'Unarmed, disarming peace' training and conference held in Rome

Image: Pax Christi USA

Source: Pax Christi USA

From September 2-8, Pax Christi International's Catholic Institute for Nonviolence held a nonviolence training attended by 40+ people followed by a two-day conference, 'Unarmed and Disarming Peace: The Church's Emerging Paradigm Shift to Gospel Nonviolence,' with over 75 participants, including National Council, staff and other members of Pax Christi USA.

On September 11, participants spent the day in Assisi, walking a pilgrimage led by Fr Michael Lasky OFM Conv that focused on a commitment to peace and nonviolence in the spirit of Saint Francis and Saint Clare.

The gathering was inspired by Pope Leo XIV's call from the first moment of his pontificate for people worldwide to become unarmed and disarming peacemakers.

The assembly received a message of support from Pope Leo, who encouraged the participants to continue their mission of promoting throughout the world a culture of peace, justice and reconciliation, rooted in the Gospel. The Pope's message was delivered by Archbishop Giovanni Ricchiuti, president of Pax Christi Italy.

At a moment when humanity faces escalating wars, militarisation, nuclear threats, ecological collapse, forced displacement, and deepening polarisation, conference participants shared a hunger for hope over fear, love over hate, dialogue over domination, peace over war, and nonviolence over violence.

The conference was deeply impacted by the concrete experiences of participants from 55 countries, many in communities facing geopolitical threats and violence, including Palestine, South Sudan, Cameroon, Colombia and Guatemala.

Participants emphasized the importance of education and formation in Gospel nonviolence throughout the Church, in seminaries, universities, schools, and parishes, with a special focus on youth and young adults.

Theologians, practitioners, researchers, peacebuilders, activists, and Church leaders present discussed the most recent interdisciplinary research on the effectiveness of nonviolent action. Among conference topics were: nonviolent strategies such as civilian based defense in the the context of war; migration and active nonviolence in the context of democratic backsliding; unarmed civilian protection (UCP); nonviolent strategies to protect the land, water, culture; "legitimate defence" in the nonviolence paradigm; and approaches to promoting nonviolence in contexts of "everyday" structural and cultural violence.

Reflections on the 'Doctrine of Gospel Nonviolence,' on 'Moving Nonviolence to the Heart of the Catholic Church' and on the 'Significance of the Catholic Church's Embrace of Gospel Nonviolence' helped ground the conversation during the two-day meeting. The conference emphasised that the urgency of our historical moment demands more than condemning war or trying to limit violence. It calls for a comprehensive vision capable of preventing violence before it erupts, healing wounds, protecting human dignity, transforming conflicts without violence, and building just and lasting peace.

In his message to the conference, Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, the archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar, a nation beset by war and tremendous violence, declared, "We need a new paradigm. Nonviolent strategies are not a lack of defense; they are a more effective form of defense. We operationalize legitimate defense today through civilian-based defence, unarmed civilian protection, and active nonviolent resistance." Watch Cardinal Bo's presentation here on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9nspSlEo1k

Participants in the Unarmed and Disarming Peace conference affirmed their own commitment to promoting the moral imagination, spiritual resources, and practical capacities necessary to make peace withoutarms and committed to supporting Catholic leadership, institutions, and communities as the Church moves in this critically important direction.