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Bring the world closer

Requests are now being received for International Peacemakers and for an Interfaith Listening Team who will itinerate from September 26–October 20. From now through June 15, presbyteries, synods and Presbyterian educational institutions may submit a request for an International Peacemaker from Peru, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Russia, India, Portugal, China, Mexico, Romania, Syria, Colombia or Israel/Palestine. The Interfaith Listening Team hails from Pakistan.

• 2008 International Peacemakers brochure and request form
• 2008 Interfaith Listening Team brochure and request form

For more information, please contact Debby Vial at (888) 728-7228 x5702 or Bryan Reiff at (888) 728-7228 x5786.

Encounter with Ethiopia

A Travel/Study Seminar • November 5-15, 2008

In cooperation with the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program, the Interfaith Relations Office and the Presbyterian World Mission Africa Office invite you to travel and study in Ethiopia.

Participants will meet the people and learn about the ministries of our partner church, especially its peacemaking work. The group will explore the culture of Ethiopia and gain some understanding of the dynamics among its religions and peoples. Participants will join Mekane Yesus seminary students in an interfaith relations seminar, share a meal with PC(USA) mission personnel and visit peacemaking projects in Addis Ababa and Jimma (where the coffee bean was first cultivated and where coffee is still proudly produced!).

Staff: Debby Vial, Presbyterian Peacemaking Program; Jay Rock, Interfaith Relations Office; and Michael Weller, PC(USA) Regional Liaison in the Horn of Africa.

Cost: $1,400 includes all lodging and meals, but does not include airfare from your home to Ethiopia (roughly $1,600) and visa expense (roughly $100).

For more information, call Debby Vial at (888) 728-7228 x5702 or email Bryan Reiff.

Download a flyer to share information about this travel/study seminar.

2008 Presbyterian Peacemaking Conference

Sowing Mustard Seeds: Working for God’s Justice — Confronting Poverty

July 15-19, 2008 
Chapman University
Orange, California

Today globalization creates new forms of poverty with more extreme disparities between the rich and the poor. The annual income of the richest 1 percent is equal to that of the poorest 57 percent, and 24,000 people die each day from poverty and malnutrition. The majority of those in poverty are women and children. The number of people living in absolute poverty on less than one dollar per day continues to increase (Accra Confession. World Alliance of Reformed Churches, 2004). In 2006, as many as 36.5 million people in the United States lived in poverty (U.S. Census Bureau).

Jesus calls us to be aware of the systems that impoverish people and, through the parable of the mustard seed, teaches us of the power of small acts of peaceful resistance to crack those systems open.

Find out more about the 2008 Peacemaking Conference. Download a conference registration form and brochure.

Apply for a scholarship or to serve as a theological student worker.

Travel study opportunities

Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Syria
Presbyterian Peace Fellowship
May 10–25, 2008

Northern Ireland
Presbyterian Committee on Northern Ireland
August 18–31, 2008

Colombia
Equal Exchange Interfaith Program and Witness for Peace
October 18-28, 2008

Upcoming events

April 2008

• April 20-22: Calming the storm: Middle East peacemaking in a turbulent time — Churches for Middle East Peace Advocacy Conference

July 2008

• July 15–19: Presbyterian Peacemaking Conference
• July 28–August 3: Peace and Justice Week at Ghost Ranch

August 2008

• August 4-10: Multicultural Institute at Ghost Ranch

September 2008

• September 15-17: Peacemaking Colloquium at Stony Point
• September 26 — October 20: International Peacemakers

October 2008

• October 5: World Communion Sunday and Peacemaking Offering

About the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program

The Presbyterian Peacemaking Program was created in 1980 by action of the General Assembly of the former United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America adopted Peacemaking: The Believers' Calling.

The work of the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program is guided by three affirmations outlined in Peacemaking: The Believers' Calling:

• The church is faithful to Jesus Christ when it is engaged in peacemaking.
• The church is obedient to Jesus Christ when it nurtures and equips God's people as peacemakers.
• The church bears witness to Christ when it nurtures the moral life of the nation for the sake of peace in the world.

Our work

For more than twenty-five years, the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program has been helping the church grow in its witness and commitment to peacemaking. We have developed a variety of resources, events and programs that assists the church as it responds to the gospel calling to "Seek peace and pursue it." Our work includes:

• Conferences/Seminars
• International Peacemakers and Travel Study Seminars
• Leadership Development and Support
• The Presbyterian United Nations Office
• Resources and Publications
• Young Adult Peacemaking Leadership Development

Looking for someone?

Try the Peacemaking Program staff directory.

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