Canadiansmaymaketax-deductiblecontributions through Canadian Baptist Ministries.) Checks ormoney orders should bemade inUS orCanadian dollars, if possible.

Board of Directors 2011-12President: Cheryl Dudley, New York, NYVice President: Bill Brammer, Turtle Creek, PASecretary:DougDonley,MoundsView,MNAssistantSecretary:SarahKelly,BatonRouge,LATreasurer: Linda Mashburn, Brevard, NC

Other members: Maggie Burkett, Granville, OH; Valoria Cheek, Valley Forge, PA; Jessica Davenport, Houston, TX; JudsonDay,Sacramento,CA;KatyFriggle-Norton,Havertown,PA;LeticiaGuardiola, Seattle,WA;AdaliaGutierrez-Lee,Wayne,PA;Mar Imsong,Bedford,MA;ChristopherJackson-Jordan,Boone,NC;LucasJohnson,Savannah,GA;Stephen Jones,PrairieVillage,KS; JoaoMatwawana, Lower Sackville,NS;CassieMcKenna,Toronto,ON;DavidOgilvie,PortWilliams,NS;LaurenSanders,Chicago, IL;Alan Sherouse,NewYork,NY;JonathanSledge,Raleigh,NC;BarbaraTaft,Mesa,AZ;AmauryTañós-Santos,Lawrence,NJ;RobertTiller,SilverSpring,MD;KarenTurner,Toronto,ON;XimenaUlloaMontemayor, Mexico City, MX; Chakravarty (Chaks) Zadda,Chicago,IL.

BPFNACentralOffice:4800WedgewoodDr.,Charlotte,NC28210;phone:704/521-6051;fax:704/521-6053;email:[email protected]; web: www.bpfna.org.

Baptist Peacemaker, published quarterly, is sent to BPFNA members and depends on donations from its readers. To receive a trial subscription, simply send us your name and address.

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Baptist Peacemaker editorial office: c/oSeedsofHopePublishers, 602JamesAve.,Waco,TX76706;254/755-7745;[email protected]. Special thanks to Deborah Harris for help in completion of this issue.

in this issue

3Some Thoughts about the Church

by Claire McKeever-Burgett

4Strengthening Your Congregation’s

Work for Peaceby LeDayne McLeese Polaski

6 Peacemaking in Chiapas

by Karen Turner

10Tijuana: Ministry on the Borderline

by Alexandra Miller

12 Marriage Equality is a Justice Issue

by Bob Tiller

14 Remembering Who We Are

a sermon by Rachel Smith

17News

18 Bittersweet Reality: Chocolate Companies and Child Labor

by Crystal Goolsby

21-25 Resources and Opportunities

26BPFNA Highlights from 2011

27-31 Contributors from 2011

32Prayer for Peace

by Mary Ruth Crook

Baptist Peacemaker April-June 2012 3

reflection

Church:thebride,flawed,imperfect,fragile,inneedofgraceandmercy,community, life, worship, vital, sacred, necessary.

Weareoftenmostcriticalofthatwhichwelove,andsoitiswithmyrelationship with the Church.

IlovetheChurch,andyetfindmyselfquestioningher,arguingwithherandsometimes even weeping because of her.

Nevertheless, she is my community and my friend—a place in which I worship, a place that is sacred, a place that is necessary.

My hope for the Church is that it would return to a place of brokenness and honesty, crying out for forgiveness from the world

for the wrongs it has incurred.

My hope for the Church is that it would be seen as a place of community, of inclusion—a place where all are welcome and none are turned away.

My hope for the Church is that it would truly be Christ’s hands and feet; that wewouldnotsitidlyinthepewseachSundaymorning,butthatwewould

be active in the world—seeking peace that creates and justice that restores.

My main anxiety for the Church is because of her comfort and apathy. Whenwebecomecontentinourwarmsanctuaries,weforgetthatsanctuaries

wereoriginallyintendedasrespiteandsafe-keepingforpeoplefleeingpersecution.

Whenwebecomecomfortablewiththosewholooklikeusandwhothinklikeus, we forget that the Church was meant for all people.

Christ’s Church is just that—Christ’s. It is a precious gift of community, love, grace and activity entrusted to us, the people of God, to actively share

kindness, justice, love and mercy to a world in desperate need of something real.

art by Peter Yuichi Clark

—Claire McKeever-Burgett is Associate Pastor of Northminster Baptist Church in Monroe, LA, a former pastoral intern at Glendale Baptist Church in Nashville, TN (a BPFNA Partner Congregation),

a longtime peacemaker and a life-long Baptist.

Some Thoughts about the ChurchbyClaireMcKeever-Burgett


A key component of the BPFNA’s efforts for peace rooted in justice is our work with our Partner

Congregations. These churches provide the BPFNA withfinancialgifts,visibility anddirect connectionsto individuals from one end of the North American continent to the other. Equally crucial, however, are the many ways in which the BPFNA works to strengthen those churches in their own work for peace and justice. How does the BPFNA support our Partners? Here are a few of the ways:

• The quarterly e-newsletter Model Ministries forPeaceRootedinJustice highlights programs and projects with a justice emphasis that are taking place within BPFNA Partner Congregations. As a Partner, you will receive regular suggestions for new work you might consider or fresh ideas for doing ongoing work in a new way. Also, you may see your own work being showcased and celebrated.

• Every Partner Congregation receives two vouchers to help new attendees come to the annual BPFNA Summer Conference. This financial support allows more and more people to experience what has been described as “life-changing,” “a week that empow-ers, challenges and delights me” and “an event that fills me up to get through the next year.” This year, the conference will be part icular ly helpful to church-es. It will focus on ways in which congregations can enable, empower and inspire people to do the work of peacemaking.

• Partner Con-gregations receive w e l l - w r i t t e n , thoughtful worship resources through-

out the year. From our annual celebration of Mother’s Day as Peace Sunday to major holidays from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday to Labor Day, the BPFNA produces and compiles resources that undergird quality worship.

• BPFNA staff members Evelyn Hanneman and LeDayne McLeese Polaski are certified trainers in Conflict Transformation. They are available to lead a weekend-long training session for your congrega-tion. This training is available for just the cost of travel for our Partner Congregations.

• Partner Congregations receive discounts on all BPFNA-produced resources, as well as free bulk cop-ies of Baptist Peacemaker and/or PeacePoint.

• Our Partners receive early and more frequent notification about transformative opportunities like Friendship Tours.

• Partner churches have access to BPFNA-related Fair Trade connections from large companies like Equal Exchange to small start-ups like the Women’s Sewing Cooperative in Chiapas.

• Perhaps most importantly, being a Partner Congre-gation establishes a direct connection to BPFNA staff

and fellow Partner churches, allow-ing opportunities for dialogue, shared ideas and mutual support.

All of the special opportunit ies

above serve to in-crease Partner Con-gregations’ ability to work for peace and justice within their own particular set-tings. Partners can also take heart in knowing that they are connected

from the staff

Strengthening Your Congregation’s Work for Peace

by LeDayne McLeese Polaski


from the staff

with the largest group of Baptist peacemakers in the world. Through your partnership with the BPFNA, your church is directly connected to such work as pro-vidingpeace-themedclassesattheMayanInterculturalSeminaryinChiapas;sponsoringConflictTransforma-tion inLiberia, Sudan, India andPakistan; offeringsupport to Iglesias por la Paz con Justicia y Dignidad, the new group of Mexican churches confronting their country’s increasing violence and militarization; and being a part of the coalition known as Borderlands HeedingGod’sCallthatisseekingtoaddresstheflowofgunsacrosstheUS/Mexicoborder. If your church is already a Partner Congregation, thankyou!Weaskyoutobesuretotakefulladvan-

You are not alone. The Baptist Peace Fellowship

of North America Partner Congregation Program

can help.

• The Partner Congregation program encourages strategic alliances for mission between local churches and other

peacemakers.

• It also offers resources and networking for congregations that would otherwise be isolated in a violent and materialistic world.

For more information, contact LeDayne McLeese Polaski at [email protected] or 704/521-6051.

tage of all the opportunities you have through the BPFNA. If your church is not currently a Partner, could you pursue that possibility? It would enhance the work of the BPFNA and your own ongoing work of peacemak-ing. Suggestedgivinglevelsarebasedonchurchmem-bership,startingat$250/yearforcongregationswithfewerthan125membersandincreasingto$5,000/yearfor those with over 1,000 members. Contact us for more information on how to start the process of becoming a BPFNA Partner Congregation. —LeDayne Polaski is the Program Coordinator for the BPFNA.


peacemaking in Chiapas

To what can I compare the Kingdom of God? To a mustard seed. The one that someone planted in a

garden and it grew into a tree that gave shelter to the birds. It seems to me that the main job of the followers ofJesusistopayattentiontowheretheSpiritofGodis planting mustard seeds and then join in with the nurturing and cultivation of those seeds as they grow into sheltering trees. The BPFNAhas recently joinedmustard-seedcultivation going on in the highlands of Chiapas, the southernmost state of Mexico, where it borders on Gua-temala. Chiapas is a breathtaking, beautiful place, with diversity of landscape, people and natural resources, as well as remarkable biodiversity. There is a lot of fertile land where corn, coffee, bananas and cocoa grow everywhere you look, but theSpirit’smustardseedsarebeingsowninthesoilofoppression,injusticeandconflict,soakedwiththeblood of martyrs.

Peacemaking in Chiapas:Sowing Mustard Seeds

by Karen Turner In the next issue of Baptist Peacemaker, I will tell you the wonderful story of the young indigenous prophets of Chiapas, who are planting mustard seeds along with theSpiritofGod.AndabouttheirrecentpilgrimagetoElSalvador,thelandofthemartyrs.Andabouttheirprophetic task of leading their Christian sisters and brothers to becomemustard-seednurturers, as theKingdom of God continues to emerge. But,that’sfornexttime.RightnowI’mgoingtotell you the back story that created the soil soaked with martyr’s blood, so that you will then be able to understandtheawesomesignificanceoftheprophets’story.

The indigenous population of Chiapas is culturally, politically and spiritually complex. They experi-

ence complex conflicts, based on their interactionsoverfivecenturieswithcolonialpowers,thecurrentgovernment, historical Catholicism and, more recently, Protestantevangelismandtheinfluenceofliberationtheology. The modern indigenous people of Chiapas and Guatemala are descended from the legendary Mayans, whose highly developed early civilization had already mysteriously collapsed, prior to the brutal colonization bytheSpanishinthe16thcentury. Buttheyleftthestill-spectacularruinsofpyramidsand temples, which tourists and archeologists still explore and ponder. In spite of centuries of colonial domination, attempted genocide, oppression and marginalization—along with a religious overlay of Ca-tholicism and, later, many Protestant denominations—the Mayan people survive, with distinct cultures and at least 32 living languages from six branches of the original ancient Mayan language. UnliketheUSandCanada,whoalsohaveindig-enous populations, the population of Mexico has a veryhighpercentageof “mestizo,”ormixed-blood,citizens, whose ancestry is partially indigenous. It is this underlying indigenous culture and spirituality that has been called el Mexico profundo, or “deep Mexico” (a term

Left: A relief carving of a Mayan king, from the temple at Palenque. Photo by M. D. Carrasco.


peacemaking in Chiapascoinedby anthropologistGuillermoBonfilBatalla),meaning that the indigenous spirit is in the blood—in thegeneticmake-up—ofmostofthepopulation. And yet, from the colonial era through to the present day, the “pure” indigenous population has been consistently marginalized, and economically and politically disadvantaged, a plight similar to that of indigenous populations in most other colonized areas of the world. Over the years of colonial rule, as well as in modern times, there has been ongoing resistance by indigenous

layer of division was created in indigenous communi-ties. The message of liberation—teaching that God was on the side of the poor, and that poverty and oppression were systemic evils and not God’s will—found fertile ground among poor and oppressed people. The church hierarchy, the government and wealthy classes that held power were threatened by this move-ment, but many indigenous Catholics embraced it. Indigenous evangelical churches, on the other hand, were largely distanced from liberation theology and its emphasisonsocialjustice.Influencedbytheconserva-tive denominational mission boards of their foreign founders, evangelicals continued to focus on individual salvation and piety, and future rewards in heaven. The indigenousgroups, influencedby liberationtheology and a new political and economic awareness, joined the voices demanding basic rights to fair land distribution,self-government,housing,educationandhealth care. However, those in power—that is, the of-ficialpoliticalparties,landownersandchurchhierar-chies—were not responsive to the needs and demands of those who worked for pittance on the plantations, in the mines, as domestic servants and in the resorts. Therefore, little change occurred. WiththeintroductionoftheNorthAmericanFreeTrade Agreement (NAFTA), things got much worse

Right: A mural depicting the red bandana mask associated with the Zapatista Army of

National Liberation (ELZN), a revolutionary group that emerged in Chiapas with the

institution of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Photo by LeDayne Polaski.

people to the systemic oppression. This resistance has been expressed in various ways, from nonviolent protest all the way to armed revolt. There have been some limited reforms at times, but the oppression and marginalization have essentially continued. Although the Mayan peoples, with their several languages and cultural groups, were never entirely homogeneous, until the beginning of Protestant evangelization in the late 19th century, their experi-ence in relation to the dominant cultures was largely consistent. Indigenous communities were mostly RomanCatholic,withanundercurrentoftraditionalMayan spirituality. Thissynergisticfaithwasastrongunifyinginflu-ence in indigenous communities, and religious ritu-als and celebrations were the centre of community life.When,inresponsetoProtestantevangelization,some people abandoned the traditional religious practices,thiscreateddivisionsandconflictinmanycommunities. Later,beginninginthe1960s,whentheinfluenceof liberation theology spread throughout Chiapas—as it did throughout all of Latin America—another

In the aftermath of the two weeks of violent conflict of the

Zapatista rebellion in 1994, Chiapas was heavily militarized by the government, and remains

so to the present.

continued on page 8


peacemaking in Chiapasfor the indigenouspeople inChiapas.TheZapatistauprising coincided intentionally with the institution of NAFTA. It was the result of a sense of futility, when peaceful methods of protest and political action had proved ineffective in stopping NAFTA or bringing about constructive change. The Ejercito Zapatista de Liberacion Nacional(EZLN),orZapatistaArmyofNationalLiberation,isacoalitionthat responded to this accumulation of injustice and unresponsiveness by declaring war on the Mexican government in January 1994. Another group, one of the heroes of my story, was Las Abejas (The Bees), a largely Catholic group in the highlandsofChiapas,whowereinfluencedbylibera-tion theology and shared the same sense of social justice anddemandsforindigenousrightsastheZapatistas,but were committed to nonviolence. They, therefore, didnotactivelyjointhearmedrebellionoftheEZLN. IntheaftermathofthetwoweeksofviolentconflictoftheZapatistarebellion,Chiapaswasheavilymilita-rized by the government and remains so to the present. The government, in the months following the cessation ofopenfighting,wasmakingapublicshow,ononehand, of negotiating peace terms with the rebels. On the other hand, it was organizing, training and arming local paramilitary groups. Along with the military presence, these groups wereusedby thegovernment in anongoing“low-

intensity warfare” of harassment and violence against communitiesandindividualswhosupportedtheZa-patista cause. This continues to the present time. Political parties looking for support, as well as specificgovernment initiatives, targetedgroupsandcommunities not sympathetic to the rebel cause, prom-isingvariousformsofeconomicbenefitinexchangeforsupport,whichincludedoppositiontotheZapatistas. Many evangelical groups saw in these offers a legitimate way of improving their economic situa-

Left: In 1997, a group of Catholic worshippers were observing a day of prayer in this little wooden church in Acteal, when 45 of them, including women and children, were gunned down. Photo by Karen Turner.

tion—particularly if those making the offers identi-fied themselvesas evangelical.Becauseof this, theywillinglyacceptedtheseofferedbenefitsandalignedwith the government. Many evangelicals also joined the paramilitary groups and participated in the armed opposition to the rebels. The members of Las Abejas, on the other hand, were “caught in the middle.” Although they were often perceivedasZapatistabecauseof theiradvocacyforjustice and indigenous rights, they were, in fact, quite separate; they believed in nonviolence. But they could not align with the government, which continued to oppress and marginalize the people and turned a deaf ear to their demands for justice. In their search for non-violent resolution, they were increasingly persecuted by the government and by indigenous groups that had aligned with the government. In themonths following theZapatistauprising,this persecution forced some members of Las Abejas to fleetheirhomesandcommunities,andseekshelterinother communities. Their homes were often then looted and burned. This situation culminated in an explosion of violence, in the divided community of Acteal, in December1997. A group of unarmed members of Las Abejas, some of whom had sought shelter there because of repeated

A group of unarmed members of Las Abejas…were observing a day of prayer and fasting in the simple little wooden Catholic church. They were surrounded by an armed paramilitary group, who opened fire, killing 45 men, women and children over a period of several hours.


peacemaking in Chiapasdeath threats, were observing a day of prayer and fast-ing in the simple little wooden Catholic church. They were surrounded by an armed paramilitary group who openedfire,killing45men,womenandchildrenovera period of several hours. In many cases, the perpe-trators and the victims were from the same extended families. In theaftermathof thishorrificevent, itbecameclear that this was not an isolated, spontaneous event, but that it was orchestrated and supported by the gov-ernment and military. The paramilitary group had been roamingtheareamakingthreats,andgunfirehadbeenheard in the area for some time prior to the attack. A military post was only a few hundred yards away, but no attempt was made to intervene. The bodies of the victims were immediately removed from the site, in spite of objections from the survivors, and were only returned to Acteal for burial with the personal inter-ventionofBishopSamuelRuiz,whothenconductedthe funeral. Tatik Samuelwas the legendaryRomanCatholicBishopofChiapas at the time, a long-timechampion of indigenous rights. The massacre at Acteal has become symbolic of the ongoing struggle in Chiapas—illustrating the divisions andconflictsbetweenindigenousgroups,betweentheindigenous population and the government, the impu-nity of the military and paramilitary, and the layers of political and economic oppression and corruption. Justicehasneverbeenachieved.Someoftheactualperpetrators were arrested and tried and sent to jail, buttheofficialswhoplannedandallowedthemassa-cre have never been held accountable. In the distorted and manipulated stories disseminated after the event, the massacre was portrayed by the government as an isolated religious conflict between local indigenousgroups.BecauseLasAbejashadbeenidentifiedasZap-atistas, it was implied that they, too, had been armed. Evangelical groups were led to believe, by lo-cal politicians and religious leaders, that it was the evangelicals who had been somehow victimized and persecuted by rebel terrorists. The perpetrators who were imprisoned were later given early release, under pressure from the protestant denominations to which they belonged, on the basis of alleged religious dis-crimination. Suspicionandhostilityhavecontinuedtothepres-ent time. The political and religious divisions between

indigenous groups allow the government, supported by USandcorporateinterests,tocontinueto“divideandconquer” in Chiapas, neutralizing whatever indigenous resistance there is to the continued militarization, the unjust land distribution, the lack of basic social and health services, and the intrusion of foreign interests who wish to exploit the abundant natural resources of Chiapas. ButtheSpiritofGodisalsoatworkinChiapas.There are faithful secular NGOs (nongovernmental organizations)workingwith tools such asConflictTransformation, mediation and accompaniment, as well as monitoring and reporting the ongoing impunity and abuses of power. And there are some remarkable Christian people working alongside these secular organizations, partnering with both evangelical and Catholic groups to plant mustard seeds and construct a narrative of peace, more in line with the biblical vision of the Kingdom of God.—Karen Turner, a BPFNA board member, spent 6 weeks in Chiapas in October and November 2011, at the Seminario In-tercultural Mayense, representing BPFNA in the unfolding peace initiatives there, as well as teaching some basic English. A retired social worker, she officially lives in Toronto, ON, where she belongs to the Jeremiah Community, an intentional Christian community in the downtown area.

Right: A detail of the “Pillar of Shame” in Acteal. In 1999, the Danish sculptor Jens Galschiot

erected the sculpture as a public reminder of the 1997 massacre.

Photo by Karen Turner.


peacemaking in Tijuana

The BPFNA’s First-Ever Immersion Experience for Seminarians

In January 2012, the BPFNA and Palmer Theological Seminary(formerlyEasternBaptistTheologicalSemi-

nary)co-sponsoredatravelingcoursetitledMinistryontheBorderline. The classwas focusedon a nine-dayimmersion experience in Tijuana, Mexico, in which stu-dents observed, assessed and experienced some of the realities of an urban, multicultural setting located on the Mexican-USborder. Someof the issueshighlightedwere creatingun-derstanding across barriers of language, religious and cultural differences; deepening awareness of the many forces that drive people across the border (with or without legalpapers);andappreciatingthefunctionoffamily/community and the dynamics of violence when those safety nets collapse.

Ministry on the Borderline:BPFNA’s Friendship Tour to Tijuana

by Alexandra J. MillerIntroduction by LeDayne McLeese Polaski

Dr.Mayra Picos-Lee of the seminary served asthe professor. BPFNA Program Coordinator LeDayne McLeesePolaskiandBPFNAmemberRaySchellingeralso served as group leaders. Eight students from two seminaries participated. All judged the experience to be deeply worthwhile, and the BPFNA will continue to pursue offering January Term immersion experiences for seminarians annually. ThereflectionbelowwaswrittenbyAliMueller,afirst-yearstudentatCentralBaptistTheologicalSeminaryin Kansas City, Kansas.

The ‘Least of These’

Inoneofhis rareseriousmoments,StephenColbert,testifying before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommitteeon Immigration,Citizenship,RefugeesandBorderSecurity,andInternationalLaw,suggeststhatundocumented workers are America’s “least of these” from Matthew 25.1 ThisincludesthosewhotrytocrosstheUSborderwithout documentation, those unfairly deported and thoselivinginUScitieswithoutdocumentation. Before taking this class on immigration, I was uninformed and confused about these issues and what our role as Christ’s followers should be. After reading the assigned books and articles, I felt that I had a loose grasp of the various particulars and what a Christian response ought to be, regardless of political persuasions. But I was not prepared for Victor’s story. Victor was one of our tour guides in Tijuana and had just recently been deported from California. He never even decided to beanundocumentedimmigrant.Whenhewasachild,hisparentsmadethedecisiontomovetotheStatesandbrought their family with them. Victor grew up in California, went through elemen-tary, middle and high school, graduated and got a job workingatawarehousemakingUS$11anhour.Hegotmarried and had two children. His wife and children areUScitizens.Nowthatheisdeported,heislivingin

Left: Ali Mueller places a cross on a grave in the Terrace Park Cemetery in Holtville, CA. Buried here are more than 700 mostly unidentified people who died trying to cross the desert near the US-Mexico border.Photo by LeDayne McLeese Polaski.


peacemaking in Tijuana a country of which he has no memory, trying to support hisfamilymakingUS$6aday. He informed us that he is trying to wait out the 10 years before he can apply for legalstatuswithintheStates,andwedidnothavetheheart to tell him that, even after he applies, the wait could be 10 to 20 more years. And Victor is one of the lucky ones. Because of pref-erential systems and numerical quotas, there is literally nolegalwayofimmigratingtotheUSformostpeoplein Mexico, especially people who do not have family members here. I was also not prepared for others I met in Tijuana. Wemetnumerouspeoplewhohadbeendeported forminortrafficviolations;awomanwhosesondied,andchildren whose father died, trying to cross the border; and a priest who ministers to the recently deported, as wellastotheUSBorderPatrol,oneoftheagenciesthatdeports people. We leftwater in thedesertwithBorderAngels, a nonprofitagencythatassistsimmigrantswhorisktheirlives in crossing the desert near the border, so that hope-fully there will be a few less deaths as people try to cross. Thenwedrovetoagraveyardfilledwith700JaneandJohn Does who died in that desert. Finally, I was not prepared to hear what people are prepared toendure inorder tocome to theUS. Many people come into the country legally (with tourist, student or work visas) and just overstay their visa. But visas are not granted to all and are especially hard to obtain if one is poor. Therefore,peopletrytocrossbetweenofficialpointsof entry, and two people die every day doing this. Two out of three of these people have no criminal records and 30 percent are women and children.2 In order to make it across, most people pay smugglers a hefty fee that causes them to go into debt. They risk death, abuse, beingtraffickedandbeingextortedformoremoney,oncetheygetintotheStates. If they are fortunate enough to get to the States,theywillhavetolivewiththefearofdetection and deportation, as well as the real-ity that they cannot stand up for their rights as human beings, cannot go to the doctor if they are sick and cannot even call the police in emergency situations. People have to be desperate to do this with those known risks. The people we talked with were mostly trying to get back to family or

tryingtogettotheStatestomakemoneytofeed,houseand clothe their families, because they could not support them. This trip has given me perspective and empathy. It has helped me to see how similar we all are. All of us would do anything to be with and take care of the ones we love. Now that I am back home, I realize that this issue is very simple for me. In Matthew 25, one of the “least of these” was described as a stranger who was invited in. One of our responsibilities as Christians is hospitality to the sojourner and the foreigner, regardless of our political leanings. Leaving water in the desert one afternoon of my life issomething,butnowIhavetofigureoutwhatmycupof water will be here in my home town. How will I show hospitality and the love of Christ to those in my midst wholiveinthisheart-breakingsituation?Howwillmychurch care for families like Victor’s, who live in fear of ortherealityofdeportationandseparation?WhatwillI do to ensure that they are treated fairly and as fellow brothers and sisters? These are questions to which all of usmustfindanswers.—Ali Mueller is a full-time Master of Divinity student at Central Baptist Seminary in Shawnee, KS. Prior to seminary, she was a youth pastor for four years, working with junior high students at an Anglican church in Overland Park, KS.

Endnotes1.ABCNews,“StephenColbertSaysMigrantWork-ersHaveNoRights”(abcnews.go.com/Politics/video/stephen-colbert-says-migrant-workers-have-no-rights-11719764).2.StatisticsarefromEnriqueMoronesofBorderAn-gels,basedinSanDiego,CA(www.borderangels.org).

Right: A group of seminarians and sponsors pause with their tour guide in Tijuana, MX,

during the BPFNA’s first-ever traveling course for seminarians. Behind them is the

wall being built along the US-Mexico border.Photo by Ray Schellinger.


reflection

Same-sexmarriageismuchinthenews.Whetheryousupport it, oppose it, or feel neutral, you can’t escape

the avalanche of news reports about it, particularly about the kaleidoscope pattern of state laws. A federal appeals court recently invalidated Califor-nia’sbanonsame-sexmarriage,butstayedthejudgmentpendingappeal.InWashingtonstate,thegovernorsignedasame-sexmarriagebillpassedbythelegislature,whilein New Jersey the governor vetoed a similar bill. I live in Maryland, where both chambers of the legislature recentlypassed abill permitting same-sexmarriage. Itwasabitofanail-biter; severalwaveringlegislators sat on the fence until the end, and the margin of victory was slim. The governor strongly supported the bill, and enthu-siastically signed it into law. But even before he did so, a group of opponents announced their intention to overturn the law via a statewide referendum in November. The local media carried numerous articles portraying the majority of Christian clergy as staunchly opposed to allowingsame-sexcouplestomarry,thoughtheydidfinda few clergy supporting the legislation. On the brighter side, a few days before the legislature voted, my wife and I journeyed to Annapolis, Maryland’s capital, to join a rally in support of the legislation, and we were heartened to see placards from several different churches and religious groups. I have not always supported marriage equality. I used to think it was a bad idea, that marriage should be exclusivelyforopposite-sexcouplesandthatsame-sexcouples could be united in civil unions or something

Marriage Equality Is a Justice Issueby Bob Tiller

similar. But my mind changed, and I now see that I was squarely on the side of injustice. I am thankful that a combination of factors—includ-ingtheHolySpirit,someexcellentwritingontheissue,and my gay and lesbian friends (one of whom serves in the Maryland legislature)—led me to change my mind and heart on this issue. Somemaybewonderingwhy Ihavewritten thisarticle for a magazine about peacemaking. The reason is straightforward. I believe that marriage equality is a matter of justice, and justice must be integral to every concept of peace. Withouta foundationof justice, truepeacecannotbe built and maintained. I believe that injustice is a form ofviolence,andinjusticeenshrinedinlawmeansstate-sanctioned violence. That is precisely what we have done to gay and lesbian persons—we perpetrated violence on them by prohibiting them from marrying, year after year after year. Theprohibitiononsame-sexmarriageinMarylandhas meant that thousands of families in my state—not to mention millions more in other states—have been barred from living fully as families, forced to the margins, unable to live at peace in their own homes. Denyingsame-sexcouplestheadvantagesandpro-tectionsofmarriage thatopposite-sexcouplesenjoy isboth pointless and unjust. Denying an essential civil right and human right to anyone is inconsistent with Christian faith, and doubly so when it is done to people who have experienced discrimination in myriad other ways. My support for marriage equality is rooted in my

faith, not separate from it. I believe that God’s invitation to every person is to live in love and justice and peacemaking, not in strict obedience to a set of rigid rules that some people claim to have discerned in the Bible. Forty years ago Pope Paul VI said, “If you want peace, work for justice.” Dwight D. Eisenhower and Martin Luther King, Jr. each made the same point, using similar language. As someone whose lifelong commit-ments include peace and peacemaking, I believe that we are called to give whole-hearted support to marriage equality, including both support for legislation and thoughtful responses to church leaders


reflectionwho publicly oppose it. The vision of the Psalmist keeps coming to me: “Justice and peace have embraced.” (Ps. 85:10b,REB) I have a friend who recently suffered an emergency that landed her in two different hospitals, one of which is in Maryland. My friend, whom I will call Martha, hap-penstobeinalong-termsame-sexrelationship,buthasnever been legally married to her partner. Normally a hospital admission would mean that Martha’s sisters, her closest blood relatives, would be the firstonestoconferwiththephysicians,siftthroughtheavailable information, and provide appropriate consent if Martha were unable to do so.

I used to think…that marriage should be exclusively for

opposite-sex couples and that same-sex couples could be united

in civil unions or something similar. But my mind changed,

and I now see that I was squarely on the side of injustice.

Martha’s longtime partner, the person she has lived with for decades, would not be the focal point for com-municationanddecision-making,becausetheyarenotspouses. Fortunately, that was not the situation, because Mar-tha had previously completed paperwork to assure that her longtime partner was regarded by the hospital person-nel as the one to consult with, rather than her sisters. But why do we put people in the position of having tofill outpower-of-attorneypapers insteadof givingthem the chance to become spouses? The answer is that state governments across our land—and the federal gov-ernmentaswell—havedeterminedthatthebenefitsofmarriagecanonlybeavailabletoopposite-sexcouples.In what value system does that make sense? In addition, my friend Martha, who has been unem-ployed for quite a while, is unable to obtain health cover-age through her partner’s employment because they are not legally married, even though they have truly been a family for decades. Does that sound like something that Christians should support? Of course not. This outrageous injustice is slowly crumbling. Our great-grandchildrenwillconsiderthebanonsame-sexmarriagejustasridiculousaswenowconsiderthe19th-century prohibition on women owning property or sign-ingcontracts.Wecanandshouldbepartoftheefforttohasten the day, to break the injustice down promptly.

Every day that passes without eradicating this injus-ticemeansanotherdaythatsame-sexcouplesaredeniedfull citizenship and equal protection under the laws, a blatant violation of the Fourteenth Amendment to the USConstitutionandanaffronttoChristianprinciples. I recently heard a sermon in which the pastor said, “How would you like to have your life and your family’s future voted on by the legislature?” He went on to say that all Christians need to appreciate how deeply hurt-ful it is to gay and lesbian couples to have others decide whether or not they can be legally married. I had not thought about that before. Since theopponentsofmarriageequalityhaveal-ready taken steps to put a referendum on the ballot in my state, I know where some of my time and energy will go this summer and fall—to publicly expressing my support for marriage equality, and to building broad support for it among voters. I began by noting the avalanche of media reports about marriage equality, and I conclude by saying how grateful I am forall thosearticles.Wewhoseek tobeChristian peacemakers—especially those like myself who liveinhappyopposite-sexmarriages—needtohaveoureyesopened to see the state-supporteddiscriminationand injustice right under our noses, and also to see the opportunities to end that injustice.—Bob Tiller, a Baptist and a longtime peacemaker, is a member of the BPFNA Board of Directors. He lives in Silver Spring, MD.

ARE YOU CONNECTED TO A SEMINARY?

The BPFNA is working to deepen its connec-tion to seminaries. If you are a student, faculty or staff person at a seminary and would be willing to serve as a liaison between BPFNA and the school, please contact LeDayne McLeese Polaski at [email protected] or 704/521-6051. Responsibilities would include distributing copies of Baptist Peacemaker and sharing news about opportunities such as train-ings and conferences. (See page 10 for a description of the first BPFNA Friendship Tour that was designed es-pecially for seminarians.)


sermon

Several years ago, when I began training as a hospital chaplain at our county trauma center, I was required

todoa24-hourshiftaboutonceeverytwoweeks.OnoneWednesdaynightat7p.m.,a25-year-oldwomancameinwithagunshotwoundtothehead—probablyself-inflictedduringadomesticviolencedispute.Shediedafewhourslaterintheneuro-intensivecareunit. At9p.m.,a23-year-oldmancameinwithagunshotwound to the back. He died in the operating room. At 1 a.m.,a70-year-oldgrandmothercameinwithashoulderwound.Shehadbeenshotbyher17-year-oldgrandsonwhen she surprised him robbing her home.

Remembering Who We AreasermonbyRachelSmith

with people as they experienced wave after wave of shock and sorrow. Later, when they had calmed down, the boy’s mother asked if she could see him. Now my job became that of escort—taking the family members back two by two to see their son, brother, cousin, nephew. I prepared them for what they would see—the tubes and gauze, the sheets and lights. But how could anyone be prepared for such a sight? I watched as some stood quietly beside the gurney, holding each other for support, while others kissed and caressed their boy, and still others sat and cried more tears. Tobethehander-outofKleenex,tooffercoolclothsorcups of water, to stand next to the family in silent accom-paniment to their sorrow seemed such feeble attempts at comfort. I once read that violence is “…that act of forgetting or ignoring who we are, brothers and sisters to each other, each one a child of God.” As people of faith our primary identity is that each ofusisachildofGod.Weareinnatelyspiritualbeings,created in the image of God and created to belong to God. TheveryfirstchapterintheveryfirstbookoftheBibletells us that “God created humankind in his image; in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them…then God saw everything he had made and indeed, it was very good.” Isn’t that the most amazing thing—that we are created in God’s own image? The Psalmist thought so, too, and wonderedatit.“WhenIlookatyourheavens,theworkofyourfingers, themoonand the stars thatyouhaveestablished; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?” The prophet Isaiah knew it, too, and declared, “But now, thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: ‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name. You are mine.’” WestartoutbelongingtoGodandbeingblessedbyGod. Created, stamped, claimed and loved by God. That’s us. If we were to boil down the Bible’s message to one single thing, I think this might be it: we belong to God, and because we belong to God, we belong to each other. WhenthescribesaskedJesuswhatwasthegreatestcommandment, he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” Then, before the scribes could say anything else, Jesus quickly added a second commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

During theeveningofanother24-hourshift, I sawthree other gunshot victims and sat with their families as they awaited word from the doctors. Then at 1 a.m. I was again called to the trauma room, where I watched as the doctors and nurses gathered around still another young man. The alert had come in just a few minutes earlier: 18-year-oldmalewithagunshotwoundtotheheadandmultiple gunshot wounds in his legs. TheEmergencyMedicalServiceshadhisnameandaddress, the police had details about the shooting and, as the chaplain, I was charged with meeting his family when they arrived at the hospital. I watched as blood pooled ontheflooratthedoctor’sfeet.Whentheywheeledtheyoung man for a CT (computed tomography) scan, I saw flecksofbrainmatterstucktohishead. I was with the family for more than an hour until thedoctorfinallycameintothewaitingroomtotalktothem.Whenthedoctorsaidverybluntly,“He’sdead,”the room erupted into a frenzy of grief and disbelief. The boy’smotherfelltothefloorwailing;hissisterbeatthewallswithherfists;hisfathercrieduncontrollably. His grandmother sobbed as aunts, uncles and cous-ins rocked back and forth as if they had been physically punched. For several hours, I stayed in that room packed

As people of faith our primary identity is that each of us is a child of God. We are innately spiritual beings,

created in the image of God and created to belong to God.


sermon Everything Jesus did was an expression of this com-mandment to love your neighbor as yourself. The story oftheGoodSamaritanshowedJesus’followersthatevensomeonewhofilledthemwithdisgusthadthecapacitytolove and be compassionate. Jesus loved the tax collector, the leper, the woman at the well, the rich young ruler and the thieves who died next to him. God loves you. And God loves the person next to you. And God loves the person behind you and the person in front of you. God loves the altos in the choir, the sopranos and the basses and the people in the back pew who can hardly carry a tune. If you look, really look, at the person next to you, behind you and in front of you, you will see the face of God. Whenyouridethesubway,orwalkthroughTimesSquareorUnionSquareorHarlemorChinatownorHills-boroughStreetinRaleigh,NorthCarolina,lookatallthefaces and you’ll see the face of God. WhenweclaimourtrueidentityaschildrenofGod,then we can get about the business of loving ourselves and loving each other. You may think I’m painting a mighty rosy picture here, talking about some idealistic, unrealistic “all-you-need-is-love”kindofthing. But this is no “feel-good” commandment. It callsus to address those institutions and policies that seek to exclude rather than include, that divide rather than unite, that condemn rather than forgive, that serve violence rather than peace, and that oppress rather than set free. The theologian Marcus Borg says,

In the Bible, justice is the social form of love. Thus the God of love has an edge, a passion for justice. To take the God of love seriously means that we must take justice seriously.

When Jesus said, “Loveyour enemies,dogood tothose who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you,” he wasn’t exactly making it easy for us. But as people of faith, that’s our job description—to remember who we are as children of God and to love our neighbors as ourselves. How different this is from the theology of America’s gun culture, which relies on us forgetting who we are as children of God. And not only does the theology of the gun culture want us to forget who we are, it does everything it can to induce that forgetfulness. You may be surprised to hear me say that a theology of guns even exists. But I believe it does. In America’s gun culture, God and guns are so inextricably linked that I have begun calling this marriage of religion and gun rights “Gundamentalism.” In her book Battle for God, Karen Armstrong says that fundamentalism in every religion encourages a sense of crisis among its believers, fostering the conviction that

theyarethefirstandlastdefenseagainstthecorrosionof crucial values. Armstrong says that, because funda-mentalism is rooted in a profound fear of annihilation, its adherentsseethemselvesinafightforsurvivalagainstsociety at large. Like the religious fundamentalists of Karen Arm-strong’s description, the gun culture portrays itself as locked in a cosmic struggle to protect America’s most cherishedvalue—freedom.AsWayneLaPierre,Executive

VicePresidentoftheNationalRifleAssociation,saidinaspeech last year,

Freedom is nothing but dust in the wind till it’s guarded by the blue steel and dry powder of a free and armed people…Our founding fathers understood that freedom always rides with a firearm at its side.1

Gundamentalism’ssacredtextistheSecondAmend-mentoftheUnitedStatesConstitution,anditinterpretsthe right to keep and bear arms as an individual rather than a collective right. But, even more importantly, in the theology of the gun culture, the right to bear arms comes directly from God. Earlierthisyear,whentheUSSupremeCourtstruckdownChicago’s28-yearbanonhandguns,LaPierrehadthis to say:

Violent crime will continue to metastasize in Chicago until citizens there share the same rights promised by the Founding Fathers—the means to exercise their God-given right to armed self-defense.2

In the Gundamentalist vision, peaceable Americans are armed Americans, violence is the way to peace and the right to bear arms is no less than divinely bestowed. Ratherthanofferingavisionofcommunityinwhichwe are bound together by our common humanity, gun-damentalism teaches us to see each other as The Other, a potential enemy, a threat endangering our family, our home, our person. Gundamentalism thrives on fear and that’s a powerful catch because all of us live with some degree of fear. Gundamentalism takes this basic human emotion and circumvents the hard spiritual work of facing and healing our fears by offering this seductive promise: with a gun, one can live without fear. Gundamentalism offers power,

In America’s gun culture, God and guns are so inextricably

linked that I have begun calling this marriage of religion and gun

rights “Gundamentalism.”

continued on page 16


sermonfreedom,self-determination,securityandprotection—all within the metal casing of a gun. WiththegunasitsidolandtheSecondAmendmentas its creed, gundamentalism proclaims that nothing is as sacred as the right to own a gun. Protecting freedom by protecting the rights of gun owners is gundamentalism’s professed highest good, but,inreality,itspoliciesandpoliticsbenefitanindustry

think we must carry a concealed weapon everywhere we go? How can we reach toward one another in friend-shipandhospitality,whenourfingersliereadyonthetrigger? How can we stretch our arms wide toward God’s goodness and mercy when one hand is grasping a gun? I am convinced that only the Church can call our nation back from the abyss of gun violence. Only the Church has the authority to say that gun violence must be eradicated from American society because it is mor-ally wrong. Only the Church can move us from the swamplands of violence to the higher ground of loving our neighbor as ourselves. And it is from this higher ground that people of faith can call for domestic disarmament. Can we not, as people of faith, say we will disarm our homes, our cars, our city streets and our suburban neighborhoods? Can we not, as people of faith, expose gundamentalism’s blasphemous claim that gun posses-sionisaGod-givenright? Can we not proclaim, instead, that the power of the bullet is nothing compared to the power of love, and that we will not arm ourselves against each other? Can we not say that, instead, we will rise up in love, with mercy in our hearts, reconciliation in our souls and justice as our call to action? WewerecreatedintheimageofGod,Godwhoselove knows no bounds, whose mercy is everlasting and whose goodness is all around us. This is the God who says to us, “I am your rock and your salvation. My steadfast love endures forever.” This is theGodwhopromises, “Whenyoupassthrough the waters, I will be with you; and through the riverstheyshallnotoverwhelmyou.Whenyouwalkthroughfireyoushallnotbeburnedandtheflameshallnot consume you.” This is the God who says to us, over and over, “Do not fear, for I will help you. Do not fear for I am with you. Do not fear, for I have called you by name and you are mine. You are precious in my eyes and honored, and I love you.” This is the God over whom death has no power and against whom evil cannot stand. WithaGodlikethis,whoneedsagun?—Rachel Smith is a member of Pullen Memorial Baptist Church (a BPFNA Partner Congregation) in Raleigh, NC. She preached this sermon at Riverside Church in New York City in Sept. 2010, at their God Not Guns Sabbath. See page 32 of this issue for a prayer by her aunt, Mary Ruth Crook.

Endnotes1. From the Aug. 2010 edition of America’s First Freedom, theNRAmagazine.2. Ibid.

Can we not proclaim, instead, that the power of the bullet is

nothing compared to the power of love, and that we will not arm

ourselves against each other?

that relies on violence to support the sale and manufac-ture of millions of guns each year. TheUnitedStateshastheworld’slargestmarketfordomestic guns. There are more than 200 million guns in thehandsofprivateownersintheUS.Gundmentalismcannot survive without the complicity of lawmakers and industries that are deaf to the groaning of tens of thousands who have lost brothers, fathers, mothers, sons and daughters to gun violence. OnApril4,1967,MartinLutherKing,Jr.cametoRiversideChurch, came to thismagnificenthouseofworship, to deliver an address to a meeting of Clergy and Laity Concerned about Vietnam (CALC). In his address he laid out his argument against that war and famouslydescribedtheUSas“thegreatestpurveyorofviolence in the world today.” Sadly,thetruthofthatstatementhaschangedonlyin this regard: among all other countries of similar eco-nomicdevelopment,theUnitedStateshasthehighestincidence of domestic gun violence in terms of homi-cides, suicides and unintentional shootings. In the40years since JohnKennedy,RobertKen-nedy and Dr. King were killed, more than one million Americans have been killed by guns here at home. Chanting their mantra, “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people” the followers of gundamentalism ignore the lethality and availability of guns by putting the responsibility for gun violence solely on the “bad guys” against whom we must arm ourselves. Ignoring the fact that most homicides are perpe-trated by someone known to the victim, gundamen-talistsconflatetherighttobeararmsandtherighttoself-defense.Intheirworldview,onecanneverbesafewithout a gun. And this gets us to the heart of the matter. How can we see the face of God in every person, or claim them as our brothers and sisters, when we are so afraid that we


peacemaking news

A building that will house a school for 200 preschool, kindergarten and primary students and an orphan-

agefor50childrenwasofficiallyopenedanddedicatedinPort-au-Prince,Haiti,inJanuary. Plans for the school include facilities for conduct-ing education anddevelopment for 10-20disabledchildren and vocational training for 100 young people in information technology, culinary arts and cooking, sewing and tailoring, and in English language. There is also a chapel and conference center. Thecomplex,named“SourceofLight,”costap-proximatelyUS$1.5milliontoconstruct.ThemajorityofthefundswereprovidedbytheBaptistWorldAlli-ance through its relief and development arm, Baptist WorldAid (BWAid).Other contributions came fromthe Virginia Baptist Mission Board (VBMB). Hungar-ian Baptist Aid (HBAid) supervised the construction in association with the Haiti Baptist Convention (HBC), which owns the complex.

New Baptist School Built in HaitiBaptist World Aid, Virginia Baptist Mission Board and

Hungarian Baptist Aid Cooperate to Build School and Orphanage

How does peace happen? Christians might say that Jesus came to bring peace to all humanity

and his teaching that we should love our neighbors is key to that goal. Buddhistsmight say theUniversal Spirit isharmony and all people need to strive to achieve harmony.Shintopriests and their followersmightsay the gods of all things require humility. Native American spiritual teachers might say we must care for the earth and all things in it. Mus-lims might say we should support our brothers and sisters and be gracious to all. Jewish people might say that peace comes when righteousness for all is achieved. Hindu believers might say that peace will come with many lifetimes of learning to serve others.

“Thiswasthefulfillmentofadreamthatbroughtaboutmanyyearsofprayerandplanning,”saidBWAidDirector,PaulMontacute,whoofficiallyhanded thekeys of the complex to Eugene Gideon, president of the HBC. “It took the earthquake to bring all the ideas together,” Montacute said. SourceofLightmeetsanurgentneedforschoolsin Haiti’s capital as approximately 90 percent of the schools in and aroundPort-au-Princewere eitherseverelydamagedordestroyedbyamagnitude7.0earthquake on January 12, 2010, and the numerous aftershocks. The school building was constructed on lands that were already owned by the HBC before the quake and is located in Delmas 19, one of the more depressedareasofPort-au-Prince. RepresentativesfromtheVBMB,HBCandHBAid,as well as Jean Gael, deputy mayor of the Delmas City Council, also participated in the dedication service.—From Baptist World Aid

How Does Peace Happen?byJoAnnSims

The world yearns for peace— no matter the re-ligion, race, culture, nationality or family structure. Making peace is hard work. It requires a steady spirit, loving your neighbor, striving for harmony, humility, caring for the earth, supporting your fam-ily, working for righteousness and learning to serve others. Note: This reflection is the introduction to a document in which JoAnn and Larry Sims—BPFNA members from McMinnville, OR, now serving as directors of the World

Friendship Center in Hi-roshima, Japan—nominate their colleague and friend, Hiromu Morishita, for the Okinawa Peace Prize. Mor-ishita is a survivor of the 1945 atomic bomb attack on Hiroshima and the founder of Peace Education in Japan. The Sims have been in Hiro-shima for about a year.

art by Susan Daily


fair trade

Bittersweet Reality: Chocolate Companies and Child Labor

by Crystal Goolsby

Left: Cacao beans drying at a farm in Ghana, West Africa. Photo by Ben Bryant.

Editor’s note: We introduce this story about the chocolate trade to update readers on some of the ongoing realities in that field. One of the ways you can respond to injustice in the chocolate trade is to become involved with the new Baptist Fair Trade Project. See page 25 for information about that exciting new venture. Meanwhile, we invite you to learn more about some of the companies involved in cocoa farming and trade from the article and sidebars on pages 18-20, which originally ap-peared in the Fall 2011 issue of Hunger News & Hope.

ManyholidaysintheUSareoccasionsforchocolatetreats. Many people—adults and children alike—

look forward to the many sweet treats offered during special days. Halloweentrick-or-treatbagswillholdshowersofminiature Hershey bars wrapped in fall colors. Christ-mas stockingswill befilledwith chocolatydelightswrapped in red, green and silver foil. On Valentine’s Day,peopleexpresstheirlovewithheart-shapedboxesof chocolates. However, as people are licking the melted remnants offoftheirfingers,childrenacrosstheAtlantichaveavery different story to tell about the traditional confec-tionstowhichsomanypeopleinWesternsocietylookforward.

Children in other parts of the world—particularly inWestAfrica, inplaces like theCoted’Ivoire andGhana—do not know the wonders of unwrapping and devouring a candy bar. These children toil for hours, picking the cacao beans that provide the base ingredient for a multitude of decadent and indulgent delights. The children who work on cocoa farms receive very littlepay,ifany.Someofthemareforcedtoworkby

Some 80 percent of the world’s cocoa is from West Africa, and

about half comes from Cote d’Ivoire, where 200,000 children

work on cocoa farms. An estimated 12,000 are victims

of human trafficking.

their families, while others are sold into slavery. These children receive no education. Their only task is to pick the cacao beans. They work in unsafe conditions, and they receive cruel treatment if they do not perform to the liking of their superiors.

Some80percentoftheworld’scocoaisfromWestAfrica,andabouthalf comes from Cote d’Ivoire, where 200,000 children work on cocoa farms. An estimated 12,000 arevictimsofhumantrafficking. The cacao beans are bought by chocolate dealers and sold to big chocolate companies such as Hershey’s and Nestle, usually for unfair prices. AUNICEF report in 1998, aBBC documentary in 2000 and an


fair trade

What About Nestle?Peoplewhohavebeenactiveintheanti-hungerworldduringany

of the last three decades will want to know about how the Nestle Company, the object of boycotts off and on for all that time, has re-spondedtofair-tradecocoaissues.TheSwiss-basedcompany,formedin 1905, is the world’s largest food and nutrition company, operating in86countriesandemployingmorethan280,000people. Thefirstboycottbeganin1977,asaresultofNestle’sproductionand aggressive marketing of infant formula in developing countries. In1981,TheWorldHealthOrganisationdevelopedacodethatregu-lates the promotion of infant formulas, which some activists claim that Nestle is still violating. These practices were particularly noticed during theEthiopian famineof themid-1980s,whenmanyanti-hunger experts claimed that the Nestle formula was contributing to the deaths of countless Ethiopian infants. Boycott participants claimed that—asidefromthefactthatbreast-feedinghadbeenshowntosavemore infant lives than the use of formula—the formula powder was, more often than not, mixed with unclean water. Theboycottwastemporarilycalledoffinthelate1980s,whenNestleofficialsagreedtostopmarketingtheformulaindevelopingcountries. Then, in 2002, Nestle leaders decided to sue the country ofEthiopiafor$6million.When40,000protestorscameoutofthewoodworks, threatening to begin a new boycott, the company agreed to retract its lawsuit. Nestlehasbeenblastedbyenvironmentalgroups,food-safetygroups,child-laborgroupsandfair-tradegroups.Thecompanywasforced by public opinion to stop buying milk from illegally seized farmsbelongingtothewifeofZimbabwedictatorRobertMugabe.Even thoughNestle signed theHarkin-EngelProtocol in2001, itspartner cocoa farms in Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) were investigated by INTERPOL (the InternationalCriminalPoliceOrganisation) in2009. The company was also targeted in the 2010 documentary The Dark Side of Chocolate. In2010,Nestlelaunchedafair-tradebrandedKitKatbarintheUKandIreland,aswellasafair-tradecoffeeblendcalledPartnersBlend,but, so far, the company’s detractors, including Oxfam America, have not been overly impressed. —compiled by Katie Cook

award-winningseriesofstoriesinKnightRiddernews-papersin2001firstbroughtthisissueontotheworldstage. As a result, the chocolate industry was forced to addressfair-tradeandchild-slaveissuesbeforeanyoneelse tried to intervene. A number of chocolate companies and private organizations banded together in 2001 to create the Harkin-EngelProtocol (named forUSCongressmanEliotEngelandUSSenatorTomHarkin,bothofwhomworked with leaders in the industry and international officialstocreatetheagreement).Theprotocolwasacommitment to eliminate child labor on cocoa farms by the year 2005. When 2005 passedwith littlechange, the goal was altered to a reduction in child labor to 50 percent by 2008. That year also came andwent, with little or no progress. The commitment was again re-newedinSeptember2010.Thenewprotocol involved the governments of Ghana and the Cote d’Ivoire, as well as world players in the choco-late trade. These parties promised to reduce child slave labor in chocolate productionby70percentby2020. Still,improvementshaveyettobe seen. Partof thedifficulty inachiev-ing the objective is that chocolate companies are not always aware that the farms, from which they buy their cacao beans, utilize unfair child labor. Multiple dealers often work be-tween the big chocolate companies and the farms. Chocolate company executives rarely see the actual farms fromwhichtheirbeanscome.Simplyput, they cannotfix that ofwhichthey are not aware. Plenty of companies do know that this issue exists, however, and yet they turn a blind eye to it. One of the biggest culprits is the Her-shey Company and its subsidiaries.

Hershey’s is the largest chocolate company in North America. In spite of concentrated protests by “chocolate activists,” Hershey’s executives do not appear to have acknowledged or commented on the existence of child labor in their trade. The Nestle Company has also come underfire.[See “What about Nestle?” below.] Sowhatcanconsumersdotocombatthisheart-breaking problem? One way is to buy only Fair Trade or Direct Trade chocolates. Fair Trade chocolate com-paniesonlybuycacaobeansfromcertifiedexporters,

continued on page 20


Fair Trade Chocolate Companies and

Distributors AlterEco Art Bars (Ithaca Fine Chocolates) Caminio Cocoa ChuaoCloudNine/TropicalSource Coffee—Tea—Etc. Dagoba Organic Chocolate Deans Beans Divine Bars (Day Chocolate Co.)ElReyEndangeredSpecies*Equal Exchange (BPFNA’s partners in the Baptist Fair Trade Project) Frontier Cooperative Green & Black’s Guittard Health by Chocolate Larabar Malagasy Max Havelaar Nirvana Chocolates Providence CoffeeRapunzelRobin’sChocolateSauceSanFranciscoChocolateCompanyShamanChocolatesSojournSweetEarthChocolates Terra Nostra Organic Theo ChocolateWholeFoodsPrivateLabel Valrhona Vital Choice Yachana GourmetSource: University of California, San Diego Computer Science and Engineering Department

fair trade

who verify that the farms from which the beans come arechild-laborfree. Direct Trade chocolate companies buy directly from the farms that produce the beans, and they maintain veryclosetieswiththesefarmers.Someevenutilizeathird party to review the farming practices, for extra insurance against unethical forms of labor. There is also an initiative called the Cocoa Cam-paign. The campaign’s website includes a petition to endchild-slave laboroncocoa farms.Thecampaignalso calls for people to write letters to the major choco-late companies about this issue. Its biggest target is Her-shey’s,sincethePennsylvania-basedcompanyseemsto have made the smallest effort toward achieving the goalsoftheHarkin-EngelProtocol. Withoutmassparticipation, thisproblemcannotbe resolved, and will most likely continue to be over-looked. Consumers, producers and governments must all make efforts to discourage the purchase of unfairly produced goods. Thefirst step is to increase awareness andpro-activity.Sothenexttimeyougotonibbletheearoffofa chocolate Easter bunny, you may want to remember that very small hands could have played a very real and tragic role in its journey to you.—Crystal Goolsby is a freelance writer in Austin, TX. This article first appeared in Hunger News & Hope (a Seeds of Hope publication), Volume 12 No. 2, Fall 2011, pages 6-7 and is used with permission.

Sources: “All About Taza Chocolate Direct Trade” (www.tazachocolate.com); “Cocoa Campaign” (www.laborrights.org); “Oversight of Public and Private Initiatives to Elimi-nate the Worst Forms of Child Labor in the Cocoa Sector in the Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana,” Payson Center for Interna-tional Development and Technology Transfer, Tulane Univer-sity (www.childlabor-payson.org); “Child-labor Chocolate” (www.thelutheran.org); “The Dark Side of Chocolate” (http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com); “Tracing the Bitter Truth of Chocolate and Child Labor” (http://news.bbc.co.uk); “The Cocoa Protocol” (www.freetheslaves.net); “Slave-Free Chocolate” (www.slavefreechocolate.org); “Companies Point Fingers as Students Protest Conditions at Chocolate Plant” (www.nytimes.com).

Bitterweet Reality(continued from page 19)


resources and opportunities

candidate should be: •Knowledgeable about world faiths•Accepting & nurturing of spiritual diversity, both Christian and non-Christian•Engaging & thought-provoking in sermons and worship services •Encouraging of lay creativity & participation; supportive of long-term development•Effective in managing administration •Comfortable participating in the larger Evanston community.

lndividual must be an ordained minister with significant ministerial experience and have earned at least an M. Div. degree or equivalent. Must have excellent interpersonal & communication skills.

senior minister wantedLake Street Church Evanston, IL

Lake Street Church is a lively, progressive church that is rooted in Christian beliefs and actively explores and incorporates teachings from other faiths. We have an average Sunday morning attendance of 200+, are affiliated with the American Baptists of Metro Chicago as well as Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists, and are located in Evanston, a vibrant, lakefront community minutes from downtown Chicago.

Lake Street offers our next senior minister an exciting opportunity to help us on our continuing evolution as a spiritual community!

To apply...contact the Senior Minister Search Committee at [email protected] for more information.

Or visit lakestreet.org

Mother’s Day for PeaceAs men have often forsaken the plough and the anvil at the summons of war, Let women now leave all that may be left of home For a great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead. Let them solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means Whereby the great human family can live in peace....–Julia Ward Howe, Proclamation seeking to establish Mother’s Peace Day, 1872

art by Rebecca S

. Ward

On Sunday, May 13, 2012 Celebrate Mother’s Day for PeaceTurn back the clock and turn this Mother’s Day into Peace Day.

BPFNA will have material available to help you emphasize peace and the BPFNA’s work for peace rooted in justice—on Mother’s Day or another day in May.

Watch the BPFNA website (bpfna.org/peacesunday) for resources.

Wage Peace Through Worship.

Sacred Seasons offers creative worship tools to help raise awareness of hunger, peace and justice issues. A year’s subscription of $100 includes Advent and Lent packets, plus our most popular resource, the fall Hunger Em-phasis packet. To order, call 254-755-7745, email [email protected], or write to Seeds Publishers at 602 James Ave., Waco, TX 76706. Single packets are US$30. (Non-US subscriptions are $115; individual packets are $40.) To see back issues of Sacred Seasons, go to www.seedspublishers.org.


reflectionresources and opportunities

TIM DICKAU Preacher

Lead pastor of Grandview Calvary Baptist Church (Vancouver, BC) & authorLeading us in considering the practices a community of faith might take up to bear witness to the alternative world Jesus envisions and calls us toward.

MICHAEL-RAY MATHEWS Bible Study Leader

Director of Outreach and Clergy Organizing for PICO Faith-based community organizingLeading Bible studies on how community organizing can energize a church and its ministries.

Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America

CHERI MAPLES Keynote Speaker

Dharma teacher, ordained by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh Speaking on how our communities shape us to live faithfully in the world.

CONFERENCE LEADERS

BRET HESLA & MARY PREUS Minnesota Community SINGS

Bringing people together to sing. Singing to bring people together. Community SINGS works to create a culture of singing both in the community and within organizations working on social change. It promotes community singing by ordinary people in public.

CONFERENCE MUSICIANS

CARILLON HANDBELL CHOIR University Baptist Church

Minneapolis, MNThe Carillon Handbell Choir has been an integral part of the University Bap-tist Church music program for more than 15 years. Directed by Jean Lubke, members have toured England and Scotland as well as the eastern United States and California. The choir is currently planning their next tour for January 2013 to Nicaragua!

Summer ConferenceSt. Olaf College, Northfield, MNJuly 30-August 4, 2012



The High Price of WarAccording to Brown University’s independent, bipartisan

“CostsofWar” researchproject, thecostofUSwars inAfghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan are estimated at 225,000 lives andup to $4 trillion inUS spending.TheEisenhowerRe-searchProject atBrown’sWatson Institute for InternationalStudieshasfocusedonarangeofhumanandeconomiccostsassociatedwiththeUSmilitaryresponsetotheSeptember11,2001 al-QaedaattacksonNewYorkCity,Washington,DC,andPennsylvania. The (at least) 225,000 people killed include military per-sonnel,bothmenandwomen,theUSgovernment’sso-calledcontractors and civilians. The study shows that, when medical care and disability compensation for current and future veterans iscounted,thePentagonwillhavespentbetween$3.2and$4trillion,withanother$450billionbytheyear2020,ifthewarscontinue. The project involved more than 20 economists, anthropolo-gists, lawyers, humanitarian personnel and political scientists. The group studied direct and indirect human and economic costsoftheWaronTerror,includingallUS,coalitionandciviliancasualties,includingUScontractors.Itexaminedfactorsthathave not always been included in this kind of study, such as financialinterestconnectedwithwar-relateddebtandveteran’sbenefits. Belowaresomeofthegroup’sfindings:

• More than 31,000 people in uniform and military contrac-tors have died, including the Iraqi and Afghan security forces and other military forces allied with the United States.• By a very conservative estimate, 137,000 civilians have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan by all parties to these conflicts.• The wars have created more than 7.8 million refugees among Iraqis, Afghans and Pakistanis.• Pentagon bills account for half of the budgetary costs incurred and are a fraction of the full economic cost of the wars.• Because the war has been financed almost entirely by bor-rowing, $185 billion in interest has already been paid on war spending, and another $1 trillion could accrue in interest alone through 2020.• Federal obligations to care for past and future veterans of these wars will likely total between $600-$950 billion. This number is not included in most analyses of the costs of war and will not peak until mid-century.

The group has released its findingsonline(www.costsofwar.org) to spur public discussion.

Stay connected to BPFNA on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube! Visit our website at www.bpfna.org and look for links in the left sidebar for more information about our online community.

Gifts of HonorIn Honor of:Karen & Carlton Moore from Tom & LeDayne Polaski

Dr & Mrs. John Whirley from Bill & Annette Bickers

In Memory of:Sarah Hammond from Virginia Douglas

Sue & Ned Hastings from Shawomet Baptist Church Warwick, RI

Rev. Marion Pryfogle from Daniel & Chris Pryfogle

Tony Palazzo from Victor & Collene Eyth

art by Sallylynn Askins


The BPFNA is pleased to introduce the first in a series of monographs supporting churches in creating faithful and effective ministries on specific

issues of peace and justice. If you have ever wanted to begin a ministry in your church to address an issue of concern in your community, but weren’t sure how to start, this new series will help! Working with issues identified by churches, the series will answer questions such as: Why should our church care about this specific issue? Who else is doing this work, and how? What is already proving to be effective? What resources are available to educate our congregation? What groups might support us in this work? Each issue will provide theological reflection, solid information and resources to learn more. To order a copy or copies of What Your Church Can Do about Gang Violence, contact the BPFNA office at 704-521-6051 or [email protected]. Also, watch for coming issues on domestic violence, climate change and gun violence from the BPFNA.

What Your Church Can Do about…Gang Violence.


An Alternative Gift Idea for All Occasions

Hand-made, unique origami peace cranes with a ribbon to hang them as an ornament—or a year-round decoration to symbolize your wish for peace in our world—are available through the BPFNA. Cranes have long been a symbol for long life, prosperity and good health. They also symbolize peace and, in Tibetan culture, cranes symbolize angels. Each crane costs $6 and will equally benefit the Jatson Chumig Special School in Lhasa, Tibet (by helping to raise funds for a new girls’ dormitory—www.jatsontibet.org) and the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America (by helping to fund peace and justice work worldwide—www.bpfna.org). Orders may be placed online at www.bpfna.org. Help spread the message of peace with your purchase!

art by Sharon Rollins

Check out this BPFNA video production featuring footage and interviews from post-Katrina New Orleans! This film highlights the remaining long-term challenges and seeks a deeper understanding of the injustice issues that make recovery such a struggle. The DVD and accompanying study guide challenge viewers to see their hometowns in new ways. Appropriate viewing for Sunday school classes, discussion groups and schools, this compelling video is now available at www.bpfna.org/connections.

Photo by Ed Schipul



Introducing the Baptist Fair Trade

Project Joining Faith and Fair Trade

Equal Exchange and the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America (BPFNA) are proud to announce

that their new fair trade partnership is now up and running. The partnership was agreed upon in May of 2011, and is now welcoming new Baptist congrega-tions, schools and organizations! Even before this recent partnership was agreed upon, the Interfaith Program at Equal Exchange counted more than 140 Baptist churches and institu-tions among its customers. Baptist customers who participate in the Project will be able to purchase fairly traded coffee, chocolate, tea, olive oil and snacks at wholesale prices when they buy by the case, and a por-tion of their purchases will help to support BPFNA’s Friendship Tour scholarship program. To order, simply visit the Equal Exchange Inter-faithStoreon-lineathttp://interfaith.equalexchange.com. You’ll be prompted to enter your denomination as part of your order, and all “Baptist” orders will credited to the BPFNA. If you prefer, you can also download an order form from the website and pay by check. WiththeadditionofBPFNA,EqualExchangenowhaspartnershipswith12 faith-basedorganizations.EqualExchangeisawell-regardedfor-profitcompanywiththemissionto“buildlong-termtradepartner-ships that are economically just and environmentally sound;tofostermutuallybeneficialrelationsbetweenfarmers and consumers; and to demonstrate, through our success,” the viability of worker cooperatives and Fair Trade. The BPFNA staff and Board of Direc-tors are very pleased to be a part of this program that ben-efitsahighlyethicalcompany, our own scholarship fund and—most impor-tantly—small farm-ers throughout the world.

Mark Your Calendar for the

BPFNA Peace Breakfastduring the General Assembly

of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship

June 22Fort Worth, Texas

Keynote Speaker: Rev. Dr. David P. Gushee

Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics

and Director of the Center for Theology and Public Life,

Mercer University

For more information, contact [email protected].

David Gushee to Speak at June 22 BPFNA Peace Breakfast

The BPFNA has held Peace Breakfasts at the Ameri-can Baptist Churches (ABC) Biennial Celebration

since its inception. The winner of the Dahlberg Peace Award, an ABC award, has usually spoken at the Peace Breakfast.Normally100-150peopleattendtheevent. In2008,thefolksattheBPFNAdecidedtoalsohostPeace Breakfasts at the Cooperative Baptist Conven-tion’s (CBF) General Assembly. This year the BPFNA is pleased to announce that, Dr. David Gushee, described as a teacher, scholar, activist and churchman, will be the speaker at the June 22 Peace Breakfast during the CBFassemblyinFortWorth,TX. Gushee is known well in CBF circles. He serves as Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University. He also directs the Center for Theology and Public Life and chairs the Mercer Lyceum initiative on rebuilding democracy. He has also participated in organizing the CBF’s [Baptist] ConferenceonSexuality andCovenant, set for thisApril19-21.—from the BPFNA staff


2011 BPFNA highlights

In the year 2011, Baptist Peace Fellowship staff and members accomplished the following:

•TraveledtoNewOrleanstoassessthestatusoftherecovery efforts in the city’s poorest neighborhoods. •LedaFriendshipTour to theMayan InterculturalSeminary in the city of SanCristobal de lasCasas,Chiapas, Mexico. •Created theSpeak in Love Campaign to encourage people to consider the impact of the words they use on promoting a peaceful lifestyle. •Hadpeacewitnessesat:theSamuelDeWittProctorConference; annual meetings of the Alliance of Baptists, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and the Atlantic Baptist Fellowship, and the biennial meeting of the AmericanBaptistChurches,USA; theCongress onUrban Ministry; and a wide variety of state, provincial and local events. •Createdanewpublication,PeacePoint,senttonon-members in our database. •HeldBPFNAstaff-ledConflictTransformationtrain-ingsin:Charlotte,NC;Tampa,FL;SanJuan,PR;Hous-ton, TX; Kansas City, MO; and the country of Liberia. •HelpedsponsoranInterfaithWomen’sGatheringformore than 200 Muslim and Christian women in Abbot-tabad, Pakistan. •SponsoredConflictTransformationtrainingsinKenya,SouthSudanandIndia.•AssistedinthecreationoftheLiberianNonviolenceCampaign, calling for people everywhere to pray and fast for peace in preparation for the October 11, 2011, national elections in that country. • Developed a partnership with Equal Exchange to cre-ate the Baptist Fair Trade Project, to encourage Baptist churches to support Fair Trade. •HelpedsponsoraninnovativetripforCatholicandProtestant students from Chiapas, Mexico to visit El Salvadortostudyactivenonviolence.•Createdagatheringformorethan300peopleatourannual SummerConference at EasternMennoniteUniversity in Harrisonburg, VA, with the theme, So You Must Forgive. •ParticipatedintheannualvigiltoclosetheSchooloftheAmericas(nowknownastheWesternHemisphereInstitute for SecurityCooperation, orWHINSEC) inFort Benning, GA. •Attended conferences on the “Military IndustrialComplexat50”andTheSeminaryConsortiumforUr-banPastoralEducation(SCUPE)2011Congress. •Madeapresentationat theannualSummerPeace-building Institute at Eastern Mennonite University. •Recruitedafabulousnewclassofboardmembersina new election process.

• Continued publication of our quarterly journal, Bap-tist Peacemaker, and our electronic newsletter, Model Ministries. •Keptourmembersinformedonissuesofpeaceandjustice through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, as well as on our website and listserv. •Continuedourinformalnetworkingactivities,con-necting individuals and churches that have similar interests and are addressing similar issues. •Heldboardofdirectorsmeetings inWalnutCreek,CA;Raleigh,NC;andSeattle,WA.•Publishedresourcesforapeace-themedremembranceofthe10thanniversaryoftheattacksofSeptember11,2011. •JoinedinBorderlands: Heeding God’s Call, an ecumeni-calefforttostemtheflowofgunsacrosstheUS-Mexicoborder. •DebutedtheBPFNA-producedDVD,Connections—Storms of Injustice: From Hurricane Katrina to Your World, along with a study guide. •Madeplans for twoFriendshipTours in January2012—one to Burma and Thailand, and the other to Tijuana, Mexico. •WelcomedthreenewPartnerCongregations.•Begananupdateandexpansionofourverypopularresource, Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth: A Resource for Congregations in Dialogue on Sexual Orientation. •Developed aFilling in the Potholes, a Major Fund Campaigntoraise$126,000tofundavarietyofBPFNApeacemaking resources and activities. •WasinvitedbytheHispanicSummerProgramtoofferaone-weekcourseonpeaceduringtheir2012sessioninPuertoRico.•Developedaworkplanfor2012thatincludedstaffingchanges. Interviewed candidates for the new Informa-tion Manager position and hired Allison Paksoy to begin work January 1, 2012.

BPFNA Financial ReportJanuary-December 2011

INCOMEContributions 212,071.88Programs 157,586.15TOTAL 369,658.03Reserves&Carryover 70,736.31

EXPENSESAdministration 67,301.59Programs 373,092.75TOTAL 440,394.34


contributors

The board and staff of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America thank the following individuals, local congregations

andotherorganizationsthatprovidedfinancialsupportin2011. The majority of our income comes from individuals and con-gregations. The remainder comes from other sources, including saleofresources.Ourfinancialrecordsareauditedannually. TheBPFNAisapeople-basedorganizationwithminimalsup-port from institutionsanddenominations.Weoperatewith thecommitment of people who believe our vision for peace rooted in justiceisimportant.Wefeelblessedtohavetheopportunitytodothis vital work of establishing peace with justice—and of working alongside people like you. If your name is not listed below and it should be, please notify us(704-521-6051;[email protected]).Wewillcorrectourrecordsand note the omission in the next issue of Baptist Peacemaker.

Individuals in CanadaAnthonyArmstrong,Nepean,ON• Joseph&Arline Ban,Dundas,ON•RobertBarber,Winnipeg,MB•John&SharonBruneau,Camrose,AB•CarolBuckley,PortWilliams,NS• Merle & Gary Caldwell, Lynden, ON • Roger & SadieCann,NewMinas,NS•Keith&JoanChurchill,Wolfville,NS • Jan Constantinescu, Vancouver, BC • Ted& ShirleyCopeland,Paris,ON•Paul&NancyDekar,Dundas,ON•John&EvelynDickinson,Digby,NS•Robert&JudithDoll,Burnaby,BC•LaurieDullaart,Toronto,ON•John&JudithFurry,Woodstock,ON•Ron&BarbaraGetz,Campbellcroft,ON•BlakeGilks,Vancouver,BC•BettyLouHarris&LarryHarris, Wetaskiwin, AB • Karen Hilliker, London, ON •Judy&BobHoover,Simcoe,ON•MaryKendall&DenisProbst, Port Coquitlam, BC • Rev & Mrs Gordon Kurtz,Goderich,ON•KenandMarinaLloyd,Burlington,ON•JoaoMatwawana,LowerSackville,NS•Duncan& IsobelMcGregor, Ottowa, ON • Lee McKenna, Toronto, ON •Rev&MrsTomMorikawa,Toronto,ON•DavidOgilvie,Centreville,NS•Eric&VickiPatton,Kentville,NS•LindsayPenn-Matheson&PaulMatheson,Saskatoon,SK•Gary&Ruby Purdy, Hamilton, ON • Ken Ranney, Peterborough,ON • Vern Ratzlaff, Saskatoon, SK • Frederick Rupert,Winnipeg,MB•BordenScott,LowerSackville,NS•IreneShore, Victoria, BC • Esther Sleep, Ancaster, ON • JoyceSutherland,Toronto,ON•DorothyThomson,Halifax,NS•KarenTurner&HeatherSteeves,Toronto,ON•George&PrueWatts,Peterborough,ON•BerthaWieler,StCatharines,ON•

Individuals in the USNorman&JeanAbell,PenneyFarms,FL•Larry&RebeccaAdams,Alton,NH•AdrienneAkins,Asheville,NC•JannAldredge-Clanton, Dallas, TX • Joe & Susan Aldrich,Charlotte, NC • Stephen&DianeAlfrey,Anderson, IN •Gayle Allen, Romney, WV • Howard Ammerman,Gaithersburg, MD • Jackie & Nancy Ammerman, WestRoxbury, MA • Alison Amyx, Decatur, GA • Melvin &Christine Anderson, Chapel Hill, NC • John & BarbaraAnderson,StPaul,MN•DouglasArcher,SouthBend,IN•LemuelArnold,Atlanta,GA•William&MargaretArnold,

Lawrence,KS•JoyArnold,Midway,KY•Hugh&SarahAshcraft,Charlotte,NC•Patricia&RobertAyres,Austin,TX•Dan&JanetBagby,Richmond,VA•Marcia&RichardBailey,Oaks,PA•AprilBaker&DeborahLynn,Nashville,TN•Glenn&Carol Ballard,Chandler, IN•Rodney&Ann Barber, Sacramento, CA • Anita JBare, Garner, NC • Anne Barker, FortWorth,TX•JoannaBarr,Norristown,PA•WilliamBarr,StDavids,PA•Glenn&SylviaBarrett,Staunton,VA•JeanBartlett,Pittsford,NY•ChrystalBartlett,Raleigh,NC • Barbara Basile & Felix Lopez,Chicago, IL • Gene & Joyce Bass, SanLeandro,CA•MildredBauer,Attleboro,MA•VirginiaLohmannBauman&GeryBauman,Granville,OH•Holly&ReathelBean, Montclair, NJ • Wayne & KathyBeckwith, Dayton, OR • Alan Beim,

Pacifica, CA • Gloria & William Belli, Audubon, PA •FrederickBeltramEstate•MarjorieBennett,Burlington,NC•Ruth&GordonBennett,Coatsville,PA•DoraJaneBennett,Wheaton,IL•Howard&DarleneBess,Palmer,AK•Jennie&RichardBetton,Greensboro,NC•Bill&AnnetteBickers,Memphis,TN•Richard&ArleneBirdsall,MapleValley,WA• David & Dorothy Blackburn, Athens, AL • BuckBlankenship, Charlotte, NC • Kent Blevins, Shelby, NC •DavidBlythe,Brooklyn,NY•JohnBlythe,Lawrence,KS•FrancesPavlasBose,Pullman,WA•JaniceBourne,Geneva,NY•Richard&HelenBowser,Durham,NC•DavidPatBoyle,Lafayette,GA•Merlin&MarilynBradley,Hudson,WI • Martha & John Bradshaw, North Stonington, CT •James & Florence Braker, Rochester, NY • Bill & WandaBrammer,TurtleCreek,PA•Jeffrey&MargaretBray,Suffern,NY•CathyBrechtelsbauer,SiouxFalls,SD•James&TeresaBrent,Warrenton,MO•Mike&EverlyBroadway,Salado,TX•Terry&GailBrooks,MintHill,NC•Wesley&CherylBrown,Claremont,CA•Robert Brown,Columbus,OH•Robert&LovenBruhn,Cary,NC•EdnaBryan,Winston-Salem,NC•Tom&MarthaBryson,Charlotte,NC•George& Mary Lou Buck, Charlotte, NC • Nancy & LarryBumgardner,Durham,NC•Tom&PattiBurkett,Granville,OH•MandyBurkett&ThomasNelson,Granville,OH•JohnBurns&KarenKrueger,Hyattsville,MD•JoeBurton,Raleigh,NC•John&EleanorButler,Lexington,MA•NancyByard& JenniferTalley,WakeForest,NC•Nancy&KarlByleen,HalesCorners,WI•Dr&MrsRobertByrd,Nashville,TN•Esther&SydneyRoyCable,Rochester,NY•CaseyCampbell,Keller,TX•Lee&CarolynCarlson,Lawrence,KS•GWilliam&CathyCarlson,StPaul,MN•Bob&LucileCarman,GoldenValley,MN•JohnCarman,SouthPortland,ME•MartyCarney,SheboyganFalls,WI•RoyAnnCarney,UpperMarlboro,MD•Alan&PollyCarroll,Oberlin,OH•AndreaCarver,Albany,NY•DorothyCase,Clinton,WI•DonaldCassidy,Vanceburg,KY•ErieChapman,Nashville,TN • Jan & Myron Chartier, Davidson, NC • KatherineCheves,Williamsburg,VA•Jose&LauraChipe,Louisville,KY • Harold Christensen, Sioux Falls, SD • MichaelChristensen,SiouxFalls,SD•WilliamClaflin,Atchison,KS•JanClark&JanicePope,Pittsboro,NC•BarbaraClarkson,


contributorsMartinez, CA • Bill & Elizabeth Cline, Audubon, PA •Thomas Conner, Nashville, TN • Charles & Gwen Cook,Charlotte,NC•JuneCooper,Boston,MA•Kaye&CarltonCooper,Marshall,VA•Harold&RachelCooper,MtLaurel,NJ•SandraCope,Waukesha,WI•JanCorbett,Britol,RI•Patricia Cosman, Oxnard, CA • Thomas & MaryJaneCoursen,FortWayne,IN•EdwinCrabtree,Westlake,OH•Ron & Joy Craig, Pittsboro, NC • Ruth Cramer, KennettSquare,PA•Roger&MaryRuthCrook,Cary,NC•AdneyECrossIII,Chattanooga,TN•DougCruger,OldOrchardBeach,ME•Kenny&ShirleyCrump,Ruston,LA•SarahCulp&DavidCulp,Rochester,NY•DorothyCunningham,Chesterfield,MO•LoisD_Arcangelo,Shelburne,VT•Lois&KeithDahlberg,Kellogg, ID •RobertDalton,Houston,MS•George&ElizabethDaniels,OroValley,AZ•WakaDannenhauer, Shutesbury,MA•Stephen&ArleneDavie,Argyle,NY•JanetDavies,Cranston,RI•Andrew&BeverlyDavison,Madison,WI•James&EdithDavison,Madison,WI•Zach&PeytonDawes,MountGilead,NC•CarolDay,Mystic,CT•SaraDay&BobBaer,NewYork,NY•JudsonDay,Sacramento,CA•Stanley&AliceJoDeFries,Lawrence,KS•Bruce&NancyDean,Spencerport,NY•Paul&CathyDeane,ArlingtonHeights,IL•JamesDenny,McCook,NE•John&SandraDetwyler,Scotia,NY•Gene&BeaDewey,Madison,WI•DorisDickerson,Lititz,PA•DeniseDinkins,Oceanside,CA•IsabelDocampo&ScottSomers,Dallas,TX•PatriciaDodge,Hartford,CT•Sally&KennethDodgson,EastRochester,NY•BeverlyDonald,Denver,CO•Doug&KimDonley,Moundsview,MN•Stephen&CarineDonze,WalnutCreek,CA•SusieLDorsey,Williamsburg,VA•John&CoraLeaDoty,Seattle,WA•VirginiaDouglas,Elyria,OH•KennethDownes,ShelburneFalls,MA•Miles&MurielDresser, Lincoln City, OR • Deidre Druk, St Paul, MN •Cheryl Dudley, New York, NY • James & Luciata Duke,McMinnville,OR•Richard&NancyDutton,WilmotFlat,NH•Wayne&IngridDvirnak,Elizabeth,CO•CJ&WilmaDyck,Normal,IL•MaryEdinger,Middlesboro,KY•Hal&Marty Edwards,Wake Forest, NC • Carol Eklund& KayWellington,Concord,CA•JohnElford,Austin,TX•Jack&JoellynEllis,SaintClairShores,MI•JRex&NancyEnoch,LittleRock,AR•HeatherEntrekin&PeterStover,Leawood,KS • Telfer & Carol Epp,Aliso Viejo, CA • Paul & SybilEppinger,Phoenix,AZ•Jack&ClaudiaEsslinger,Gambier,OH•Ken&MarthaLuEvans, Louisville,KY•Victor&Collene Eyth, Mentor, OH • Judy & Fred Fackenthal,Indianapolis, IN • Katherine Fagerburg & Vernon Baker,NewBritain,CT•NancyFerrell,Dallas,TX•TomFewel,ChapelHill,NC•JosephineFidler,Huntington,WV•John&JeanFisk,Attleboro,MA•SueFitzgerald,Winston-Salem,NC•David&AmabelleFollett,Norristown,PA•GlendaFontenot & Pat Hardesty, Bellaire, TX • Marge Forth,Rochester,NY•Marvin&BettyFriesen,LakeOswego,OR•KatyFriggle-Norton&DouglasNorton,Havertown,PA•DebbieFuller,Austin,TX•WilliamGale,Anderson, IN•Martha Gale & Bob Carpenter, Penney Farms, FL • KarlGarlid & Mary Meyer, Brooklyn, NY • Anne Garner,Greenville,SC•MarshaGarrison,Baltimore,MD•ConnieGates, Carrboro,NC • PaulGehris, ShermansDale, PA •JerryGentry&TinaPippin,Atlanta,GA•William&MarjorieGeorge, Easley, SC • Kenneth George, Mont Clare, PA •JamesGibbel,Lititz,PA•Ed&LoisGibbon,Raleigh,NC•

Rachel & Everett Gill, Black Mountain, NC • Pat Gillis,Statesboro,GA•Clifford&RosemaryGilson,PenneyFarms,FL•Ray&WilmaGingerich,Harrisonburg,VA•Tom&JudithGinn,Winston-Salem,NC•Tracy&MarjorieGipson,Battle Ground, WA • Stan Gockel & Libby Stanton,Springboro,OH•Robert&PatriciaGoetz,Pittsboro,NC•HalGold,Melbourne, FL •Michael& Linda Goldsmith,Chicago, IL • Carlos GomezMenendez, Guaynabo, PR •MaryGoodhue,Huntsville,AL • RickGoodman&CarolBlythe, Silver Spring, MD • Don & Mary Granholm,MountainView,CA•JaneGrant,Rochester,NY•Janine&JohnGravley,Olathe,KS•LarryGreenfield,Chicago,IL•Carl Gregg, Owings,MD • Richard E Gregory, Roseville,MN•Steven&LeslieGretz,Rochester,NY•John&SylviaGrisham, Chatham, IL • Fred & Margaret Grissom,Youngsville,NC•RobertGrunewald,Pullman,WA•LeticiaGuardiola,Seattle,WA•PaulandJoannGubert,Charlotte,NC•JuanGutierrez,SanJuan,PR•AdaliaGutierrez-Lee&Ray Schellinger,Wayne, PA • IrvingWesleyHall & EllenAnderson Mordus, Oxford, NY • Van & Paula Hall,Pittsburgh, PA • Jon & Cynthia Hallas, Northbrook, IL •Stephen&JoEllenHam,Bloomington,IN•DonaldHamm,ChapelHill,NC•LindaHammar,FortDodge,IA•Stephen& Mary Hammond, Oberlin, OH • Richard & BettyHammonds,Avondale Estates, GA •Michelle Hammons,Concord,CA•Jack&DorisHancox,SprucePine,NC•Paul&EvelynHanneman,Charlotte,NC•HansmaLivingTrust,“DavidHansma,Trustee”,Carmichael,CA•JamesHanson,UpperArlington,OH•PhyllisHardin,Tucker,GA•Paul&LindaRaeHardwick,WalnutCreek,CA•Gordon&RoxanaHarper,Seattle,WA•DougHarris&CarolMcVetty,Chicago,IL•Anne&RichardHarris,KingofPrussia,PA•SharonHarris-Ewing,ClarenceCenter,NY•Steve&BettyHartman,DePere,WI•Bettie&StanHastey,Alexandria,VA•John&HelenHastings,Austin,TX•HWilliam&SusanHausler,Madison,WI•Paul&WendyHayes,Groton,CT•DorisHayes,St.Johns,FL•ScottHeald,Davis,CA•LaurieHearn&StephenHall,Indianapolis,IN•James&PattyHenderlite,Charlotte, NC • Donald & Bernice Henderschedt, EastStroudsburg, PA • David Hendon, Waco, TX • PeggyHendrix,Decatur,GA•JosephRHenry&LanieAHenry,Cincinnati,OH•LydiaCHews,Stoneham,MA•KathleenHexter,Canterbury,CT•GlennRHill,Denver,CO•Dennis&DianeHill,Durham,NC•Allen&GailHinand,KeyWest,FL•JamesEHinds,Gardner,MA•DanHobbs,Norman,OK • Clara Hodges, Bozeman, MT • Bettie Hodges,Savannah, GA • Harold & Bea Hoffman, Decatur, GA •CurtisHoffman, StorrsMansfield, CT •Marge&CharlesHoffman,Wickliffe,OH•NevaHoffmeier,Webster,NY•AnneHoflen,PawPaw,IL•Robert&MaryHogan,PleasantHill, CA •Wanny&AshleyHogewood, Charlotte, NC •Dorothy& JohnHolley, Raleigh,NC •Dale BHolmes Jr,Gainesville,GA•Mary&BillHolt,CapeElizabeth,ME•Beth Honeycutt & Brian Graves, Mars Hill, NC • NancyHoran, Albany, NY • Karen Hoskins, Bardstown, KY •Dorothy Howland, Pultneyville, NY • Richard Huber,Lafayette, NJ • Shirley M Hubert, Holly Springs, NC •RobertHughes,Akron,OH• Elva&HoraceHunt, BlackMountain,NC•David&ToniaHunt,Milwaukie,OR•Bob&CarolHunter,Richmond,IN•Lynn&MarilynHunwick,PaloAlto,CA•RichardIce,Alameda,CA•AnneIerardi,


contributorsYarmouthPort,MA•MarImsong,Bedford,MA•Ed&DianeIrvin,Redlands,CA•Steven&KarenIvy,Indianapolis,IN•ChristopherJacksonJordan,Boone,NC•David&BethJacksonJordan,Huntersville,NC•Steve&MarionJacobsen,Lewisburg,PA•LloydJames,Audubon,PA•MaryJansen,Akron,OH•KatherineMaryJelen,ChapelHill,NC•Chuck&SandiJohn,Chico,CA•Weyman Johnson,Athens,GA•CharlesFosterJohnson, FortWorth, TX•Dr Sam Johnson,Gonzales, LA•Walter&HarrietJohnson,Minneapolis,MN•HowardJohnson,Minneapolis, MN • Roy & Carole Johnson, Pullman,WA •KathyJohnson,Raleigh,NC•MicheleJohnson,SanAntonio,TX•LucasJohnson,Savannah,GA•Randy&CarlaJohnson,StCloud,MN•Stephen&JaniceJones,PrairieVillage,KS•Monty&Diane Jordan, Brentwood, TN • Bennett &DonnaJoseph,Bath,NY•NancyJoyner,ChapelHill,NC•Chester&MargaretJump,Lewisburg,PA•ToniKasko,Baltimore,MD•John&ArleenKeele,Columbus,IN•SheldonKeller,Westwood,MA•Michael&ChristineKellett,Charlotte,NC•SarahKelley,BatonRouge,LA•Kyle&CharleneKelley,Shreveport,LA•LindaKemp,Austin,TX•Lloyd&BettyKenyon,DingmansFerry, PA • Doris Kerber, Penfield, NY • Verna Kershaw,Danville, CA • Thomas Kessler, Cedar Falls, IA • JamesKetcham&JanCurtis,Elmira,NY•CharlotteKeyes,Everett,WA•JohnKhanlian,Moorestown,NJ•Beth&GordonKieft,Denver,CO•Charles&PatriciaKiker,Tulia,TX•MariettaKing, Santa Ana, CA • William Kirkman & Linda Pille,Warrenville,IL•WalkerKnight,Decatur,GA•Dean&LucilleKnudsen,WestLafayette,IN•JennyKnust,Brookline,MA•Thor&FayeKommedahl,StPaul,MN•BillKostlevy,Hillsboro,KS•CharlesKrajewski,NewLondon,NH•Paul&PhyllisKuestner, Oberlin, OH • Ruth Kulkarni,MountAiry,MD •Ruth&RobertLacker,Niles,MI•CaroleLake,Austin,TX•DarrellLance,Rochester,NY•JeanLane,Portland,OR•JohnLaney& JoanYarborough,Asheville,NC • Tony Langbehn,Bowie,MD•FranLangstaff,Durham,NC•JimLaRue,ShakerHeights, OH • Clarence Lassetter, Covington, KY •MargieLatham, Katy, TX • John& Jane Layman, Blacksburg, VA •Donald&DorisJeanLea,Dayton,OH•FranLeanza,Euclid,OH•Faithe&JamesLedbetter,LakeOswego,OR•LouyseLee, Charlotte, NC • Janice Lee, Ottawa, KS • Julia Lentz,ChapelHill,NC•Joe&GinnyLeonardJr,Wayne,PA•GayleFosterLewis,Burnsville,MN•AnneLewis,ClarksSummit,PA • Gwenyth Lewis, Frazier, PA • Marsha & Paul Lewis,Macon,GA•MaddieLewis,Noank,CT•LarryLindley,NewPalestine, IN•Tom&GailLitwiler,AllisonPark,PA•AaseLoescher,Bloomington,IN•DeborahLoftis,Richmond,VA•Bernard&DianaLong,Waunakee,WI•ClaireELoughhead,Peabody, MA • Jim Lowder & Jerene Broadway, BlackMountain, NC • Vernon & Sylvia Lowell, Mt Horeb, WI •PatriciaMarieLudwig,Lockport,NY•RobinLunn,Milford,NH•PollyLyles,FortWorth,TX•NancyMackie,Canton,CT•PeggyMalone,LaGrange,OH•Dr&MrsAnthonyMalone,Latham,NY•Paul&AmyManierre,AvonPark,FL•EvelynManierre,Worcester,MA• PollyMann,Minneapolis,MN•Myron Mann, Van Nuys, CA • Richard & Macie Martin,Franklin,IN•MaryLMartin,McMinnville,OR•Bill&LindaMashburn,Brevard,NC•Moses&SadieMast,Spencer,OK•Sam Matuawana, Bridgewater, MA • Kenneth & MarciaMcCarthy, Brockport, NY • Edwin & Elizabeth McClain,Glendale,AZ•DavidMcCurdy,Elmhurst,IL•Jim&MarshaMcDaniel,Indianapolis,IN•RachelMcGuire,Rochester,NY•

Henry & Barbara McLane, Williamsburg, VA • Jean & JimMcLaughlin,Webster,WI•Ike&SueMcLeese,Columbia,SC•Gene& BethMcLeod,Wilmington,NC •DebraMcLeod-Sears&JaySears,Houston,TX•AndoraMcMillan,Statesville,NC • S. Carter McNeese, Winston Salem, NC • MichaelMcWilliams,Dallas,TX•JohnMcWilliams,Frederick,MD•Lydia Mercado, Springfield, VA • Leandra Merea Strope,ChapelHill,NC•JamesMerlin,Wenatchee,WA•AlbertandMaryEllenMeyer,Goshen,IN•JamesCMiller,Bristol,RI•ThereseMiller,Lewisburg,PA•MarthaMiller,Townsend,VT•Rick&SandyMitchell,Concord,CA•Peter&JoanMitchell,Rochester,NY•RandleMixon,PaloAlto,CA•DavidMoberg,Milwaukee,WI•Wes&RebeccaMonfalcone,Casselberry,FL• Paul& JudithMontacute, Vienna,VA•Harry&DorothyMoore,Lansdale,PA•NancyGMoore,Madison,WI• JeanMoore, Owensboro, KY • ClaudiaMoore, Springfield, VA •Bruce &NancyMorgan, Kansas City,MO • GraceMorgan,Wauwatosa,WI•BettyRuthMoseley,FtCollins,CO•James&HelenMoseley,OrmondBeach, FL • Franklin&MarjorieMurdock,Mystic, CT • Patrick E. Murphy,Mahomet, IL •RichardMurphy,Miami,FL•HerbertMurrayJr,WestHartford,CT•SarahMyers&ScottSemple,Boulder,CO•Dick&BethMyers,Scottsville,NY•Jerry&WendyNeale,Clayton,CA•Lawrence & Frances Nelson, Bozeman, MT • Jane Nelson,Minneapolis, MN • Althea Nelson, Niskayuna, NY • RuthNelson,Scarborough,ME•Virgil&LynnNelson,Ventura,CA•Ronald&MarilynNewsom,Fisher,IN•Alan&GailNewton,Rochester,NY•DaveNichols,Charlotte,NC•SylviaNiedner,Columbus,OH•VirginiaNielsen,Shoreline,WA•KristopherNorris, Charlottesville, VA • Leon & Rosemary Oaks-Lee,Fayetteville,NY•Marianne&RobertOberg,Charlotte,NC•EricOhlmann,Geneva, IL • JamesOliver, Seal Beach,CA•VirgilOlson,Cambridge,MN•Mark&JoanLeaTomsOlson,Fredericksburg,VA•Richard&MaryAnnOlson,OverlandPark,KS•Norman&JeanneOverly,Bloomington,IN•Ken&Pat Parker, Brunswick,ME •Mary Passage, Corning, NY •MaryBethPearson,Hattiesburg,MS•Evered&JillPenn,,•Phil&ElainePennington,Ooltewah,TN•William Perkett,Rochester,NY•Kenneth&GenevievePeterson,Delaware,OH•AmyPethick&EricGraves,Wayne,PA•Dixie&ADPetrey,Maryville, TN • Joe Phillips, Williamsburg, VA • James &Susan Pike, Chapel Hill, NC • John Pipe & Carol Willard,Centennial, CO • Carolyn Piper & Norman Gearhart Jr,Worthington,OH•Roger&ElizabethPittard,Henrico,VA•Glenn& Sheila Plott, Toano, VA • LeDayne& TomPolaski,Charlotte, NC • Marcus & Nancy Pomeroy, Berwyn, PA •Morgan&PeggyPonder,Birmingham,AL•David&GenevaPope,Springfield,VA•Walter&MaryLynnPorter,Dadeville,AL • Ralph & Ardice Powell, Sioux Falls, SD • ElizabethPreston,Elma,NY•Caryl&WaynePrice,ChapelHill,NC•GKent&JuliePrice,Paducah,KY•Dan&SandyBauerPrima,Wayne, PA • Daniel Pryfogle, Cary, NC •Marilyn Pulliam,MercerIsland,WA•Rick&NancyQualls,Chanute,KS•AnnQuattlebaum,Greenville,SC•MarilynF.Raatz&MarilynM.Spahr,NorthChatham,MA•Kevin&HolliRainwater,Fresno,OH • Miranda Rand, Schenectady, NY • Patricia Ransom,Waukesha,WI•Ken&HollyRedford,Methuen,MA•PamelaReed,Flemington,NJ•George&SusanReed,Raleigh,NC•PaulReeder,Billings,MT•Jeff&JulieReiswig,Granville,OH•Jim&KathyRemley,Moline,IL•David&SharonRensberger,Decatur, GA • Richard& Judith Reuning, Columbus, OH •


contributorsPaul&SusanRichardson,Birmingham,AL•Robert&SandraJoy Richardson, Charlotte, NC • Janette Richardson, TheWoodlands,TX•ClaireRider,Madison,WI•Ron&PegRivers,Piscataway,NJ•John&MarylynnRoberts, , •James&EllenRobinson, Grand Ledge, MI • Thomas Roderick & MaxinePhillips,NewYork,NY•Bill&DixieRoelofs,SiouxCenter,IA•BrookeJRolston,Bothell,WA•Vernon&EleanorRoss,Hamilton,NY • Ruth Rowland&Gladys Balleaux, Seattle,WA• Joe&Merry Roy, East Wenatchee, WA • Al & Kathy Ruesink,Bloomington,IN•LeonRunner,NorthWales,PA•JerryRyan,Tampa,FL•DuaneSamples,CulverCity,CA•JenniferSanborn&MatthewBurch,Tariffville,CT•LaurenSanders,Chicago,IL•RN&SueSanders,Indianapolis,IN•LeslieSanders&BrianRice,Oakland,CA•MannySantiago,Seattle,WA•Warren&BettySapp,Bartlesville,OK•MaryBethSarhatt,Kalamazoo,MI•Pamela&CharlesScalise,Pasadena,CA•Stephen&HoneyScappa,PacificPalisades,CA•MadelynSchnick,Strafford,MO• Earl & Carol Schultz, Wauwatosa, WI • Daniel & EstelaSchweissing,Aurora,CO•Diane&VicScott,Asheville,NC•LeroySeat,Liberty,MO•MargueriteSeguine,Brooklyn,CT•Karen&AlanSelig,Pottstown,PA•GailSerratt,Spencerport,NY • Pearl & Robert Seymour, ChapelHill, NC • BettyMaeShear,Jefferson,OH•TaiShigaki,Worchester,MA•Wayne&IreneShireman,Ames,IA•Dick&LenitaShumaker,Clayton,CA • Dianne Shumaker, Fairway, KS • Jonathan Sledge &DeborahNorton,Raleigh,NC•EldoraSloan,Roy,WA•Brooks&MaryLouSmith,ChapelHill,NC•AndySmith,Devon,PA•NancyBSmith,Martinez,CA•Art&DarleneSmith,Midland,MI• JaneySmith,Oceanside,CA•Sanford&Patricia Smith,Omaha,NE•Donald&BarbaraSmith,Philippi,WV•KathySmith,Salem,OR•Judge&MrsCharlesZSmith,Seattle,WA•Sharon Smith, Timonium, MD • Betsy Sowers, Westborough,MA•ChuckSparnecht,Rochester,NY•VergieSpiker,KennettSquare,PA•AlStaggs,SantaFe,NM•Kenneth&BettyStapp,Forest City, NC • Robert Stapp, Long Beach, CA • John &Kimberly Starbuck, Stone Mountain, GA • Glen & DorothyStassen,Pasadena,CA•William&KathleenStayton,Smyrna,GA•TWesleyStewart,Alpharetta,GA•DrWarrenHStewartSr, Phoenix,AZ • Pablo Stone, BlackMountain, NC • KarenStoner,Delaware,OH•James&CarolynStrange,Tampa,FL•Richard&RuthStuart,Laconia,NH•MaanSukte,Wayne,PA•John&Carol Sundquist,Chicago, IL •Willis&Esther Sutter,Eureka, IL • Gordon & Edith Swan, Needham,MA • RobertSwarm & Sharon Parker, Clayton, MO • Laurie Sweigard,Malvern,PA•DavidSwink,Brighton,MI•Barbara&MikeTaft,Mesa,AZ • Cathy Tamsberg, Raleigh,NC • Richard Tappan,Brunswick,ME•WilliamTapscott,Santee,CA•EG&MargaretTegenfeldt, Pacific Beach, WA • Dennis & Paula Testerman,Concord,NC•CaroleThais,Memphis,TN•MarjorieThatcher,Edina,MN•JoanThatcher,Oakland,CA•John&NancyThayer,GarnetValley,PA•Gregory&CherylThomas,Danielson,CT•MarionThompson,Lenox,MA•OliveTiller,CranberryTwp,PA•Robert&ElaineTiller, Silver Spring,MD•Clyde&NancyTilley, Maryville, TN • Michelle Tooley, Berea, KY • RichardTucker&CarolMoore,Brevard,NC•Thomas&CarolTupitza,Erie,PA•RuthTurk,Cary,NC•DarlaDTurlington,PalmCoast,FL • Bernard&Rosalind Turner,McMinnville,OR •WilliamTurpie,Hull,MA•EleenUttrup,Raleigh,NC•LoureneVail,Alhambra, CA • Rollin Van Bik, Frederick, MD • JeffreyVandegrift,Acton,MA•MarilynVanDyk,McMinnville,OR•Rod&MarilynVane,Fairport,NY•CarolVargas,Lewisburg,

PA • Lucile Vaughn, Bridgewater, VA • Tonya & JeffreyVickery,Cullowhee,NC•JimVolke,NorthChili,NY•SaraWagner, Bigfork, MT • James Wallace, Cambridge, MA •Robert & Peggy Wallace, Claremont, CA • David & AnnWallace,NevadaCity,CA•LindaWaller,Shepherdsville,KY•Tom& JeanWalsh,Memphis,TN•SisterBrendaWalsh,Racine, WI • Sarah T Walsh, Timonium, MD • CharlotteWard,Auburn,AL • Carol&GrantWard, Lansdale, PA •Michael Ware & Barbara Lacker-Ware, Rochester, NY •Donald&LindaWatson,Keizer,OR•RebeccaWaugh,NewYork,NY•DavidWeasley,Chicago, IL •Wallace&AlmaWebb,Dunedin,FL•JamesWebb,PenneyFarms,FL•Bill&GloriaWebster,Willoughby,OH•RoseWelch,,•WendellWentz,Rockwall,TX•Gary&PattiWest,Statesville,NC•David & Carol Wheeler, Portland, OR • Donald & JudithWheeler, Ridgewood, NJ • Gordon Whitaker & RobertHellwig,ChapelHill,NC•Ashley&JeffWhitaker,Denver,CO • John & Martha Whitfield, Dearborn, MI • CharlesWhitworth, Rome, GA • Brooks Wicker & Pat Hielscher,Raleigh, NC • Craig Wiester, Minneapolis, MN • AshleeWiest-Laird & Lance Laird, Jamaica Plain, MA • DorothyWiggins, State College, PA • Marcus & Rebecca Wiggs,Jackson,MS•Conrad&CatherineWilcox-Browne,Warwick,RI•BenWilleford,Lewisburg,PA•Alan&BlancheWilliams,Durham,NC•Robert&KatherynWilliams,Indianola,IA•Harrison Williams, Oakland, CA • Nancy Plott Williams,Richmond,VA•Ken&PegNowlingWilliams,Rochester,NY•George&CarolWilliamson,NewYork,NY•VickiWilson,Minneapolis,MN•Keith&JaniceWimmersberger,Tully,NY•LeslieWithers&MarkReeve,Decatur,GA•JoEllenWitt,Bayside,WI•PaulaWomack&JaneWeidig,Raleigh,NC•Thomas&DeborahWood, Plattsburgh,NY•MaryWood,Swanton,OH•Ed&EmmaJeanWoodard,Roanoke,VA•Bill&DonnaWoolf,Decatur,GA•RoxanneWright,Ardmore,PA•Richard&KathrinYoneoka,Arlington,VA•Tyanna&Greg Yonkers, Calypso, NC • Hugh & Norma Young,Hendersonville,NC•LanceBrendanYoung,IowaCity,IA•Brett&CarolYounger,Lilburn,GA•DorisAnneYounger,Maplewood, NJ • Bernard & Jeanne Yurke, Boise, ID •ChakravarthyZadda,Chicago,IL•

Individuals ElsewhereRuthMooney•SanPedro•CostaRica

Congregations in CanadaAylmer Baptist Church, Aylmer, ON • Burlington BaptistChurch,Burlington,ON•MacNeillBaptistChurch,Hamilton,ON•WoodbineHeightsBaptistChurch,Toronto,ON

Congregations in the USAntioch Telugu Baptist Church, Schiller Park, IL •AustinHeightsBaptistChurch,Nacogdoches,TX•BaptistTemple,Rochester,NY • Baptist Temple / Commonwealth Baptist,Alexandria,VA•BinkleyMemorialBaptistChurch,ChapelHill, NC • Calvary Baptist Church, Washington, DC •Central Baptist Church, Chalfont, PA • Central BaptistChurch,Hartford,CT•CentralBaptistChurch,Wayne,PA•Church of the Savior, Cedar Park, TX •Circle ofMercy,Asheville, NC • Community Baptist Church, Warrenville,IL•CornerstoneBaptistChurch,Danielson,CT•CovenantBaptist Church, Houston, TX • Cumberland First Baptist


contributors

Church,Indianapolis,IN•EllisAvenueChurch,Chicago,IL•EmmanuelBaptistChurch,Albany,NY•EmmanuelBaptistChurch, Ridgewood, NJ • Emmanuel Friedens Church,Schenectady,NY•FirstBaptistChurch,Birmingham,MI•FirstBaptistChurch,Waukesha,WI•FirstBaptistChurch,Madison,WI•FirstBaptistChurch,ManchesterCenter,VT•FirstBaptistChurch,Medford,MA•FirstBaptistChurch,Beverly,MA•FirstBaptistChurch,Dayton,OH•FirstBaptistChurch, Pottstown, PA • First Baptist Church, Worcester,MA • First Baptist Church, Palo Alto, CA • First BaptistChurch,Ithaca,NY•FirstBaptistChurch,Framingham,MA•FirstBaptistChurch,IowaCity,IA•FirstBaptistChurch,JamaicaPlain,MA•FirstBaptistChurch,Rochester,NY•First Baptist Church in Newton, Newton Centre, MA • First Baptist Church of Berkeley, Berkeley, CA •First Baptist Church of Lewisburg, Lewisburg, PA •First Baptist Church of Moorestown, Moorestown, NJ • First Baptist Church of Newfane, Newfane, NY •FirstBaptistChurchofRedlands,Redlands,CA•FirstBaptistChurchofSpringfield,Springfield,OH•FirstInstitutionalBaptistChurch,Phoenix,AZ•GlendaleBaptistChurch,Nashville,TN•GraceBaptistChurch,Statesville,NC•HighlandBaptistChurch,Louisville,KY•ImmanuelBaptistChurch,Rochester,NY•IndiaBaptist Telugu Church of Greater Chicago, Oak Park, IL•JeffersonStBaptistCommunity,Louisville,KY•Judson Memorial Baptist Church, Minneapolis, MN •LaiBaptistChurch, Frederick,MD•LakeAvenueBaptist Church, Rochester, NY • Lakeshore AveBaptist Church, Oakland, CA • Lime Rock BaptistChurch, Lincoln, RI • Madison Avenue BaptistChurch, New York, NY •McMinnville First BaptistChurch, McMinnville, OR • Myers Park BaptistChurch, Charlotte, NC • New Ground Community,SanFrancisco,CA•NoankBaptistChurch,Noank,CT•NorthShoreBaptistChurch,Chicago,IL•NorthsideDriveBaptistChurch,Atlanta,GA•OakhurstBaptistChurch, Decatur, GA • Park Road Baptist Church,Charlotte,NC•PeaceCommunityChurch,Oberlin,OH • Peakland Baptist Church, Lynchburg, VA •PrairieBaptistChurch, PrairieVillage,KS•PrescottMemorial Baptist Church, Memphis, TN • PullenMemorialBaptistChurch,Raleigh,NC•RoyalLaneBaptistChurch,Dallas,TX•SanLeandroCommunityChurch, San Leandro, CA • Sardis Baptist Church,Charlotte,NC•Seattle FirstBaptistChurch, Seattle,WA•SecondBaptistChurch,Liberty,MO•ShellRidgeCommunityChurch,WalnutCreek,CA•StCharlesAve Baptist Church, New Orleans, LA • St John_sBaptistChurch,Charlotte,NC•TheUnitedChurchofGranville,Granville,OH•UnderwoodMemorialBaptistChurch,Wauwatosa,WI•UnitedChurch ofFayetteville, Fayetteville, NY • University Baptist& Brethren Church, State College, PA • UniversityBaptistChurch,Minneapolis,MN•UniversityBaptistChurch,Columbus,OH•UniversityBaptistChurch,Seattle,WA • Vienna Baptist Church, Vienna, VA •Wake Forest Baptist Church, Winston-Salem, NC •WakeForestBaptistChurch,WakeForest,NC•WattsStreetBaptistChurch,Durham,NC•WestHenriettaBaptist Church,West Henrietta, NY •Williamsburg

Pass the Peace. If you are reading Baptist Peacemaker, chances are that you are a member of the Baptist Peace Fellowship. If you are not, we invite you to add your story to ours. Just clip this coupon and send us your check, and you will become a member of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America. If you are a BPFNA member, we invite you to pass the peace on to someone you know.

Please print the following information:

Name: _____________________________________________________

Mailing Address: ______________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

City:_______________________________________________________

State/Province: _______________ Zip/Postal Code: __________________

Country: ____________________________________________________

E-mail: _____________________________________________________

Home Church: _______________________________________________

❑ My membership check is enclosed. $40-Household;$20-Student/Low Income; $50-Church/Institution

❑ Also enclosed is $ _________ as an additional contribution.

Send your check and this form to: Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America, 4800 Wedgewood Dr., Charlotte, NC 28210 USA. Visit our website at www.bpfna.org/member to join online.

BaptistChurch,Williamsburg,VA•Williston-ImmanuelUnitedChurch,Portland,ME•

Denominational Bodies in CanadaCanadianBaptistsofWesternCanada,Calgary,AB

Denominational Bodies in the USABC of Connecticut, West Hartford, CT • ABC Rochester/Genesee Region, Rochester, NY • Home Mission Societies,AmericanBaptistChurches,USA,ValleyForge,PA

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PAIDPermit No. 116Lawrence, KS

It will help us a lot if you wouldtake a moment to check your name and address on the mailing label to the right!

Please send us your old label with changes and corrections to your name or address.

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—Mary Ruth Crook is a longtime member of the BPFNA and a member of Pullen Memorial Baptist Church (a BPFNA Partner Congregation) in Raleigh, NC. She and her husband, Roger, are past recipients of the American Baptist Con-vention's Dahlberg Peace Award. This prayer comes from a collection of her poems called FreshfromtheWord. See page 14 for a sermon written by Mary Ruth’s niece, Rachel Smith.

Glorious is your name, O God, in all the earth.Wepraiseyouwithsongsofjoy;

Wecomebeforeyouwiththanksgiving.Weconfessoursinsandshort-comings

And beseech your patience and forgiveness.Come into our hearts that our lips and our lives

May testify to thy love.

Weseekyourpeace,OGod—Peace within our hearts,

Peace on earth as it is in heaven.Teach us the things that make for peaceThat we may not study war any more.

Weprayforourleadersthattheymaydesirepeace—Weprayforourenemiesthattheymaydesirepeace.

Now we go out to sing the gospel of peace—Let the words and the musicBe heard among the people

That there may be peace in hearts and minds,Here and through all the earth. Amen.

Prayer for PeacebyMaryRuthCrook

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April-June 2012 The Journal of the Baptist Peace ... 32_2.pdf · 4 The Baptist Peace Fellowship of...

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