Muslim, Christian, Jewish Leaders Release Joint Peace Statement
July 15th, 2003 by sfuqua
April 30, 2003, CHICAGO - As President Bush prepared his Thursday evening address to announce “the end of the Iraq war,” more than 75 Muslim, Christian, Jewish and other faith leaders from across the United States converged on Chicago to issue a set of principles to lead toward a peaceful future. The summit addressed the humanitarian, spiritual and civil costs of war and its ramifications here at home.
From Worldwide Faith News
Date: Wed, 30 Apr 2003 17:39:44 -0700
April 30, 2003, CHICAGO - As President Bush prepared his Thursday evening
address to announce “the end of the Iraq war,” more than 75 Muslim,
Christian, Jewish and other faith leaders from across the United States
converged on Chicago to issue a set of principles to lead toward a
peaceful future. The summit addressed the humanitarian, spiritual and
civil costs of war and its ramifications here at home.
The summit participants’ “Urgent Call for Reflection, Hope and Action”
calls on the President to:
- draw back from the use and threat of “first strike” war;
- draw back from unilateral US control over the reconstruction of Iraq;
- bring the US occupation to a prompt end by transferring to the United
Nations and multilateral, non-governmental organizations the authority to
work with the Iraqi people toward Iraq’s own reconstruction; - make available US resources as part of a world effort to serve the
needs and decisions of the Iraqi people.
The religious leaders also called on all people of faith to make this a
time of deliberate reflection and to gather in town meetings, teach-ins
and other community forums “to explore what kind of society we seek to
become.” In a second document, titled “Words of Reflection,” they called
for a national day of prayer and reflection, with a special emphasis on
interfaith gatherings. “We further call on the President to distance
himself from religious leaders who demonize the faith of others,” they
said, and urged Americans not to forget “the continuing suffering of the
Iraqi people, which demands large-scale international humanitarian
relief.”
Full texts of the “Urgent Call” and “Words of Reflection” follow. A list
of summit participants will be released Thursday or Friday.
AN URGENT CALL FOR REFLECTION, HOPE AND ACTION
Interfaith Summit
Chicago, Illinois
April 30, 2003
As people of faith and leaders of diverse religious communities, we
recognize that we are at a moment of choice even more urgent than before
the war in Iraq began. We are faced with choices between hope and courage
or fear and violence; between a future characterized by global
solidarity, international cooperation and multilateral action or one
characterized by unilateralism and wars by choice rather than necessity;
continuing terrorism; unfettered efforts to extend U.S. power, and the
exploitation of fear.
Let us not forget who we are as people of faith. We need to go deeper
into our religious traditions. Fear is part of the human condition and is
only addressed through faith. We are challenged now to trust in God and
recognize the source of true security. Our traditions teach us to
envision a world of peace with justice. They promise God’s capacity to
transform a broken world and God’s expectation that we are partners in
the process.
As many Americans celebrate a moment of military victory, we, as people
of faith, ask all people to make this a time of deliberate reflection.
As we have since 9/11 and the beginning of the war on terrorism: we call
for greater understanding; we seek to dispel ignorance; we ask that this
be a time of humility not arrogance; and, we hope that all can be mindful
of what we have lost. We are mindful that while a repressive regime has
been destroyed, a country has been left in a power vacuum. We know as
well that those people experience their daily life as one of enormous
needs and insecurity.
War is a blunt instrument, which provides no lasting solution but too
often leads to further violence. We ask the American people to reflect
now on the price of unilateralism:
- The cost of war and militarism
- The human toll of the war in Iraq
- The erosion of civil liberties in the United States
- The shift of resources away from human need to military purposes
In order to reflect most effectively on the choices that we face we call
on interfaith leaders in every American community to gather in town
meetings, teach-ins and other forms of community reflection to explore
what kind of society we seek to become.
Drawing on all of our traditions that are rooted in justice, compassion
and peace, we say to the present leadership of the United States:
- draw back from the use and threat of first strike war
- draw back from unilateral U.S. control over the reconstruction of
Iraq - bring the U.S. occupation of Iraq to a prompt end by transferring to
the United Nations and multilateral, non-governmental organizations the
authority to work with the Iraqi people toward its own reconstruction - make available U.S. resources as part of a world effort to serve the
needs and decisions of the Iraqi people.
Finally, we call on our fellow religious leaders throughout the world to
join in convening an INTERNATIONAL INTERFAITH SUMMIT that will provide a
worldwide forum for religious leaders to meet and discuss in depth ways
to eliminate the rhetoric of hate and to end violence perpetrated in the
name of religion. Together we must work to find ways to embody the power
of love, compassion and justice in this fragile and interdependent world.
We live in HOPE!
Words of Reflection
April 30, 2003
From Domestic Interfaith Summit
Chicago, IL
We are thankful for the end of large-scale hostilities, the end of an
oppressive regime, and the safe return of our troops.
We acknowledge the many sacrifices, and mourn all the loss of life.
We call for a national day of prayer and reflection, with a special
emphasis on interfaith gatherings.
We further call on the President to distance himself from religious
leaders who demonize the faiths of others.
We are compelled to call people’s attention to the continuing suffering
of the Iraqi people, which demands large-scale international humanitarian
relief.
Our religious traditions require that when we exercise power we reflect
deeply on the consequences of our actions and the true source of peace
and security. In this spirit, we encourage local religious communities to
organize interfaith days of fasting, prayer, and dialogue, which will
raise, among other vital concerns, those addressed in the accompanying,
“Urgent Call For Reflection, Hope and Action,” and to commit themselves
to donations for humanitarian relief for the people of Iraq.
