Peaceful Ventures

issue 6, Summer 2009

A newsletter from Shalom House -- a community of proactive Christian peacemakers started by Circle of Hope

It has been a busy three months since you last heard fromus. For one thing, we have moved on from the dim season of winter squash and root vegetables, and sprung into a new seasonof our CSA (community supported agriculture) share, with moreweekly fresh produce than we know what to do with. And we aretrying our hand at growing some veggies in the back patio as well.We are thankful. In this season, it is not just our produce that hasbeen transitioning and developing.This summer Shalom House will celebrate its secondbirthday! This is a time of looking back from where we've come,and looking ahead at where we'll go! In honor of this milestoneJane Clinton, the leader of our guidance team, has put together atimeline of the life of Shalom House thus far. The condensedversion of the timeline is included in the newsletter, with a noteguiding you to check out the fuller version on-line. As part of closing in on our two-years, we are preparing tosend off Brian Shingldecker and Adam Malliet, as they havecompleted their two-year commitment, and will be moving on atthe end of June. Both Brian and Adam have contributed atremendous amount of love, faith, and dedication to the missionand community of Shalom House. We don't intend to let them getfar.The house and the guidance team will also be saying farewellto guidance team member Randy Nyce. Randy and his family willbe moving in the near future. We wish them well, and thankRandy for all of his insight, support, and vision over the years,seeing this mission through.In April, after much prayer and discernment, Tandi Book hasdecided to leave Shalom House, and pursue another path for her life. We miss her energy and joy and are thankful for the hugeimprint she has left from future generations of Shalomers. ShalomHouse is celebrating our two-year anniversary.We have continued our monthly discussion times. In Marchwe took the discussion time “on the road” and attended the Circleof Hope network training: Living as and Agent of Change in theNeighborhood, with pastor Brian Robinson. In April we looked at“How not to avoid conflict” with a discussion based on Matthew 18and dealing with interpersonal conflict, and its importance as apeacemaking practice. May’s discussion was inspired by theannual Interfaith Walk for Peace & Reconciliation, which Emilyattended earlier in May. Although various friends andacquaintances of other faiths were invited to come and join us inthis conversation, none were able to attend. So, as a room full of Christians, we discussed some of the reasons we think interfaithdialogue is important and shared some of our own experiences.We hope to continue the work of interfaith peacemaking andreconciliation.May’s bookends were focused on Interfaith dialogue, withwhat felt like immense volumes of peacemaking in between. OnMay 13 Shalom House held what we hope will be the first of anannual Shalom House Festival. We invited our friends to come,share original peacemaking songs, stories of violence andpeacemaking, and pots of soup for all! Over 80 people joined us.This was a great opportunity for our extended community of Peacemakers to come together, to see where we’re going, tosupport each other in this journey.Just shy of two-weeks after the festival, we rallied around theHeeding God’s Call 12, who went on trial for their arrests atColosimo’s Gun Center in January. More than 150 poured into thecourtroom in the Criminal Justice Center, so much that the trialwas moved to a larger courtroom before it began. The testimoniesof the 10 defendants were relevant and powerful. In addition tothe trial itself, Heeding God’s Call organized a mid-day rallyoutside of City Hall, which was well attended. The installation of 350 t-shirts, representing each person who has been shot andkilled in the last year in Philadelphia, Camden & Chester, was apowerful visual message, and great conversation starter withpassers-by. More information including news articles, testimony,and photos are available on-line.The trial, the festival, the discussions, the transitions. All of these things are deepening our roots in the work of Peacemaking,and pointing our branches ahead in the work that needs to bedone.

purpose and direction in life. I had finished grad school, worked as acommunity organizer for a neighborhood non-profit in north Philadelphia, takensome time to work on electoral issues in the fall of 2008, and there I was inwhat Dr. Seuss calls “the waiting place”. Life experiences and lessons learnedhave defined the “more” i was looking for.My formal education has been in Social Work; a profession that seeks toidentify and understand injustices and inequities in our society and works toovercome those on individual, group, and community levels. My work as achild welfare caseworker revealed the many systemic injustices and issues weas people have to face in our daily lives. The work of creating better systems–systems that take people, families, and individual circumstances into account–will never be done. But it is important work.From my days as a caseworker I moved to the rural coast of northern Peru,where I worked to establish a community-based ministry of social, economic,and spiritual development. I lived and worked in Peru for 5 months; anincredibly brief time that left so much to be learned and done. In 2006-2007 Iattended grad school at Temple University for Community & Policy SocialWork, creating my own specialization in international community development. At the same time I interned with the American Friends Service Committee(AFSC), in the iraq program. Our work at that time was focused ongovernment funding for the wars and occupation in iraq & Afghanistan andraising awareness of the rapidly growing internally displaced people (IDP) andrefugee crisis there.The lessons of Peru, grad school, and AFSC acted to solidify myunderstanding and belief that our actions have consequences, our policies and“power” as a country carry with them an actual responsibility in the rest of theworld. An existence where I ignore the effects of my government andcountrymen/women around the globe is unimaginable. I have had the distinctpleasure of knowing and recognizing great work being done by individuals andorganizations around the world, and that gives me hope. But I know that thereis much work to be done to raise awareness and exert collective pressure toaffect the kind of change that would reconcile the people of this world. And then there’s Jesus. My belief that this kind of reconciliation is possiblecomes from the belief that Christ can, and wants to, make all things new.Circle of Hope has become my family and my community here. I amcontinually trying to work out my faith and what it means in my life with thefolks here. I am learning a lot about what peace is from my relationships andinteractions here. I am working to understand what healthy conflict looks like,and why it is necessary for healthy communities.My understanding of justice, and sometimes peace, has been decidedlysecular for much of my life. I am excited to learn what my faith has to sayabout peace and justice. I am convinced that it is my faith, and understandingof the love God has for us as people, that has informed my views on humanrights, justice, and responsibility. I hope to see many of you on that journey.

Newest Shalom House Member Emily Kephart

I was born and raised in rural Pennsylvania; Imoved to “the city” in June 2006. I’d traveled to andlived in a lot of places, but somehow Center Cityseemed like the furthest I’d ever been from home. Almost 3 years later, and quite unexpectedly, I amhappy to call this place home. I drink a lot of coffee,enjoy folk music, like backpacking, and travel.My decision to join the community at Shalom Housecame at a time when I was looking for renewed

How you can help:

Be a prayer partner.

We are contributing to the formation of God’s networkof peacemakers around the globe.

Be a local partner.

Sign up at our website:www.shalomhouse.us to be on the Circle of Peacemakers Listserve andparticipate in our dialogue and actions.

Find further partners.

We have a new cohort of house members who joineach year. We are looking for those God has preparedfor our community.

Be a contributing partner.

We need to raise moneyfor expenses beyond our mutual sharing.If you would like to share with us in this way, make acheck out to Circle Venture and add “Shalom House”in the memo line. Please use the enclosed envelopeat your convenience. Thank you for your financialsupport.

Pray with us:

- For Brian and Adam as they leave Shalom House andenter into the next part of their lives. We are forever grateful for their presence and contributions to ShalomHouse over the last 2 years.- For Tandi as she has transitioned out of Shalom Houseand also as she prepares for a Young Adult LearningDelegation to Colombia with Mennonite CentralCommittee this summer.- For the next four people to join the community and workof Shalom House this summer.- For our house guest who is struggling to settle in theU.S. as she works to support her family back home inNigeria.

Rejoice with us:

- Jobs that cover the bills and are related to the work of peace.- An outpouring of hundreds of people of faith who putgun violence on trial on May 26th in Philadelphia to saywe will care for our sisters and brothers and that theviolence must be called out.- A successful Shalom House festival with new originalpeacemaking songs, storytelling and vision casting.

Shalom House Timeline

by Jane Clinton, Guidance Team Leader

On the following page you will find a condensedtimeline of our first two years as a community.Please visit our website for the entire narrative.Thank you for your prayers and support that havemade this possible, and for continuing to grow alongwith us! (Continued p. 3)

*Shalom HouseTimeline

2001

Rod White goes to Columbiaand conceives of Shalom House as away to make a peaceful impact in theworld

2006

Brian Baughan works on grantsto fund an intentional community calledShalom House

June 2007

The Shalom HouseGuidance Team and Founding Four members of Shalom House meet todiscuss the mission.“

Stand firm then, with the belt of truthbuckled around your waist, with thebreastplate of righteousness in place,and with your feet fitted with thereadiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” Eph 6:15: scripture which wegathered around at the first meeting

The Founding Four are: BrianBaughan, Mimi Copp, Adam Malliet andBrian Shingledecker.The Guidance Team are: Jane Clinton,Randy Nyce, Missy Stoner, Gwen Whiteand Rod White

July 2007

The Founding Four moveinto Shalom House in Germantown for atwo-year commitment

September 2007

ShalomHouse holds a vigil for the InternationalDay of Peace--This becomes an annualtradition

“Proactive peacemaking is about beingin disturbed waters... In these disturbed places of violence, injustice, conflict,worry, anxiety, abuse, Jesus will meet us... This is the inner peace we seek sothat we can continue to seek the Shalomof the City.” -- Mimi

Fall 2007

Shalom House sets up acommon pot to share money and debt.Brian Shingledecker helps to establishand manage the fund.

Spring 2008

Sarah White joinsthe Guidance Team

May 2008

Shalom House movesto a permanent home in West Philly

July 2008

Tandi Book and KristanMenzel move into Shalom House for atwo-year commitment

Fall 2008

Tandi restructures theway the household buys and preparesfood

“Shalom House decided to vote with itsdollars and buy food in a way that reflected peaceful values. [It] was also peacemaking because I made the effort to meet everyone where they were at,working so we could all be on the same page.” -- Tandi

October 2008

Brian Baughanleaves Shalom House

November 2008

Kristan beginsmonthly peace discussions—thisbecomes a monthly event

“So I learned that making peace is aheartbreaking endeavor, one we can not avoid, but one that will yield only small victories. Peacemaking is something wedo out of obedience and not out of effectiveness; it is ultimately waiting for Jesus to come back and set everythingright.” -- Adam

December 2008

The GuidanceTeam regroups, makes observationsabout the House and uses thoseobservations to refocus on the Mission of proactive peacemaking in an intentionalcommunity. The Team asks the House todevelop a Rule

January 2009

Mimi becomes amember of the Guidance Team.Guidance Team and House evaluatefinances and devise a sustainablemethod of sharing expenses.Mimi participates in nonviolent directaction by protesting the illegal sale of guns by Colosimo’s gun shop inPhiladelphia. She and 11 others arearrested.The House works on the Rule, whichdescribes the discipline of communityand spirituality and specifies theconnection to Jesus as the Prince of Peace and role model for this missionKristan Menzel leaves Shalom House

February 2009

The House andGuidance Team work on implementingthe Rule and planning the new financialstructure

“The challenges of Shalom House, or morespecifically Jesus’ call for peacemaking, have deepened my yearning to have a more intimate and consistent relationship with Jesus.” --Mimi

March 2009

Emily Kephart movesinto Shalom House for a two-year commitmentTandi Book leaves Shalom HouseShalom House sets up a Facebookpage (Become a fan!)

April 2009

Shalom Housedevelops a 6-month plan focusing workaround the issue of gun violence

“Through my participation in an act of nonviolent direct action against gunviolence, I experienced the necessity and power of community in making peace. Actually, I’d say there is no other way tomake peace than in community withothers. This is something one cannot doby herself.”

Mimi

May 2009

80 people attendShalom House Festival: an evening of story-telling, music and foodMimi and her 11 co-defendants areacquitted of all charges against themfrom their January arrests at Colosimo’sgun

shop

June 2009

We prepare to send off Adam Malliet and Brian Shingledecker astheir two-year commitment endsWe continue to solicit applications fromprospective Shalom House members.

“Shalom House has taught me better where Jesus is going, and as a result I feel like I am able to better follow him.The centrality of "Love your enemies" inthe Gospels radically changed how I follow Jesus.” -- Adam

Please check us out online atwww.shalomhouse.us or on Facebook for information on upcoming events.