• The third is sentimental or, if you like, moral—the, feeling which everyone ought to have that the providence of God put these supplies in the world to be used for the strengthening of life; and that it is the job of everyone to see that they are so used.

  The Story Behind the Peace Prayer of St. Francis http://www.franciscan-archive.org/patriarcha/peace.html  

The Peace Prayer of St. Francis

by an anonymous Norman c. 1915 A.D. Peace Prayer

Lord make me an instrument of your peace

Where there is hatred,
Let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is error, truth;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, Joy.

O Divine Master grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled
As to console;
To be understood,as to understand;
To be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

---

http://homepage.mac.com/fellowship/PhotoAlbum5.html

The Imagination of God

Floating Beauty

---

http://www1.ocn.ne.jp/~infinite/

A prayer for world peace in the various lanuages of the world.

note: this site has one prayer and most, if not all, of the world's flags.

---

http://www.dratomic.net/peace.html

My life has been transformed by the peace movement. I never expected something so political to become so personal; it was a subtle discovery that one cannot expect harmony in the external, if it isn’t reflected from within. Tremendous anxiety has birthed into a joyful fire that can't be extinguished. The strangest thing of all is the constant balance between the intense happiness that the process has created, in the midst of the worst crisis the world has ever faced.

---

Non DualitySalon

contributed by Mark W. Otter

Here is an e-mail from Marianne Williamson about the Global Rennaisance Alliance's "concerted, strategic grass-roots effort to support ongressman Dennis Kucinich's proposed legislation to establish a Cabinet-level Department of Peace within the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government."

Dear Friends,

At a time when it is so easy to despair regarding our chances for world peace, I write to you with an exciting idea for turning cynicism into action. Below, you will find the details regarding a
very important lobbying effort to create a U.S. Department of Peace.
I hope you will join thousands all over the country, in using your power as a U.S. citizen to turn a wonderful idea into the law of the
land. It is urgent that we act now.

Please forward this along to those you know would appreciate its value.

All my best,
Marianne Williamson

_______________________________________

LOBBY WASHINGTON TO CREATE A U.S. DEPARTMENT OF PEACE!

APRIL 6-8 CONFERENCE IN D.C./SIMULTANEOUS CALLS, E-MAILS, LETTERS
FROM AROUND THE NATION

Since its inception in l998, the Global Renaissance Alliance has been
dedicated to a marriage of spiritual and political principle. We are devoted to the creation of a new political consciousness, based upon
the nonviolent principles articulated by Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Fundamental change, in the words of Dr. King,
involves a "qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives."

In the spirit of building more deeply nonviolent social and political structures, we invite you join with us as we participate in a
concerted, strategic grass-roots effort to support Congressman Dennis Kucinich's proposed legislation to establish a Cabinet-level Department of Peace within the Executive Branch of the U.S. government.

Congressman Kucinich's legislation to create a Department of Peace focuses on individual and group responsibilities for establishing
[peace] as an organizing principle in society. The Department of Peace would focus on nonmilitary peaceful conflict resolutions, prevent violence and promote justice and democratic principles to
expand human rights. Domestically, the Department would be responsible for developing policies which address issues such as domestic violence, child abuse, mistreatment of the elderly, and other issues of cultural violence. Internationally, the Department would analyze foreign policy and make recommendations to the President on matters pertaining to national security, including the
protection of human rights and the prevention and de-escalation of unarmed and armed international conflict.

The Department would also have an Office of Peace Education. This office would work with educators in elementary, secondary and universities to develop and implement curricula instructing students in peaceful conflict resolution skills. In addition, a Peace Academy, modeled after the military service academies, would be established to provide instruction in peace education and offer opportunities for graduates to serve in programs dedicated to domestic or international
nonviolent conflict resolution. Please visit our website at
http://www.renaissancealliance.org to read the bill in its entirety, as it includes many additional peace-building proposals that will
help dismantle the structures that foster violence.

Let us create the political will to bring the Department of Peace into law. Each of us, as citizens, can lobby our own Congresspeople
and communicate effectively with our fellow citizens, to build the necessary Congressional support for the Department of Peace
legislation. The GRA will provide the necessary tools to participate in this effort, as we join in concerted lobbying for the bill as soon
as it is introduced into the House of Representatives.

To kick off this campaign, please join us in Washington D.C. on April 6th - 8th for an urgent and inspiring gathering of nonviolent activists, culminating in Congressman Kucinich's introduction of the Department of Peace legislation during the current session of Congress. Join Congressman Kucinich, Marianne Williamson and Lynn
McMullen (former Executive Director, RESULTS) for a powerful training in civics, and citizen activism. Train in the principles of deep
democracy, followed by lobbying your Congressperson and Senators to
create the political power to turn the Department of Peace legislation into law.

At a time when our nation stands on the brink of war, let us make a stand for peace. Now is a time of historical reckoning, as we are called upon not merely to protest a war, but to create the
fundamentals of a deep and lasting peace on earth. In the words of Thomas Paine, "We have it in our power to begin the world over again." Time is of the essence; let us begin now.

For more information on this campaign, or for general or registration information on our peace gathering in Washington, visit our website
at http://www.renaissancealliance.org, email us at
peace@r... or call us at (586) 754-8105. Please
help us spread the word! You can share this information with everyone you know. If you are a part of an activist network, please consider
sharing this information. In addition, if you would like to receive regular updates about this campaign, and all our work at the GRA, you
can sign up for our periodic eNewsletter by sending a blank e-mail
to: join-GRA-eNews@l...

Global Renaissance Alliance - P.O. Box 3259 Center Line MI 48015
Phone: (586) 754-8105 Fax: (586) 754-8106
http://www.renaissancealliance.org - peace@r...

_______________________________________

CAMPAIGN FOR PEACE

1) Read the Bill
2) How to Lobby
3) Conference in Washingtom
4) Additional Way to Help Us
5) Contribute to the GRA
6) Highlights from Department of Peace Legislation

READ THE BILL:

Please visit our website at http://www.renaissancealliance.org to
read the latest draft of the proposed legislation. GRA peace circles are a perfect vehicle for reading and discussing the legislation with
others. You can also learn more about Peace Circles in you community on our site.

HOW TO LOBBY:

There are two primary steps to our lobbying effort. First, please join us in Washington D.C. for the bill's introduction in Congress.
At that time, each person will visit their Congressperson's office to lobby support for the bill. We will provide information in advance,
concerning appointments with your Congressional representative.

For those of you who cannot be with us on April 6th - 8th in Washington, we will post the bill's number as soon as it is introduced. You can then immediately phone or fax your Congressperson
to express your support. Between those who visit the Capital that day to lobby in person, and those around the country who express their
support by phone or fax, our goal is to create a solid blanket of support for the bill throughout Congress.

In addition to calling or faxing on that day, we will, once the bill is introduced, have on our website a downloadable postcard with which
you can lobby your representatives. We urge each of you to enroll ten people, in addition to yourself, to fill out the postcard and send it
to their Congresspeople. Ask each of them, as well, to hand out ten more. An additional point: in truth, a hand-written letter, sent or
faxed, is considered more significant than a pre-printed postcard or e-mail. If you express, in your own words, your reasons for supporting a Department of Peace, your support will carry greater weight in the political process. On our website you will also find many additional ways in which you can participate in your community
on an ongoing basis-- to help educate and lobby for this important legislation.

CONFERENCE IN WASHINGTON DC:

During our conference on April 6-8, we will hold seminars on Nonviolent Principles and Civics/Lobbying Training, led by Marianne
Williamson and Lynn McMullen along with a presentation by Congressman Kucinich on the Department of Peace legislation. In addition, we will travel together to the Capitol to lobby our representatives. Please visit our website for the full information.

WAYS YOU CAN HELP:

Whatever your particular interest or skill set, there is probably a way for your unique talents to make a difference in this effort.
Especially if you have a background in computer technology or political organizing, we could use your help. Please call Debbie Urben or Matthew Albracht at our office, (586) 754-8105, or e-mail
them at peace@r...

CONTRIBUTE TO THE GRA:

Please generously donate to the GRA, that we might continue to provide these kinds of spiritual/political resources. Your tax-
deductible contributions are deeply appreciated. Every dollar makes a difference! Whether financially or in spirit, we cannot do this kind
of work without your support. You can donate online at:
https://www.securedservers.net/renaiss/membership.html

_______________________________________

"The time for peace is now. At the dawn of a new millennium, there is no better time to review age old challenges with new thinking that
peace is not only the absence of violence, but the presence of a higher evolution of human awareness with respect, trust and integrity toward humankind. Our founding fathers recognized that peace was one of the highest duties of the newly organized free and independent states. But too often, we have overlooked the long-term solution of peace for instant gratification of war. This continued downward spiral of violence must stop to ensure that future generations will live in peace and harmony." -Congressman Dennis Kucinich

_______________________________________

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PEACE LEGISLATION

Hold peace as an organizing principle in our society; Endeavor to promote justice and democratic principles to expand human rights;

Strengthen non-military means of peacemaking;

Work to create peace, prevent violence, divert from armed conflict, use field-tested programs, and develop new structures in non-violent
intervention, mediation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and structured mediation of conflict;

Address matters both domestic and international in scope; Submit to the President recommendations for reductions in weapons of mass destruction, and make annual reports to the President on the sale of arms from the United States to other nations, with analysis of the impact of such sales on the defense of the United States and how such
sales effect peace;

Encourage the development of initiatives from local communities, religious groups, and nongovernmental organizations;

Facilitate the development of peace summits at which parties to a conflict may gather under carefully prepared conditions to promote
non-violent communication and mutually beneficial solutions; and Develop new programs that relate to the societal challenges of school violence, guns, racial or ethnic violence, violence against gays and lesbians, and police-community relations disputes;

Sponsor country and regional conflict prevention and dispute resolution initiatives, create special task forces, and draw on local, regional, and national expertise to develop plans and programs
for addressing the root sources of conflict in troubled areas;

Provide for the training of all United States personnel who administer postconflict reconstruction and demobilization in war-torn
societies; Sponsor country and regional conflict prevention and dispute resolution initiatives, create special task forces, and draw
on local, regional, and national expertise to develop plans and programs for addressing the root sources of conflict in troubled areas;

EDUCATIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES- The Secretary shall-- (1) develop a peace education curriculum, which shall include studies of-- (A) the
civil rights movement in the United States and throughout the world, with special emphasis on how individual endeavor and involvement have
contributed to advancements in peace and justice; and (B) peace agreements and circumstances in which peaceful intervention has
worked to stop conflict; (2) in cooperation with the Secretary of Education-- (A) commission the development of such curricula and make
such curricula available to local school districts to enable the utilization of peace education objectives at all elementary and
secondary schools in the United States; and (B) offer incentives in the form of grants and training to encourage the development of State
peace curricula and assist schools in applying for such curricula;
(3) work with educators to equip students to become skilled in achieving peace through reflection, and facilitate instruction in the ways of peaceful conflict resolution;

________________________________________

Global Renaissance Alliance
P.O. Box 3259 Center Line MI 48015

http://www.renaissancealliance.org
office@r... (586)754-8105 (586)754-8106 fax
_______________________________________

"Just as there is a so-called art of waging war, so there is an art of waging peace." -Marianne Williamson

http://www.mariannewilliamson.com

---

http://wecomeinpeace.free.fr/

We Come In Peace

note: you could use a chuckle, you know you could,

this is a funny interactive flash presentation.

---

http://peace.mennolink.org/articles/mar18.html

Peace Prayer Vigil--March 18, 1998

Litany of Lamentation

note: this is a bit heavier than the previous site

"Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house…Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly." (Isaiah 58: 6-8)

---

http://www.mlkonline.com/quotes.html

A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.

Martin Luther King, Jr., Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, 1967.

---

http://www.aromate.com/Products/Gospel/102_view.htm

PA102/202 SPIRITUAL CARTOON AIR FRESHENERS

note: silly, isn't it?

---

http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15325

note: contributed by Diana on the Nonduality Salon list

A U.N. Resolution for Peace?

By Jeremy Brecher, AlterNet
March 6, 2003

If the U.S. attacks Iraq without support of the U.N. Security Council, the world is not powerless to stop it. Employing a legal procedure called "Uniting for Peace," the U.N. General Assembly can demand an immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

This alternative is neither utopian nor impractical. It has been employed ten times in the past at the behest of the United States.

---

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_757922.html?menu=news.quirkies

Ananova:

Wives of pro-war German MPs urged to impose sex ban

Anti-war politicians in Germany are urging the wives of pro-war MPs to cut off their husband's conjugal rights.

Two leading SPD politicians, both women, say a sex ban would be more effective than burning candles for peace, singing songs or chaining themselves to gates.

They are demanding that anti-war wives of war-mongering MPs hit them where it hurts and ban them from sex until they see sense.

SPD women's affairs spokesman Monica Lochner-Fischer, 50, and SPD party vice president Johanna Werner-Muggendorfer, 52, said the idea was nothing new.

They say it dates back to 410AD when the Greek poet Aristophanes wrote his play Lysistrata about the wives of warriors who tried to end the 20 year war between Athens and Sparta with a sex ban.

Ms Werner-Muggendorfer said: "We think it's a great idea. Women should be heard when it comes to stopping war, and a sex ban is one of the things we can do.

"Our Chancellor of course will not have to go without, as he is against the war."

---

http://www.peaceprayerday.com/theevent.htm

 

 

1-877-70 PEACE

SUMMER 2003 Located in the beautiful  Jemez Mountains above Española, New Mexico Book Nook

Seeds For The Soul

by Chuck Hillig

--- In NondualitySalon@yahoogroups.com, "Chuck Hillig" wrote:

Hi Gang,

     Well, my latest book "Seeds for the Soul," is now available to be
purchased online at:   www.trafford.com/robots/03-0207.html.    The
book is a combination of eastern nondualism, western psychology
and "advice" on living-in-the-world-in-the-light-of-"who"-we-really-are.   The
linked webpage also has a sampling of 15 pages from the book so that you have
the opportunity to taste a few of the "Seeds" first before making your
decision.  The book is already scheduled to be published in Russian
towards the end of the year.   Enjoy!

                  With Blessings,
 
                           Chuck Hillig  (www.blackdotpubs.com)

---

Readers Write Back

Dear Moderators,

Thank you so much for everything you share.  I read a quote on the Highlights a couple of days ago that was attributed to Nelson Mandela's inaugural speech in 1994 that was really touching.  Coincidentally (a couple of days later), I came across the same quote by Marianne Williamson, which prompted me to do a little bit of googling. 

http://www.skdesigns.com/internet/articles/quotes/williamson.html

I never directly contribute to the highlights, but I truly appreciate what's in them.  Thank you again :)

sent with love and appreciation,

Mahyar

---

And now, for something different - from Terry Jones of Monty Python's Flying Circus fame:

Comment
I'm losing patience with my neighbours, Mr Bush

Terry Jones
Sunday January 26, 2003
The Observer

I'm really excited by George Bush's latest reason for bombing Iraq: he's running out of patience. And so am I!

For some time now I've been really pissed off with Mr Johnson, who lives a couple of doors down the street. Well, him and Mr Patel, who runs the health food shop. They both give me queer looks, and I'm sure Mr Johnson is planning something nasty for me, but so far I haven't been able to discover what. I've been round to his place a few times to see what he's up to, but he's got everything well hidden. That's how devious he is.

As for Mr Patel, don't ask me how I know, I just know - from very good sources - that he is, in reality, a Mass Murderer. I have leafleted the street telling them that if we don't act first, he'll pick us off one by one.

Some of my neighbours say, if I've got proof, why don't I go to the police? But that's simply ridiculous. The police will say that they need evidence of a crime with which to charge my neighbours.

They'll come up with endless red tape and quibbling about the rights and wrongs of a pre-emptive strike and all the while Mr Johnson will be finalising his plans to do terrible things to me, while Mr Patel will be secretly murdering people. Since I'm the only one in the street with a decent range of automatic firearms, I reckon it's up to me to keep the peace. But until recently that's been a little difficult. Now, however, George W. Bush has made it clear that all I need to do is run out of patience, and then I can wade in and do whatever I want!

And let's face it, Mr Bush's carefully thought-out policy towards Iraq is the only way to bring about international peace and security. The one certain way to stop Muslim fundamentalist suicide bombers targeting the US or the UK is to bomb a few Muslim countries that have never threatened us.

That's why I want to blow up Mr Johnson's garage and kill his wife and children. Strike first! That'll teach him a lesson. Then he'll leave us in peace and stop peering at me in that totally unacceptable way.

Mr Bush makes it clear that all he needs to know before bombing Iraq is that Saddam is a really nasty man and that he has weapons of mass destruction - even if no one can find them. I'm certain I've just as much justification for killing Mr Johnson's wife and children as Mr Bush has for bombing Iraq.

Mr Bush's long-term aim is to make the world a safer place by eliminating 'rogue states' and 'terrorism'. It's such a clever long-term aim because how can you ever know when you've achieved it? How will Mr Bush know when he's wiped out all terrorists? When every single terrorist is dead? But then a terrorist is only a terrorist once he's committed an act of terror. What about would-be terrorists? These are the ones you really want to eliminate, since most of the known terrorists, being suicide bombers, have already eliminated themselves.

Perhaps Mr Bush needs to wipe out everyone who could possibly be a future terrorist? Maybe he can't be sure he's achieved his objective until every Muslim fundamentalist is dead? But then some moderate Muslims might convert to fundamentalism. Maybe the only really safe thing to do would be for Mr Bush to eliminate all Muslims?

It's the same in my street. Mr Johnson and Mr Patel are just the tip of the iceberg. There are dozens of other people in the street who I don't like and who - quite frankly - look at me in odd ways. No one will be really safe until I've wiped them all out.

My wife says I might be going too far but I tell her I'm simply using the same logic as the President of the United States. That shuts her up.

Like Mr Bush, I've run out of patience, and if that's a good enough reason for the President, it's good enough for me. I'm going to give the whole street two weeks - no, 10 days - to come out in the open and hand over all aliens and interplanetary hijackers, galactic outlaws and interstellar terrorist masterminds, and if they don't hand them over nicely and say 'Thank you', I'm going to bomb the entire street to kingdom come.

It's just as sane as what George W. Bush is proposing - and, in contrast to what he's intending, my policy will destroy only one street.  

  a final funny - things you don't see every day   http://teamhouse.tni.net/scrapbook/Epp/dontsee/dont_see.htm