We are delighted to announce Bishop Thomas Gumbleton will be leading our retreat, Friday, August 15, 2014 starting at 10 AM. We are in the process of developing the 2014 Kateri Tekakwitha Interfaith Peace Conference and will post updates as soon as possible. As always we look forward to seeing everyone on Friday, August 15 and Saturday, August 16, 2014.
The 2013 Kateri Peace Conference video a conference overview in 2.15 minutes.
The Moral Imperative of Activism: What you need to know! What you need to do!
Are prison camps like Guantanamo morally or legally acceptable? Is torture ever okay? Are the killing of hundreds of children and the repeated attacks on weddings and funeral processions by hellfire, drone carried missiles ever justified? Will militarism and nuclear proliferation ever ensure our security? Do you think we need unlimited spying on the American people for security? Is the war on terror a life enhancing paradigm to live by?
It is difficult to believe that current US policy forces us to deal with such questions, and, even more difficult to believe, that there is any doubt as to the answer.
This year's conference hosts an array of morally concerned individuals who have found the courage to answer such questions with a resounding NO. Our speakers are individuals who stand up and speak out against the injustice and moral untenableness of torture, killing by drones, and the ongoing effects of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, specifically, and the paradigm of endless war in general. They point out the cost to both the American psyche as well as quality of life that a policy based on fear and injustice incurs.
Our speakers engage these questions with mind and heart and, often put their bodies on the line, having been arrested and shackled for standing up and speaking out. Some of our presenters have even done significant jail time for being serial peace makers.
Our conference is designed to encourage such nonviolent standing up and speaking out by providing some of what we need to learn and know (education) and suggesting some of the important steps that can be taken ( ideas for action) to ensure that peace and justice form the bedrock of all national policy.
We are deeply committed to nonviolence as we firmly believe that nothing moral or sustainable can come from violence. Martin Luther King Jr. said, "At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love." Gandhi stated, "Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary."
But leaders such as Gandhi, King and Jesus were all willing to throw themselves, body, mind and heart into the cauldron of struggle for as non-violent political activists they did not shy away from engaging in nonviolent conflict grounded in love.
In the brief time we will spend together, we can only touch upon some of the important ideas and actions which need to be embraced or undertaken. We think however you will be inspired by both the depth and variety of knowledge our presenters convey and we invite you to join us in our 15th annual Kateri Tekakwitha Peace Conference on Friday, August 16 and Saturday, August 17, 2013 at the National Kateri Tekakwitha Shrine in Fonda, NY.