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Jesus’ peaceful revolution
MCC Peace Sunday Packet 2009
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Mennonite
Central
Committee
Canada

Jesus’ peaceful revolution
MCC Peace Sunday Packet 2009
Peace Sunday is an annual opportunity to preach, teach and reflect upon the gospel
of peace as proclaimed and embodied by Jesus Christ. It is a time to act and
witness for peace.
Mennonite Central Committee encourages Canadian Anabaptist congregations to
observe Peace Sunday in early November (preferably just prior to Remembrance
Day). The purpose of this Peace Sunday Packet is to help congregations plan a
Peace Sunday worship service and engage in peace action and witness beyond the
sanctuary.
This year’s theme is Jesus’ peaceful revolution. We are grateful to Scott and Mitch
Mealey of Moncton, New Brunswick for suggesting the language of “peace
revolution” a number of years ago. Their slogan inspired a website for a public
audience, http://iamrevolting.org.
Peace Sunday is an annual
opportunity to preach, teach and
reflect upon the gospel of peace
as proclaimed and embodied by
Jesus Christ. It is a time to act
and witness for peace.
This year’s Peace Sunday also commemorates the anniversary of the peace button
that says, “To remember is to work for peace.” The button was conceived and
created in 1989 by MCC Ontario as an alternative to the Remembrance Day
poppy. See the fall issue of MCC’s magazine, A Common Place, for an article
about the history of the button. This packet invites people to share their stories
and photos of the peace button.
Please send comments of evaluation regarding this year’s Peace Sunday Packet to
peace@mennonitecc.ca. Your feedback is essential for planning future packets and
other resources. Please write, even if you use only a small portion of the packet.
And if you choose not to use the packet at all, tell us why.
For Jesus’ peaceful revolution,
Esther Epp-Tiessen
Peace Ministries Coordinator
MCC Canada
For additional peace resources, please visit mcc.org/canada/peace
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Introduction to theme
The word revolution usually conjures up images of war and brutal violence. We
think of the French revolution, the American revolution, the Russian revolution.
These events all involved tremendous violence and loss of life. Revolutionaries
are often thought of as people who are intent on overthrowing an existing regime
with violent means.
Nowadays, businesses often advertise their products as revolutionary; presumably
consumers will be convinced these products are really radically new and different
and will want to buy them. We hear about revolutionary razors, cleansers, cell
phones, software, cars, and all kinds of other stuff.
Jesus’ revolution was and is a
healing, welcoming, restoring,
and reconciling revolution–it is
a peaceful revolution.
The word revolution has many definitions, most of them quite different from the
meanings above. Revolution is the action of a planet going round in an orbit.
It is the movement of any figure around an axis. It is also a sudden, radical or
fundamental change; a profound shift in a way of thinking about or visualizing
something. It is this last understanding of revolution that is the focus of this
packet.
Jesus came preaching, teaching and embodying a revolution. When Jesus announced
that the Kingdom of God had arrived, he was proclaiming that a fundamental
change in the world was happening. The Roman Empire world in which
he lived was one characterized by tremendous social stratification, by disparities
in wealth, by military occupation and by brutal violence. Jesus’ way of speaking,
being, and relating to others turned that world upside down. He healed the sick,
raised up the poor and weak, brought down the rich and powerful, welcomed
strangers and outcasts, and reconciled enemies. His death on the cross broke the
cycle of violence with loving, forgiving nonviolent resistance.
Jesus’ revolution was and is a healing, welcoming, restoring, and reconciling
revolution–it is a peaceful revolution.
Jesus invites us to join that peaceful revolution. When we commit our lives to
Christ and join his body, the church, God’s love and grace transforms us and sets
us apart from the society around us. We are called into a new way of being and
living–the kind of revolutionary living that Jesus announced and lived.
On Remembrance Day, our nation asks its citizens to remember those who have
died through military service. Since Canada is at war in Afghanistan, there is a
special focus on soldiers who are serving and fighting this current war. As followers,
we remember that Jesus invites us to embody and proclaim his peaceful
revolution–a new way of living in which war and violence have no part.
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Resources for Worship
This section includes suggestions for the various components for Peace Sunday worship. Feel free to adapt these materials
and to shape the worship service as appropriate for your congregation.
1. Call to worship
The following call to worship is based on Romans 12:1-2.
Leader:
Congregation:
Leader:
Congregation:
All:
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living
sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world,
But be transformed by the renewing of our minds,
So that you may discern what is the will of God—
What is good and acceptable and perfect.
Thanks be to God who transforms us and transforms the world.
2. Introduction to worship service
The worship leader may use words like these to introduce the worship service:
Today we are celebrating Peace Sunday. This is a day to worship our God who was and is and will be the first peacemaker in
any and all situations. This is a day to share the good news of Jesus Christ the Prince of Peace. This is a day to give praise for
the Holy Spirit who guides us and inspires us as we seek to be people of peace.
Today our worship focuses on Jesus’ peaceful revolution. Jesus came preaching, teaching and embodying a revolution. The
Kingdom of God that Jesus proclaimed is a peaceful revolution, a revolution where people are healed, where all have enough
and no one too much, where strangers and outcasts are welcomed, where enemies are reconciled, and where war has no
place. As Jesus’ followers, we are called to join that peaceful revolution.
In planning this worship service, we have made use of something called the Peace Sunday Packet which is a peace resource
produced every year by Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). The Peace Sunday Packet is made available to over 700
churches across Canada within the MCC constituency, and so today we worship in solidarity with many other Anabaptist
churches across our land.
3. Songs and hymns
Congregations rooted in the Anabaptist tradition in Canada use a variety of resources for singing in worship. They also sing
in a variety of musical styles. Use the resources available to you for songs that will enhance the worship focus.
4. Scripture readings
The following are suggested as the primary biblical texts: Luke 6:20-36 and/or Romans 12:1-3, 9-21. You may also wish to
include one or more of the following Old Testament texts:
Psalm 34:1-14 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.
Jeremiah 7:1-7 Amend your ways and your doings, and let me dwell with you…
Ezekial 36:26
Micah 4:1-4
A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you…
... they shall beat their swords into plowshares…
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For the Romans passage, you may wish to have it read antiphonally, especially verses 9-21, as printed below. The passage
could be read by two readers or by the two halves of the congregation.
Reader 1 Reader 2
Let love be genuine;
Hate what is evil, hold to what is good;
Love one another with mutual affection;
Do not lag in zeal,
Rejoice in hope,
Contribute to the needs of saints;
Bless those who persecute you;
Rejoice with those who rejoice,
Live in harmony with one another;
Do not repay evil for evil,
If it is possible, so far as it depends on you,
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room
for the wrath of God;
No, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them;
For by doing this
Do not be overcome by evil,
Outdo one another in showing honour.
Be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord.
Be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.
Extend hospitality to strangers.
Bless and do not curse them.
Weep with those who weep.
Do not be haughty but associate with the lowly;
do not claim to be wiser than you are.
But take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.
Live peaceably with all.
For it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,
says the Lord.”
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink
you will heap burning coals on their heads.”
But overcome evil with good.
5. Prayer of confession
Compassionate Creator, Loving Parent,
Forgive us for all the devastation we are wreaking on your beautiful and bountiful creation through our wars, our acts of
terrorism and abuse, and our self-centered behaviour as individuals, communities and nations.
Forgive us our cynicism and our blindness as we sit on the sidelines and say or do nothing as acts of violence occur around
us.
Forgive us for pointing the finger of blame at people of other faiths, nationalities or racial groups when things go wrong.
Open our eyes to recognize your revolutionary way of love and peace. Open our hearts to receive it and to share it
Give us courage to be peacemakers in your name, ready to follow the way of the cross rather than the tempting path of
finger-pointing, war and violence.
We pray this in the name of Jesus, the One who draws us into your peaceful revolution. Amen.
By Larry Kehler, adapted from Peace Sunday Packet 2005.
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6. Story for Children
It is a challenge to speak to young children about issues of war and peace, particularly
in the very short time frame that most worship services allow, in a way that is
not frightening or confusing. This story is geared towards school-aged children. If
your group includes a lot of pre-schoolers, it may be preferable to choose a positive
and simple story about peace. One timeless classic is Aesop’s fable about the sun
and the wind. Check your church library or your denominational resource centre
for other suggestions.
Option 1
Props–a poppy pin and an MCC peace button that says “to remember is to work
for peace.” Peace buttons are available for purchase through MCC provincial offices.
...wearing the button is a reminder
to remember all people who suffer
from war, including our enemies. It
is a reminder to work for peace.
Invite the children to gather. Show them the poppy. Ask them what it is, if they
have seen people wearing it, what does it mean? Take time to listen to their answers.
Ask the school aged-children if they have participated in a Remembrance
Day service at school, either this year or in past years. What are those services
about? Likely they will talk about remembering soldiers and their sacrifice in war.
The children may mention that the soldiers are necessary to fight and preserve our
freedom. Tell them that people wear poppies to remember the soldiers at Remembrance
Day—soldiers that fought in the past and soldiers that are fighting today in
Afghanistan.
Then show them the peace button. Tell them that twenty years ago, some Mennonites
in Ontario wondered about creating an alternative to the poppy. They were
people who loved Jesus very much, and believed that Jesus wants his people to live
in peace together. Jesus taught his disciples not to hurt their enemies but to love
them. That means no fighting with guns and no wars, even if we think they will
protect us. Tell the children that their church is a peace church, which means that
the church believes that all of us who are Jesus’ followers follow his way of peace.
At Remembrance Day, many people choose to wear this button, instead of a poppy.
Depending on your context, you may wish to acknowledge that some people will
wear a poppy and a peace button. Tell the children that wearing the button is a
reminder to remember all people who suffer from war, including our enemies. It is
a reminder to work for peace. If appropriate for the ages of the children, give each
child a peace button.
Option 2
Props–a piece of paper or cardboard with the word revolution printed on it, a sign
with the words Join the peaceful revolution, a large toy gun (could be made out of
cardboard), a bandana that covers most of the face, and a container into which the
sign, the gun and the bandana can fit. You will also need two partners, preferably
one male and one female.
Invite the children to come forward and gather around. Show them the sign with
the word revolution; ask them what the word means. Take time to listen to their
responses. They may respond with the idea of turning. They may respond with the
idea of war. Accept both these answers. Then ask them what a revolutionary is. If
there is no response, tell them that a revolutionary is someone who wants to make
a revolution happen. Sometimes revolutionaries are people who want to fight with
guns to make a change in their government.
Invite your two partners to come and stand or sit before the children. Partner A is
dressed in ordinary street clothes. Partner B has the bandana tied over his/her face
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and holds the gun. Ask the children which one looks like a revolutionary. Likely,
they will identify the one with the gun; perhaps they will identify the one without.
While you continue to speak to the children, Partner A can perhaps be reading a
book (even the Bible!), while Partner B may move around a bit, looking this way
and that, then partially hiding behind the pulpit or some chairs.
Tell the children that often we think about revolutionaries as people with guns.
But a revolution doesn’t have to be about guns and about fighting. Revolution basically
means making a big change in the way things are. Jesus was a revolutionary
in that he helped to show people a big change. He came to tell them and show
them that God loved them, no matter what they were like. And he filled their
hearts with love so that they could love other people too, even their enemies. The
way Jesus lived was really revolutionary. It is still revolutionary. Some people like
to change the world with guns and with violence. Jesus came to change the world
with love and with peace. He started a peaceful revolution. And we are part of
this peaceful revolution, because we belong to Jesus.
At this point, Partner A looks over to Partner B and says something like this,
“Hey, Jesus loves you, do you want to join his peaceful revolution?” Partner A
points to the container. He/she repeats the question or invites the children to ask
it. B then slowly, thoughtfully nods at the children. He/she removes the mask and
places it and the gun into the container. He/she then pulls out of the container the
sign that says “Join the peaceful revolution.” Have one of the older children read
the sign. A and B then walk down the aisle, holding the sign. Stand up and invite
the children to join you in following down the aisle and joining the revolution.
After a couple of moments, dismiss the children to their seats.
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7. Sermon suggestions
Based on Luke 6:20-36.
This excerpt is sometimes called the Sermon on the Plain. It is Luke’s version of
the more familiar Sermon on the Mount. Most likely, your congregation is used
to hearing the Matthew version. The tone of the Matthew version is not quite as
hard-hitting. For example, it does not include the “woes” that Luke includes.
These sermons of Jesus point to the ethos of the kingdom he came to proclaim.
In the kingdom of God, the poor are blessed, the hungry are filled, the sorrowful
laugh; at the same time those who are rich, full, and laughing now, at the expense
of the poor, will have the tables turned on them. In other words, there will a
leveling in the kingdom. Jesus goes on to talk about blessing those who curse you,
doing good to those who hate you, even loving enemies. Jesus is describing what
life is like in the kingdom, and how he expects his followers will live. In some
ways, the sermon on the plain could be regarded as a manifesto for a peaceful
revolution.
8. Sending prayer or
benediction
God of perfect peace,
Violence and cruelty can have no part
with you. As we go from this place,
give us the gift of your peace. Make
us into people of peace. Make us
instruments of your peace, channels of
your nonviolent love. Transform our
hearts and transform our world. Make
us part of your revolution of peace.
Amen.
Adapted from a prayer by Fr. John
Dear, Peace Sunday Packet, 2006.
In his day, Jesus threatened the leadership of his day by his words, actions and
the authority that he commanded. Some people thought that he was a dangerous
revolutionary. They thought he was a Zealot; Zealots were a kind of guerrilla
movement bent upon the violent overthrow of the Roman occupation system.
Because he eschewed all violence, Jesus was not a Zealot, but the kingdom he
announced and the community that grew around him did embody revolutionary
change. How can the church today proclaim and embody Jesus’ peaceful revolution,
particularly during a time of war?
Romans 12: 1-3, 9-21
Paul’s letter to the Romans was written close to the end of his long missionary
life. He wrote to a small group of Christians who lived in the capital of the
Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was characterized by great disparities in
power and status (slavery was alive and well), an economic system that enriched
a minority at the expense of the vast majority, much social unrest and ferment,
and a military machine to keep agitators in their place. These same realities exist
in our own world, though because of comfort and privilege many of us do not
notice them.
In his letter, Paul called on the church at Rome to a transformed life, a life guided
by Christ rather than by the culture of Rome. He called them to a way of living
that stood in stark contradiction to that of the empire. One of the reasons that
the early church grew so rapidly in the decades after Christ was not only because
of the missionary activity of people like Paul, but because of the witness of the
church to Jesus’ revolutionary new way. John Drane, Introducing the New Testament
(Fortress Press, 2001), pp.381-382, writes:
This is why the earliest Christians had such enormous success. When
men and women asked for proof that God’s new way of doing things had
truly arrived, Paul and the other apostles could point to the church. Life
in the church was indeed a new society–a context in which men, women
and children of diverse social, racial and religious backgrounds had been
brought together in a new and radical friendship. Because they had been
reconciled to God, they found themselves reconciled to each other. Their
whole style of living was totally transformed, and to the honest observer
there could be no doubt that something of world-changing proportions
had taken place.
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More resources for worship and reflection
1. Incorporate a skit into the worship service.
In Romans 12:20, Paul writes to the believers at Rome that if their enemies are hungry and thirsty, they should feed them
and give them drink. The idea of feeding the enemy is found in other passages of scripture: 1 Samuel: 1-36 tells the story of
how Abigail fed King David and his companions so that they would not kill her husband. In 2 Kings 6:1-23 Elisha instructs
the king of Israel to feed the army of his enemy the king of Aram. Proverbs 25:21-22 offers the simple counsel, “If your
enemies are hungry, given them bread to eat; and if they are thirsty give them water to drink…”
The story of Abigail is available from MCC in skit form. If you would like a copy of the skit, please send your request to
peace@mennonitecc.ca.
2. Incorporate a litany of resistance and affirmation.
As a congregational response to the meditation or sermon, you may wish to incorporate a litany of response and commitment.
In the spirit of revolution, this litany should include both elements of resistance (saying no) and affirmation (saying
yes). It should be read boldly and with strong conviction. Here is a sample, loosely based on Romans 12:
Leader:
Congregation:
Leader:
Congregation:
Leader:
Congregation:
Leader:
Congregation:
Leader:
Congregation:
Leader:
Congregation:
All:
Jesus draws us into his peaceful revolution, a revolution where God’s love, goodness, hope and peace
transform us and our world.
With God’s grace and power, we will revolt against hatred, and seek to be loving towards all.
Jesus draws us into his peaceful revolution—
With God’s grace and power, we will revolt against injustice, and seek to live justly with all.
Jesus draws us into his peaceful revolution—
With God’s grace and power, we will revolt against violence, and seek to live peaceably with all.
Jesus draws us into his peaceful revolution—
With God’s grace and power, we will revolt against fear, and seek the love that casts out all fear.
Jesus draws us into his peaceful revolution—
With God’s grace and power, we will revolt against warfare, and will seek to live and proclaim peace,
Jesus draws us into his peaceful revolution—
With God’s grace and power, we will revolt against evil, and seek to overcome evil with good.
Thanks be to God who transforms us and our world!
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3. Tell some peaceful revolution stories.
This section includes stories of individuals and communities who could be called peaceful revolutionaries. These people have
embraced the call to join the peaceful revolution. The stories may be incorporated into a sermon, reprinted in a church newsletter,
or discussed in a Sunday school class or youth activity.
Menno Simons, Holland, 1496-1561. As a Roman Catholic priest in 16th century Holland, Menno Simons began to have doubts
about his church’s practice of infant baptism and the Lord’s Supper. He did not leave the church immediately, but continued
to preach and develop his ideas. In January of 1536 he left his position in the Catholic church and soon became a prominent
leader among the Anabaptists in Holland as they sought a faith renewal based on the beliefs and practices of the early
Christian church. Menno wrote extensively about biblical theology and discipleship, and he was one of the first Anabaptists
to present and explain the peace position as an integral part of Christian faith. Despite the ongoing threat of persecution, he
persisted as a leader within this fledgling group of “Mennists” who later became known as Mennonites. Menno wrote:
The regenerated do not go to war nor engage in strife. They are the children of peace who have beaten their swords
into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks and know of no war… Since we are to be conformed to Christ,
how can we then fight our enemies with the sword?
From MCC Peace Sunday Packet, 2003.
MB Church of Kitwit, Congo, 1996. In late 1996 a guerrilla movement led by Laurent Kabila moved from southeastern Congo
towards the capital, Kinshasa, in an attempt to overthrow the corrupt and dictatorial regime of President Mobuto Sese Seko.
Along the way, the guerrillas engaged Mobutu’s army in battle and skirmishes; the army fell apart and took out its fury on
local villages with killing, rape and pillage.
Kikwit, a community 500 kilometers east of Kinshasa prepared for the onslaught. The MB churches gathered to pray and
brainstorm how they could respond to the impending violence. They developed a plan, pitched it to the mayor, who accepted
it, and they went to work to try to keep their community safe.
When the troops arrived a month later, volunteers met them before they could cross the bridge into Kikwit. They greeted the
soldiers with welcome songs, and gave them food, shoes, clothes and medicines collected from city residents. Business people
provided vehicles to transport the goods over the bridge and to take the troops out of the area. Additionally, teams of trained
and unarmed youth (20 teams of 100 each) patrolled five main streets, intervening nonviolently when someone needed protection.
Only one life was lost.
The witness of the church to the gospel of peace did not go unnoticed. The church continues to grow.
Adapted from “A lesson in peacemaking,” Mennonite Brethren Herald, 14 November 2003.
Milk for a baby, Serbia 1992. Chris Hedges, a war correspondent, tells the story of Rosa and Drago Sorak, a Bosnian Serb
couple in the town of Gorazde in 1992. Rosa and Drago suffered greatly from the war and their isolation as a Serb family
surrounded by Muslims. Their two sons were killed, they suffered death threats, and the town was repeatedly shelled. They
had no electricity, gas, or water. In this desperate situation, they had a little baby girl. Food was scarce and Rosa could not
breastfeed. Infants were dying everywhere, and their little girl weakened.
One morning there was a knock on the door. There stood a Muslim neighbour, Fadil Fejzic, with half a liter of milk for their
baby. Fadil milked his cow at night to avoid being killed by snipers. Every morning for the next 442 days, Fadil suffered the
insults and threats of his own Muslim community to take half a liter of milk to the young Serb infant. War finally forced
Rosa and Drago to move to another community, and Fadil eventually lost his cow to the Serb forces, but they survived the
war. And the baby lived.
Adapted from Chris Hedges, War is a force that gives us meaning (New York: Public Affairs, 2002, pp. 51-53.
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By the side of the road, Saskatchewan, 2004. A few years ago a young woman named Donna began attending a Mennonite
church in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. She was very new in the Christian faith. One Sunday, after hearing a guest preach on
the gospel of peace, Donna was driving on the highway with her infant son. She noticed a car stopped on the side of the road
and two people standing beside it. As she got closer, she realized the man and woman were arguing. She remembered the
speaker at church who had told the story about knocking on an apartment door where she heard yelling, then asking, “Is
everything okay? Can I do anything to help?”
Donna struggled with whether or not to stop her car. She had her son with her and was obviously concerned for her safety.
But as she drove past, she looked in the rearview mirror and saw the man strike the woman. Donna slowed her car, turned
around, and went back, all the while praying hard. She stopped by the car and asked, “Is everything all right? Can I do
anything to help?” The man suggested that everything was okay, but the woman came over to Donna’s car and said that everything
was not okay. Donna offered to drive her to Saskatoon. Meanwhile, the man became quite contrite, and after some
time, convinced the woman to go with him. Donna had her university day planner on the front seat of the car and ripped out
the page with emergency numbers on it. She gave it to the woman saying, “No matter what you did, you don’t deserve to be
hit. Please call someone for help.”
As shared by Eileen Klassen Hamm, MCC Saskatchewan
To carry a gun, Ontario, 2009. Anneliese Jaeger-Friesen became a Christian and was baptized in the spring of 2007. She had been
employed as a Border Services Officer with the Canadian Border Service Agency (CBSA) for a number of years. In 2008 she
gave birth and went on a maternity leave. While on leave, the CBSA implemented new regulations that required all Border
Services Officers to carry a firearm while on duty. Until this time, customs officers had always been unarmed.
The new regulations presented Anneliese with a tremendous dilemma. As a new Christian, she was passionate about her
faith and about her commitment to Jesus’ way of peace. She felt that learning to use and carry a gun would violate these
deeply held convictions. At the same time, she loved her job and didn’t want to leave it.
With much reflection and prayer, and with the help of her pastor at the Niagara United Mennonite Church and others, Anneliese
prepared a statement for her employer and requested a meeting with her manager. She asked that she be allowed to
keep her job but that she be exempted from the requirement to carry a gun and other use-of-force tools.
In the end, Anneliese was offered a position in another department of CBSA, where her convictions would not be compromised.
She was happy with this resolution to her dilemma. She agreed to share her story to help people understand that we
can be witnesses for the peace of Jesus today and in Canada, even when we seem to be far away from conflict and war situations.
As shared by Anneliese Jaeger-Friesen, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
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3. Reflect on these revolutionary quotations.
The following quotations may be used in a sermon, incorporated into the Peace
Sunday bulletin or your congregation’s newsletter.
No revolution that has ever taken place in society can be compared to that which
has been produced by the words of Jesus Christ.
Mark Hopkins
The old world can never get out of its tailspin of violence, but the cross of Christ
is where a new world has begun which puts an end to the need for that cycle.
That new world is now here and it is coming. And the church of peace is that
community that has been called to live according to the new pattern of the cross
in the world.
Layton Friesen
If we have no peace, it is because we
have forgotten that we belong to each
other.
Mother Teresa
If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.
Mother Teresa
Everyday I am afraid that [Jesus] died in vain because he is buried in our churches,
because we have betrayed His revolution in obedience and fear of authorities...
from a creed shared by Dorothee Soelle
Sometimes all the peacemakers need to do is practice revolutionary patience and
steadfast hope, for the universe bends toward justice, and the entire Christian
story demonstrates the triumph of love.
Shane Claiborne
…women who have brought men into the world and nurtured them until they
reach the age of fighting must experience a peculiar revulsion when they see them
destroyed, irrespective of the country in which these men have been born.
Jane Addams, 1931 Nobel Peace Prize recipient
The manner in which we pursue peace is, in fact, the peace…
Ruth Krall
Those of us who live by the convictions of love for the friend and foe, the life
of nonviolence, also are invited to remind ourselves that our myth that love can
and will overcome is only convincing when it is grounded in real life and actions.
Ours is a living story. It is not yet complete. Words strike the opening chord, but
the symphony is completed with action.
Gene Stoltzfus
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Resources for Witness and Action
1. Hold a public witness
Remembrance Day is a time when our nation acknowledges the pain and suffering
caused by war, but it also holds up the necessity of war. Because Canada
is currently involved in war in Afghanistan, there is a special emphasis on how
soldiers and war-fighting are necessary for the preservation of peace and freedom.
Peace churches, however, live by a different story and a different vision. They live
by the story and vision of Jesus and his peaceful revolution, of the Kingdom of
Heaven on earth, of a world without violence and without war, of a world that
builds peace through peaceful means. This vision is one to be shared and proclaimed.
MCC encourages congregations
not only to observe a Peace
Sunday worship service, but to
engage in some form of public
witness for peace during the
Remembrance Day season.
MCC encourages congregations not only to observe a Peace Sunday worship
service, but to engage in some form of public witness for peace during the Remembrance
Day season. This could include a letter to the editor, a meeting with a
Member of Parliament, or a public prayer vigil. It could also include sponsoring
an ad in your local newspaper or in a public place.
MCC Ontario has prepared extensive materials for a public prayer vigil for peace
during the Remembrance Day season. These materials include prayers, readings
and songs, as well as detailed instructions for the planning and logisitics of the
vigil. These materials are posted at http://canada.mcc.org/peacesunday
Other suggestions and how-to’s for public witness may be found in Public Witness
for Peace: A Toolkit for Christians, produced by MCC. http://mcc.org/canada/
peace/resources/toolkit.pdf
Additionally, ask your denominational conference office for peace witness resources.
2. Celebrate the peace button, “To remember is to work for
peace.”
Twenty years ago, MCC Ontario produced an alternative to the Remembrance
Day lapel poppy. It was a red button with the phrase, “To remember is to work
for peace.” The purpose of the button was to offer a gentle but clear peace message
in the context of remembrance of war. The button has changed a bit in appearance
but hundreds of buttons are still sold every year.
This year MCC is honouring the anniversary of this button by inviting people to
share their stories and photos of someone wearing the button. Visit canada.mcc.
org/peacesunday to read some of the stories and see the photos. Send your stories
and photos to peacebuttons@mennonitecc.ca.
Send your Member of Parliament a peace button. Let him/her know how you are
living for peace. Ask him/her to remember and to work for peace too.
You may order buttons from your provincial MCC office. For contact information,
visit http://mcc.org/contact/canada.html.
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3. Explore the concept of revolution.
Have your group brainstorm all the ways that they have heard the word revolution; e.g. google revolution, dance dance
revolution, French revolution, Twitter revolution. Or consider popular songs that contain messages of revolution, e.g. the
Beatles’ “talking ‘bout a revolution,” Bob Dylan’s “the times are a changing,” and much more recent ones such as Bruce
Springsteen’s “The rising” or Steve Earle’s “Jerusalem.” How do these revolutions relate to Jesus’ revolution?
Read Luke 6:20-36, Roman 3:1-3, 9-21 or other scripture texts. Learn about the Greek word metanoia, which means
conversion or turning, and how it is used in the New Testament. How do conversion and revolution relate? How did Jesus
embody revolution? Do you think Jesus’ peaceful revolution changed the world? Is it still changing the world? What are
ways that your group can offer a revolutionary witness to your community?
4. Remember peaceful revolutionaries
Read some of the stories included in this packet about people who were or are peaceful revolutionaries. Which stories resonate
with your group? Which stories do not? What stories can members of the group contribute?
Mahatma Gandhi is frequently identified as one of the key leaders of peace and nonviolent action in the 20th century. Gandhi
was a Hindu. He said something like this, “The only people who don’t know that Jesus was nonviolent are Christians.”
How do you respond?
5. Create a peaceful revolution video
Visit the MCC website called http://iamrevolting.org. Read the materials and view the videos about stopping war, living
simply and sustainably and transforming conflict. Imagine how you and your group could embody the peaceful revolution
in your community. Write a story about what you have done. Send it to peace@mennonitecc.ca and we will post it on the
website. OR have your group create its own video (no more than three minutes) that would be fitting for the peaceful revolution
website. Send a note to peace@mennonitecc.ca that you are doing this. All contributors whose videos are chosen for the
website will receive a peaceful revolution t-shirt.
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Even more resources
Books
Brown, Tricia Gates, ed. Getting in the Way: Stories from Christian Peacemaker Teams. Herald Press, 2005.
Claiborne, Shane. The Irresistable Revolution. Zondervan, 2006.
Friesen, Friesen, Duane K. and Gerald Schlabach, eds. At Peace and Unafraid: Public Order, Security, and the Wisdom of the
Cross. Herald Press, 2005.
Holsopple, Mary Yoder, Ruth E. Krall, and Sharon Weaver Pittman. Building Peace: Overcoming Violence in Communities.
WCC Publications, 2004.
Maclaren, Brian D. Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crisis and a Revolution of Hope. Thomas Nelson, 2007.
Roth, John D. Choosing Against War: A Christian View. Good Books, 2002.
Trocmé, André. Jesus and the Nonviolent Revolution. Orbis Books, 2004. Available for download at http://www.plough.com/
ebooks/nonviolentrevolution.html.
Yoder, John Howard. The Politics of Jesus. Revised edition. Eerdmans, 1994.
MCC Resources
At each small turn, choose peace. A postcard that identifies 10 daily practices that build peace. Available from provincial MCC
offices or from http://www.tng-secure.com/scripts/mcc/catalog/result.php#.
Choose your own adventure? A 12-page zine offers youth 10 questions to consider before joining the military. Available from
MCC Ontario and MCC Canada.
Pursuing Peace: The Essence of Mennonite Central Committee. Revised edition. MCC Canada, 2009. Available for purchase
for $4.65 at http://secure.mcc.org/mccstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=6_11_38&products_id=366.
To remember is to work for peace. MCC’s peace button. Available for $1.00 from provincial MCC offices (reduced prices for
bulk purchases). For addresses and phone numbers, go to http://mcc.org/contact/canada.html
MCC websites
MCC Canada’s peace ministries program. http://mcc.org/canada/peace
Join the peaceful revolution. http://iamrevolting.org
MCC provincial peace program websites:
Alberta
British Columbia
Ontario
http://mcc.org/alberta/programs/peace.html
http://mcc.org/bc/peace
http://mcc.org/ontario/peaceeducation
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