Peaceful V entures

Issue 8, Winter 2009

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

Greetings to all of our partners, brothers, andsisters! We are glad to write you once again withnews from our community.O

F OUR WORK

The first big news, which I hope many of youhave heard about by now, is that in late September,Colosimo’s Gun Center was charged by the federalgovernment and forced to close. The PhiladelphiaInquirer reported:

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tomika Stevens said the store, at 933 Spring Garden St., sold 10 gunsto three people who employees should have knownwere "straw" purchasers. A straw buyer is someonewho purchases a gun with the intention of transferring that weapon to a person prohibited by law from buying guns, such as a convicted felon.In addition to the closing, Colosimo's Inc. faces afine of up to $200,000. Reed said prosecutorsasked the court to issue a fine of at least $10,000.Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 6.

Our work around gun violence has been longand involved. These actions to hold a gun retailer responsible, are so urgently needed, and drawattention to the supply side of the gun violenceepidemic we are living in. Thank you to all of youwho have been praying and working alongside of us. We have been honored and encouraged to bea part of Heeding God’ s Call and will continue tofollow the work they are doing.This time of year brings with it manyreflections and meditation on the season, on our year, and where to go from here-- celebratingJesus' entrance into the world and the beginning of a new calendar year. Shalom House is forming asix-month focus on Encountering US Militarism, tobegin in January. We invite you to get connectedas we enter the next season.O

N OUR CONNECTIONS

We have been working on using our website asa tool to communicate more regularly with thosearound us, as well as to connect people to abroader network of peacemakers worldwide.Recently we shared with our blog readers the storyof Daoud Nassar. Mr. Nassar is a Palestinianfarmer living and working in the fertilehill country south of Bethlehem. The Nassar’s farm, in thefamily for four generations, is ringed by Jewishsettlements and the encroaching Separation Wall.The family has been offered millions for the land,but they remain steadfast. “This land is our mother,” says Daoud. “Our mother is not for sale.”To demonstrate their commitment to peace andcoexistence, the Nassar family has established“The Tent of Nations” providing arts, drama, andeducation to the children of the villages andrefugee camps of the region. In addition, Daoudand his family have also established a Women’sEducational Center offering classes in computer literacy, English, and leadership training.We also recently hosted a group of Canadiansfor an evening. We had 12 visitors from StudentChristian Movement Canada staying with us asthey made their way to the gates of Fort Benning,GA for the annual vigil and protest around theWestern Hemisphere Institute for SecurityCooperation (formerly, the School of Americas).Before turning in for the night, our visitors led atime of worship from their “SCM’s Peace andNonviolence Devotional.”Please check in often to see what we'r elearning. We are continually inspired by our brothersand sisters, our great cloudof witnesses,who are diligently plowing the way of nonviolenceand reconciliation.

Thank you for your continued prayer andsupport for the work of nonviolence andreconciliation. Stay in touch, and Merry Christmas! Amen and Amen,Mimi and Emily

HIS

SSUE

- Greetings and Update- Neighborhood Nonviolence Training- Community Living:Spirituality- Partnering with ShalomHouse-Shalom House isseeking new members- Praises and Prayer Requests

Pray with us for:

- A different approach tothe US involvement in Afghanistan than moreof a military presence.- New communitymembers, from withinCircle of Hope or beyond!

Rejoice with usfor:

-The closing of a gunshop that contributedto the gun violenceepidemic inPhiladelphia.-Continued employmentin jobs that pay our bills.- The strength of our church community,Circle of Hope, thatenvelops us.

Shalom House is Going Paperless!

We need your email address! In 2010 we will begin distributing our quarterlynewsletter in electronic format. We are working on updating our mailing lists andcontact information to include e-mail addresses as well. To update your information, please send us an email at:emily.kephart@shalomhouse.us

, with“Newsletter” in the subject line.

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

On November 14

we sponsored a 6 hour NeighborhoodNonviolence Training, bringing in trainers from

Training for Change

, to train Circle of Hope folks in nonviolent responsesto the every-day violent encounters we experience in our city.Preparation & training for a nonviolent response is necessaryif we are to answer Jesus’ call to turn the other cheek, to loveour enemies & neighbors, and to respond to violence andinjustice without responding in kind. So in the training, weexplored theory, applied the theory to practical situations,and had our imaginations ignited by stories of how thisworks!

Five Core Skills for Peacemakers:

There are many skills and attitudes which are helpful topeople who work nonviolently in the midst of conflictsituations. In a wide range of conflicts, from interpersonal tolarge-scale, there are at least five core skills whichconsistently make a difference. They are called “HELPR”skills to make them easier to remember.

Handling fear Enlisting alliesListening/observingProjecting confidenceRecalling and creating nonviolent optionsHow to De-escalate

De-escalation may have different goals: ensuring physicalsafety of everyone, reducing the likelihood of violence,keeping a relaxed environment, or reducing violence suchthat a fight can be worked out. Every situation is unique:there is no formula for reacting to a hostile situation.1. REMAIN CALM — Avoid panicking and hectic reactions.Try not to provoke reflex reactions.2. BECOME ACTIVE — Do not become paralyzed by fear. Itis better to do something small to change the situation thancontemplate big actions that you might not be able to do.3. TRY TO ESTABLISH COMMUNICATION WITH THE AGGRESSOR — Look for common ground that moves awayfrom the current situation (e.g. introduce yourself).4. LOOK FOR HELP: ENLIST ALLIES — You are likely notalone. But do not appeal to a large crowd of people for help.Make eye contact with one person and ask them for help.5. WALK AWAY — If after trying different ways, you cannotfind a successful way to de-escalate the situation, it isperfectly okay to walk away.There are excerpts from what we learned. (See our websiteatwww.shalomhouse.usfor the full

Training for Change

handouts)

How you can help:

Be a prayer partner.

We are contributing to the formation of God’sglobal network of peacemakers.

Be a financial partner.

We need to raisemoney for expenses beyond our mutualsharing.

Be a local partner.

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

Find further partners.

We have a new cohort of house memberswho join each year. We are looking for thoseGod has prepared for our community.

If you would like to share with us in thisway, make a check out to Circle Ventureand add “Shalom House” in the memo line.We are grateful for your financial support.

NEIGHBORHOOD NONVIOLENCE TRAINING

Partnering with Shalom House

Shalom House has connected with many groups and individuals over thecourse of its short two and a half years. While it is our wish to build a diverseand supportive community for anyone who may want to join us, we recognizethat there are obstacles for many people who might otherwise wish to join thecommunity: jobs, families, geography, money, etc. We encourage you toconnect in any of the additional ways listed

to the right.

Shalom House strivesto be an expression of the peace making love of Christ and we extend that toall.One of the biggest struggles in our daily tasks is figuring out how to makeShalom House work financially. We attempt to work 20-30 hours per week topay our bills, leaving a significant portion of our time to dedicate to the work of peacemaking. Every month, each Shalomer is required to contribute $625 toour common purse. Even with multiple part-time jobs, it is sometimes difficultto meet this goal, and to cover any additional personal expenses (liketransportation, health care, student loans, etc.)We would love to have you as a financial partner. Please consider thefollowing: $50 would cover SH activity fund contribution for one month for oneShalomer; $125 would cover groceries and other household expenses for oneShalomer for a month; $200 would cover our current monthly utility needs. Anysupport we have in these areas, frees us up to use our time in the active workof peacemaking.

Community Living: Spirituality

In our last newsletter we discussed someareas of our household consumption thatare affected by our attempts to live out our values of peacemaking. This month, we’dlike to share some of the spiritual details of our lives together. Shalom Houserecognizes that a growing spiritual life isparamount to a fruitful journey inpeacemaking. Spiritual nurturing andgrowth happens on individual andcommunity levels in Shalom House.Individually, each member of thecommunity meets monthly with a member of the Guidance Team for spiritual listening.This time is intended as a method of stepping back, listening for God speakinginto our lives, and discerning in whatdirections we may be called. Some thingswe have taken away from our spirituallistening hours recently have been theimportance of seeing God in the balance of tasks and people, being open to what Godhas for us in the midst of fears, and thevalue of disciplines that may take years todevelop fully. Individual personal retreatsare also encouraged 2-4 times per year. InMay Emily went on a 3-day backpackingtrip on the Chuck Keiper Trail, in central PA.In July Mimi visited a friend on the easternshore of Maryand and ChincoteagueIsland. Both trips served as a much neededretreat from the city and from the hustle of everyday life, providing space and time for deeper spiritual reflection.House Retreats are planned, as part of thecommunity rule, about 4 times a year. InOctober, Mimi and Emily spent a weekendat the Peace Hermitages on the grounds of the Medical Mission Sisters. We spent thetime in silence and meditation, prayer andreading, discussion and discernment,cooking and eating. This time was fruitfuland energizing.Shalomers begin our days together, for atime of prayer. This tradition began at thebeginning of 2009 and has been a blessingever since. This time together, centering onGod, serves as a way of opening a windowinto our lives. We have used guidedmeditations, the Celtic Book of DailyPrayer, and are currently using daily adventreadings from the Circle of Hopecommunity. Our morning meditations helpto shape our daily worldview, and center our minds on the body of Christ. Recentlywe shared a phrase prayer from our morning reflection to create a meditation onour website, and we share it with you now:

Lord, give us mercyenough for this day.

MAGE

: St. Anthony, Egyptian monastic, Desert Father.

Shalom House is an endeavor in common living andcommon mission. We work to support each other in our personal journeys of faith and peacemaking. We worktogether to compliment each others’ strengths andweaknesses, seeking to bring the peaceful Kingdom of Godto our home, our community, and our world. Through our conflicts and our fellowship, our transportation and our consumption, our work and our play we hope to realize thepeaceful and loving ways Jesus calls us to live.Is it time for you to live differently? Is it time to try a newapproach to living out the faith that calls you to build andfoster peace? Are you ready to join with others in asupportive community to build up the shalom of Philadelphiaand the world around us? Do you want to use your skills andgifts to engage others and spread the message of peace?Shalom House is looking for four new community membersto join our work and share our lives as we seek creative waysto use our gifts and meet our call. Please call, write, or emailus with any questions or to arrange a time to talk further about the possibilities of becoming part of Shalom House.We are praying for you.

A little more about this process, and how to discern thispossibility:

Think about it. A two-year commitment dedicated todeepening & applying your calling in Philadelphia andlearning about and connecting to God's worldwidecommunity of peacemakers, just might be where God isleading you.*Pray and listen for God’s leading*Learn more about us. Give us a call or send us anemail.*Fill out an application, which you can find on-line.*Meet with the Shalom House Guidance Team andHouse members*Once extended an invitation by the GuidanceTeam, move in!Shalom House welcomes young and old, single people andcouples. Please be creative in helping us grow our community! We look forward to serving with you.