Rome: Pax Christi International hosts nonviolence conference

Pax Christi International, along with the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission of the Union of Superiors General/International Union of Superiors General, has invited approximately 75 people, including theologians, church officials, and grassroots activists from around the world, to a conference in Rome, entitled 'Pope Francis, nonviolence, and the fullness of Pacem in Terris.'

The gathering begins today in Rome and continues to Wednesday, 7 December. Pat Gaffney, former General Secretary of Pax Christi England & Wales, is on the Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee. Pax Christi USA is represented at the conference by Bishop-President Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv. and national staff member Michelle Sherman. (See full list of attendees below).

"By his many messages for peace, by his own example and, explicitly in his 2017 World Day of Peace message, Pope Francis has advanced the spirit, teaching, and way of active nonviolence," said Marie Dennis, program chair of the Catholic Nonviolence Initiative, a project of Pax Christi International and the lead organizer of the meeting. "We have invited people who are grappling with nonviolence, those who are studying its many dimensions and how it applies to our Catholic faith and to our personal and collective actions, and those who are engaging with it on a daily basis in areas of conflict. We anticipate rich and challenging conversations, and a deeper understanding of how Pope Francis has been leading on this critical issue."

Participants from Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Americas, and the Middle East will explore how Pope Francis has called the Church and the world to understand and adopt the nonviolent life, which is central to the survival of life on earth and to the healing of our planet.

"Pope Francis engages the catastrophic violence which plagues our world through a consistent practice that is absolutely nonviolent," said Sr Teresia Wamuyu Wachira, IBVM, co-president of Pax Christi International and a professor at St. Paul College in Nairobi (Kenya). "His words and actions are innovative, prophetic, and shaped by the Sermon on the Mount. Today's tragic events, like the war in Ukraine, show us that we have an urgent need to shift our thinking and our priorities."

The goal of this two-day encuentro is to foster a deeper understanding across sectors of the Catholic Church of Pope Francis' teachings on the contribution of active nonviolence in divesting global violence of its deadly power, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and in fostering the well-being of the whole Earth community. Examples will suggest a way forward for developing Catholic Social Teaching and an effective Catholic contribution to the Church and the world, referencing the importance of Pacem in Terris and building on what Pope Francis has envisioned in Laudato Si, Fratelli Tutti and more.

Read more about the conference on the Catholic Nonviolence Initiative website.

Attendees:

Pietro Ameglio, SERPAJ, Mexico
John Ashworth, Kenya
Deacon Nate Bacon, InnerChange, Guatemala
Sr Adina Balan, Pax Christi International Board, Romania /Italy
Cecilia Barja, Holy See Dicastery for Integral Human Development, Listening and Dialogue Section, Latin America.
Sr Nathalie Becquart, Holy See Synod office, Rome
Rose Marie Berger, Sojourners, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Steering Committee, USA
Kai Brand Jacobsen, Romanian Peace Institute (PATRIR,) Romania
Ken Butigan DePaul University/Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee, USA
Lisa Sowle Cahill, Boston College, USA
Loreta Castro, Pax Christi Philippines, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Steering Committee, Philippines
|Angelito Cortez, OFM, Order of Friars Minor, Philippines
Emilce Cuda, Holy See Pontifical Council for Latin America, Rome
Fr John Dear, The Beatitudes Center, USA
Franco Dinelli, Pax Christi Italy
Sr Lilian Ehidiamhen, Catholic University of Leuven, Nigeria/Belgium
Yolanda Flores Montoro, DHUMA, Peru
Pat Gaffney, Pax Christi England & Wales, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee, UK.
Archbishop Paul Gallagher, Holy See Secretariat of State
Leo Guardado, Fordham University USA
Sr Filo Hirota, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee, Japan
Sr Nathalie Kangaj, CENCO, Democratic Republic of Congo
Fr Emmanuel Katongole, University of Notre Dame, Uganda/USA
Fr Budi Kleden, SVD, JPIC Commission of USG/UISG, Indonesia/Italy
Sr Sheila Kinsey, JPIC Commission of UISG/USG, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Steering Committee, USA/Italy
Bishop Peter Kohlgraf, Diocese of Mainz, Germany. Pax Christi Germany
Eliane Lakam, Pax Christi Metro DC-Baltimore, Pax Christi USA Young Adult Caucus, USA|
Fr Paul Lansu, Pax Christi International Board, Belgium
Archbishop Antonio Ledesma, SJ, Pax Christi Philippines|
Myla Leguro, Catholic Relief Services, Philippines.
Fr Antonio Lembo, Ordine dei Frati Minori (OFM) Italy
Sr Maudilia Lopez, Pastoral Defensoras de la Madre Tierra, Guatemala
Fr Nandana Manatunga, Human Rights Office, Kandy, Sri Lanka
Eli McCarthy, Georgetown University, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Steering Committee, USA|
Cardinal Robert McElroy, Diocese of San Diego, California, USA
Dan Moriarty, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, Senior Program Officer for Peace & Nonviolence, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Steering Committee, USA|
Sr Patricia Murray, Union of International Superiors General, Italy
Jasmin Nario Galace, Miriam College, Philippines
Harun Njoroge Maryknoll Peace Team Kenya
Fr Mathew Pagan Padiet, Catholic University of South Sudan, South Sudan
Wolfgang Palaver, Pax Christi Austria
Fr Rodrigo Peret, Churches and Mining Network Brazil
Martin Pilgram, Pax Christi International Board, Germany
Maria Pia Pirelli, Social Justice and Ecology Secretariat, Jesuits, Italy
Maria Pia Pirelli Nico Plooijer, PAX, Netherlands/South Sudan
Archbishop Giovanni Ricchiuti Pax Christi Italy
Sr Patricia Ryan, Pax Christi International Board, USA/Peru
Terrence Rynne, Marquette University, USA
Allen Sanchez, Archdiocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
Michelle Sherman, Pax Christi USA
Bishop Marc Stenger, Co-President, Pax Christi International, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee, France
Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky
Bishop President, Pax Christi USA
Jean Baptiste Talla, Catholic Relief Services, Cameroon/USA
Sr Sia Temu, MM, Maryknoll Sisters Peace Team, Kenya
Sr Wamuyu Wachira, IBVM, Co-President Pax Christi International, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee, Kenya
Archbishop John Wester, Archdiocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
Dr Annette Wiesheu, Pax Christi Germany
Mary Yelenick, Pax Christi International UN Team and Board USA
Ogarit Younan,Academic University College for Nonviolence & Human Rights, Lebanon
Zoughbi Zoughbi, Wi'am, Palestine

Mass Celebrant: Cardinal Michael Czerny, SJ, Holy See Dicastery for Integral Human Development

Pax Christi International staff

Cecile Azard, France - Global Network Facilitator
Dirk Broos, Belgium - Deputy Secretary General
Judy Coode USA - Project Coordinator for the Catholic Nonviolence Initiative
Marie Dennis, USA - Program Chair for the Catholic Nonviolence Initiative
Teresa DeVivo, Belgium - Fund Development Officer
Erin Green, Belgium - Communications/Asia-Pacific Coordinator
Martha Ines Romero, Colombia - Regional Coordinator, Latin America and the Caribbean, Pax Christi International Secretary General-designate
Dieudonne Serukabuza, Belgium/Rwanda - Regional Coordinator, Africa
Greet Vanaerschot, Belgium - Secretary General, Catholic Nonviolence Initiative Executive Committee