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Catholic Peacebuilding Network News Brief
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Enhancing the study and practice of Catholic peacebuilding
March 24, 2023
Network Updates
Launch events for Forbidden: Receiving Pope Francis's Condemnation of Nuclear Weapons

Forbidden: Receiving Pope Francis's Condemnation of Nuclear Weapons is part of CPN's Project on Revitalizing Catholic Engagement on Nuclear Disarmament. With essays from moral theologians, defense analysts, conflict transformation scholars, diplomats, and nuclear arms control experts, it explores the policy and pastoral implications of the Church's evolving teaching on the ethics of nuclear weapons. Chapters cover a wide range of topics, from the ethical and policy challenges of deterrence and disarmament to the moral responsibilities of politicians, military personnel, scientists, defense workers, investors, educators, and lay movements.
Two CPN partners will be hosting launch events for the book next week. 

First, Catholic University of America will host "Nuclear Reset: From Nuclear Threats to Nuclear Peace" on its campus and via livestream on Tuesday, March 28, 11:00-12:30 EDT (15:00-16:30 UTC). The panel will include five eminent scholar/ practitioners: Ambassador James E. Goodby, Brookings Institute; Pierce Corden, former division chief in the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency; Maryann Love, The Catholic University of America; Bill Barbieri, The Catholic University of America; and Richard Love, National Defense University. They will reflect on ways forward from current nuclear threats, drawing on their contributions to Forbidden. The event is co-sponsored by Catholic University’s Institute of Policy Research and Catholic Studies, Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, & World Affairs, and the Catholic Peacebuilding Network.


Second, Georgetown University's Berkley Center for Religion Peace and World Affairs will be hosting a webinar on Wednesday, March 29, from 12:00-1:00 EDT (16:00-17:00 UTC). RSVP Required. It will include David Hollenbach, SJ, Georgetown University; Kelsey Davenport, Arms Control Association; Maryann Love, The Catholic University of America; and book editor Carole Sargent, Georgetown University. This event is co-sponsored by the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs at Georgetown University; the Catholic Peacebuilding Network; the Center on Religion and Culture at Fordham University; the Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies at the Catholic University of America; and Georgetown University Press.
Overcoming Violence in Wounded Societies: Perspectives from the Colombian and Kenyan Truth Commissions

Livestream and in person (1400 16th St., NW Suite 120, Washington, DC 20036)
Wednesday, April 12
11:00-12:00 EDT / 15:00-16:00 UTC
Registration information will be available soon.


How can societies grapple with the legacies of conflict and human rights violations? How might they overcome traumatic cycles of ongoing violence? And what can spiritual traditions teach them about moving forward toward a better future? Join us for a panel discussion, hosted by the Washington, DC Office of the University of Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs, featuring widely acclaimed peacebuilder Francisco de Roux, SJ, former chair of Colombia’s Truth Commission, and Tecla Namachanja Wanjala, former vice and acting chair of Kenya’s Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission. The panel will also include Josefina Echavarría Álvarez, director of the Peace Accords Matrix program; Gloria Marcela and Karina Ruiz, two Colombian survivors living in exile; John Paul Lederach, professor emeritus at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies; and Leslie Wingender, director for peacebuilding at Humanity United.

Following the panel discussion, Humanity United invites all attendees for a special photo exhibition featuring work from Fotodiasporas, which showcases photographic works and narratives of 15 Colombians and their experiences of being forced to live in exile. Lunch will be provided for attendees after the panel discussion.

Presented by the Keough School of Global Affairs and its Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and the Georgetown Americas Institute, with the Peace Accord Matrix, the Catholic Peacebuilding Network, and support from Humanity United. 

Francisco de Roux

Former Chair, Commission for the Clarification of Truth, Coexistence and Non-Repetition, Colombia

Tecla Namachanja Wanjala

Former Vice and Acting Chair, Kenya Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission

Josefina Echavarria Alvarez

Director of the Peace Accord Matrix program, Associate Professor of the Practice

John Paul Lederach

Professor Emeritus of International Peacebuilding, Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies

Gloria Marcela

Colombian survivor of the armed conflict living in exile, participant of FotoDiaspora

Karina Ruiz

Colombian survivor of the armed conflict living in exile, participant of FotoDiasporas

Leslie Wingender (Moderator)

Director for Peacebuilding, Humanity United 

Vatican foreign policy on the Oxford Policy Pod

CPN Coordinator Gerard F. Powers appeared recently on the Oxford Policy Pod in an episode on the "Vatican's policy work in thinking and on the ground." The discussion focuses on how the Vatican tries to advance different policy themes, including around peacebuilding and ecology.
Cardinal Robert McElroy on "New and Old Wars, New and Old Challenges to Peace"
Ukraine and a new Cold War, a new nuclear arms race, “forever wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq, and forgotten wars in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Yemen. As foreign policies are being rethought in light of these new and old wars, the need for a moral compass is as great as ever.

At the height of the Cold War, two seminal documents, Pacem in terris (1963) and The Challenge of Peace (1983), provided that moral compass. In a similar way, Pope Francis’ encyclicals and statements have ignited a new debate about the ethics of nonviolence, nuclear deterrence, and war. Are nonviolence and nuclear disarmament the new moral and policy imperatives or do today’s new and old challenges to peace reinforce the need for the just war tradition and strengthened nuclear deterrence?

On March 1, the 2022-23 University of Notre Dame Forum on War & Peace hosted Cardinal Robert McElroy to discuss these issues. The panel also included Major General (ret.) Robert Latiff, Mary Ellen O'Connell, A. Rashied Omar, and moderator Gerard F. Powers.

Read more:
Watch the Recording
New special issue of The Journal of Social Encounters on mining and peacebuilding

The latest issue of The Journal of Social Encounters is a special issue on extractive politics, conflict, and peacebuilding. It features an article by CPN Assistant Director Caesar A. Montevecchio on mining, peace, and subsidiarity, and a review by Selina Gallo-Cruz of CPN's Catholic Peacebuilding and Mining: Integral Peace, Development, and Ecology. In addition to the special issue content, the issue also has expanded material from the previous special issue on peace bishops, including the text of Cardinal Robert McElroy's address at the University of Notre Dame's March 1 Forum event on War and Peace.
Global Developments
KENYA: Bishops call on national leaders to resolve political standoff

Anti-governments protests in Nairobi on March 20 led to mass arrests and the death of one student protestor. The protests have been prompted by opposition leader Raila Odinga, who has called on the national government to resign. On March 22, the Catholic bishops of Kenya held a press event and called on both the government of President William Ruto and Odinga's opposition to dialogue to end their standoff: "We believe that dialogue can resolve this dangerous standoff. The two need to establish a common ground to address the ills facing the country and restore sanity we need in our country." They also called on police to use restraint in their treatment of protestors and to refrain from excessive force, while also saying protestors should not be seeking a forceful takeover of the legitimately elected government.
SOUTH SUDAN: SSCC statement on nonviolence

The South Sudanese Heads of Churches met from March 7-10 to discuss the importance of nonviolence. According to the statement that emerged from the meeting issued by the South Sudan Council of Churches, the meeting was a response to the early February Peace Pilgrimage by Pope Francis, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, and Right Reverend Moderator Iain Greenshields. According to that statement: "[T]he Church of Christ in South Sudan, both through its individual members and its Council of Churches, recommits itself to Gospel nonviolence. lt rejects any form of violence and commits itself to a prophetic stance against violence and injustice. This is not a passive approach, not simply submitting to or colluding with violence, but it is active and prophetic in responding to all forms of violence, amongst individuals, families, clans, tribes, and political and military factions, and including systemic violence embedded in our cultural, societal, and political life."
COLOMBIA: Recognizing the crucial role of women in peacebuilding

Colombia's National Administrative Department of Statistics and UN Women recently released data on the status of women's rights, opportunities, and security for the year of 2021. The report enumerated stark inequality and numbers showing that a woman social leader or rights defender was the victim of violent of threatening behavior every 39 hours. Writing for Cáritas Colombiana, Manuela Betancur Pérez reflects on this data and highlights the important roles women in the country continue to play for peacebuilding, despite having much less presence in official management and decision-making roles. 
HOLY SEE MISSION TO THE UN: Archbishop Gabriele Caccia on women and peace and security

The UN Security Council held an open debate on March 7 on “Women and peace and security: Towards the 25th anniversary of resolution 1325 (2000).” During that session, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, issued a statement emphasizing the need to "ensure that women . . . receive opportunities to participate more fully in peace processes and in all facets of political life and decision-making processes.”
PHILIPPINES: Church supports mining protests

Residents near the town of Brooke's Point in the Palawan province have set up a protest barricade outside the offices of Ipilan Nickel Corporation to protest mining operations that would harm the area'ss precarious ecosystem. The barricade came about after the mining company refused to observe a local government order to suspend operations. Fr. Salvador Saturnino of the Puerto Princesa Cathedral celebrated mass for the protesters along with 11 other priests. He called it a Christian duty to support the protestors and help them protect the area's unique biodiversity and natural resources. Earlier in March, Bishop Socrates Mesiona of Puerto Princesa affirmed the church's support for the residents having the power to decide for themselves about the region's development: "We recognize the basis of what they are fighting for. They are the ones who know the most and are directly affected by what is happening to their environment. It is only appropriate to respect their rights and listen to their grievances."

Alyansa Tigil Mina, a mining advocacy group in the Philippines, held its Anti-Mining Solidarity Week in early March and called on the national government to listen to the demands of residents in Brooke's Point and other municipalities having similar protests.

 
Resources and Announcements
"Voices from the Amazon," at Fordham University

Saturday, March 25
11:00-12:30 EDT / 15:00-16:30 UTC
12th Floor Lounge | Lowenstein Building | Fordham University | 113 West 60th Street | New York, NY 10023

The fate of the Amazon rainforest is tied to the fate of our planet: the vast region touches eight different South American countries plus French Guiana and is home to more than 2 million indigenous peoples from almost four hundred traditional nations. Moreover, the health of Amazonia’s ecosystem is key to the ecological health of the entire world. This panel of distinguished religious leaders, activists, and theologians working to heal the Amazon will discuss the current crisis and prospects for change – and reasons for hope.

Panelists:

Cardinal Pedro Barreto, SJ, Archbishop of Huancayo in Peru, is president of the newly-created Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon (CEAMA) and a member of the Board of the Amazonic University Program (PUAM). He is an outspoken defender of human rights and the Amazonian environment and works closely with Pope Francis on these issues.

Patricia Gualinga is widely known for her work as a defender of the human rights of the Kichwa People of Sarayaku, an indigenous community in the Ecuadorian Amazon. She is also vice-president of CEAMA and a member of PUAM.

Fernando Ponce, SJ, is a Jesuit priest and President of the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador. He is a board member of AUSJAL, the association of thirty Jesuit universities in Latin America.

Carol Jeri, is human rights coordinator for Caritas, the Catholic Church’s development and relief network in Madre de Dios in the Peruvian Amazon, and participant of the Human Rights School of the Panamazon Ecclesial Network (REPAM).

Christiana Zenner is an associate professor of theology at Fordham University who writes widely on religious ecological ethics. She is the author of Just Water: Theology, Ethics, and Global Fresh Water Crises.

David Gibson, director of Fordham’s Center on Religion and Culture, will moderate the discussion.

This event is organized and co-sponsored by the Amazonic University Program which is part of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon, the Association of Jesuit Universities in Latin America, and Fordham’s Center on Religion and Culture.

Temple Tracts: Current Roman Catholic Ethics on War and Peace 
Temple Tracts are accessible e-books of 8,000 words analyzing key debates in religion and public life. Written by both established and up-and-coming authors, they engage theology with contemporary social ethics, politics, ecology, digital technology and philosophy. In a recent issue of the series, Tobias Winright and Maria Power survey statements, articles, and blog posts by Catholic theologians and ethicists – as well as by Pope Francis and the Vatican – about the war in Ukraine. The focus is on the way the war in Ukraine has called into question "the almost exclusive emphasis on Christian nonviolence that has occupied debates on war and peace in the Roman Catholic Church in recent years."
International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons call for research projects

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons is issuing a call for proposals to conduct research on nuclear weapons with a view to support nuclear disarmament activism and support underfunded research on nuclear disarmament. ICAN will consider a broad range of research topics, including but not limited to: normative approaches to nuclear weapons, including legal approaches such as the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons; nuclear weapons and injustice; nuclear weapons and production of knowledge and the political economy of nuclear weapons. Research grants will range from 5’000-10’000 CHF for a period of up to 12 months and can cover a range of research and publication activities, including fieldwork, archival research or researchers’ time to analyze previously collected data and submit an academic article in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal.

Proposals are due March 27. See the full call for proposals for submission instructions.
No Guilty Bystander: The Extraordinary Life of Bishop Thomas Gumbleton
Thomas Gumbleton, retired Auxiliary Bishop of Detroit, has long served as an outstanding voice and witness for peace and justice in the Catholic Church. From his early opposition to the Vietnam war, his work on the Bishops’ historic pastoral on nuclear weapons, to his peacemaking missions and solidarity with marginalized communities around the globe, and his promotion of reform and renewal in the church, he has offered a prophetic model of faithful discipleship.

A launch and signing event for this upcoming publication about Gumbleton will take place Thursday, July 27, from 6:30-8:00 pm EDT at Sacred Heart Parish in Detroit. To view online, go the parish's livestream feed.
Please send information on Catholic peacebuilding to cpn@nd.edu.  
 
The Catholic Peacebuilding Network (CPN) is a voluntary network of practitioners, academics, clergy and laity from around the world which seeks to enhance the study and practice of Catholic peacebuilding, especially at the local level.  CPN aims to deepen bonds of solidarity among Catholic peacebuilders, share and analyze “best practices,” expand the peacebuilding capacity of the Church in areas of conflict, and encourage the further development of a theology of a just peace.  While it is a Catholic network, CPN believes that authentic and effective Catholic peacebuilding involves dialogue and collaboration with those of other religious traditions and all those committed to building a more just and peaceful world.
Secretariat Staff:
Gerard Powers, Coordinator
Caesar Montevecchio, Assistant Director
Rev. William Headley, CSSp, Adjunct Faculty

 
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University of Notre Dame
1110 Jenkins Nanovic Halls
Notre Dame, IN 46556

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