Join us on June 16th, 2023 for an Organizing Meeting with On Earth Peace’s gun violence organizing campaign. We want to connect with people in churches and neighborhoods who are concerned about gun violence in our country - who are already taking some action or who want to get involved. Come share your story or your hopes for involvement!  

This initiative aims to move our constituency into action to reduce gun violence in the United States. If you have been active, we want to hear your stories so others can learn from your experience; if you are recently fired up, we want to offer the community a place to connect. We want to build capacity and commitment and see the way forward for all of us. 

You can expect to: 

• hear updates from OEP organizing interns about current action on gun violence
• reflect on your (possible) role in the movement
• connect with others who are concerned or involved
• get some energy and power for the work ahead 
• identify immediate next steps in your own action against gun violence 

See it in your time zone

Join us for an overview of Kingian Nonviolence Conflict Reconciliation at 4pm ET / 3pm CT / 1pm PT on June 21, 2023. Kingian Nonviolence is an approach to conflict and community leadership that offers values and methods useful for anyone who wants to use conflict constructively in your personal life, in group settings, or in community issues and building a reconciled world. 

This 2 Hour webinar covers:

• The 4 pillars of Kingian Nonviolence
  
  
• Initial introduction to the 6 Principles and 6 Steps - the “Will” and the “Skill” of Kingian Nonviolence.
  
  
• The Social Dynamics of Kingian Nonviolence 

This training will be co-facilitated by Esther Salomon and Matt Guynn.

Esther Salomon delved into animal justice work early in her life and holds a love for natural intuition and wisdom that’s gained from real world experiences. Esther has worked on multiple people-powered campaigns and initiatives such as Animal Rising, Extinction rebellion, Animal Think Tank and more. She hopes to bring the spirit of kingian nonviolence to animal justice through her work and is dedicated to helping others realize the power of their own voices.

Matt Guynn is On Earth Peace's co-executive director and director of organizing for church and community groups. He is a member of the online training team for Training for Change, a social justice training center based in Philadelphia. For five years, he served on the Coordinating Committee for the Oregon Poor People’s Campaign. He is the co-editor of Resist, Organize, Transform: An Introduction to Nonviolence and Activism (2020). Matt is an active gardener who lives with his family in Portland, Oregon.  

Meet others interested in Kingian Nonviolence, build Beloved Community, and connect with On Earth Peace's Kingian Nonviolence Learning Action Community!

Note: You will be added to our Peacebuilder email list by registering for this event, if you do not wish to be on the list please email [email protected]

See it in your time zone

Join us for an overview of Kingian Nonviolence Conflict Reconciliation at 2pm ET / 1pm CT / 11am PT on July 18, 2023. Kingian Nonviolence is an approach to conflict and community leadership that offers values and methods useful for anyone who wants to use conflict constructively in your personal life, in group settings, or in community issues and building a reconciled world. 

This 2 Hour webinar covers:

• The 4 pillars of Kingian Nonviolence
  
  
• Initial introduction to the 6 Principles and 6 Steps - the “Will” and the “Skill” of Kingian Nonviolence.
  
  
• The Social Dynamics of Kingian Nonviolence 

This training will be co-facilitated by Marie Benner-Rhoades and Haya Saleh

Marie Benner-Rhoades (she/her) is the youth & young adult peace formation director and a co-executive director of On Earth Peace.  Marie is a certified Level 1 trainer in Kingian Nonviolence Conflict Reconciliation.   Marie serves on the Community Peacemaker Teams steering committee (international) and chairs the Open Doors English advisory board (Ithaca, NY). Marie lives in Trumansburg, NY with her husband and two children.

Haya Saleh serves as OEP's Kingian Nonviolence fellow but previously served as the Palestine Justice intern organizer. She is a Palestinian living in Gaza where she brings OEP programs to children and youth in her community. Haya is a Level 1 certified KNV trainer organizing people for Palestine Justice in the US and abroad.

Meet others interested in Kingian Nonviolence, build Beloved Community, and connect with On Earth Peace's Kingian Nonviolence Learning Action Community!

Note: You will be added to our Peacebuilder email list by registering for this event, if you do not wish to be on the list please email [email protected]

KINGIAN NONVIOLENCE CONFLICT RECONCILIATION 

16-HOUR CORE TRAINING 

July 22-23 and July 29-30, 2023

Come and join us during July for a transformational month exploring Dr. King's philosophy and methodology of nonviolence. This workshop has helped thousands of people in various social justice movements, prisons, schools and other communities understand the depth of the philosophy of nonviolence and conflict reconciliation.

If you are an organizer working for social change, an activist working to reduce violence in your community, a youth worker/organizer, or just someone who wants to learn how to resolve their personal conflicts better, this workshop is for you! If you have attended a 2-Hour Intro to Kingian Nonviolence at On Earth Peace or come to any of our events, this is a perfect next step to deepen your Kingian practice!

Dates: The 16-hour training takes place over four days in a two-week period: July 22-23 (Saturday-Sunday), July 29-30 (Saturday-Sunday)  Click here to find the start time in your time zone!

Times for each training day: 9am-13pm Pacific / 10am-2pm Mountain / 11am-3pm Central / 12pm-4pm Eastern

Content: 

• 4 Pillars of Kingian Nonviolence 
• Social Dynamics of Nonviolence 
• 6 Principles (the will) how to view and transform conflict
• 6 Steps (the skill) how to engage with conflict and organize a campaign
• Definitions of violence 
• Types and levels of conflict, and how they escalate and de-escalate
• Dialectical Thinking 
• Historical context of the Civil Rights Movement 

What to expect: Mini-presentations, small groups activities, large group conversation, multi-media/videos, opportunities for self-reflection and sharing. Homework will be assigned before and between sessions.  

Facilitation Team:

Stephanie Liu-Rojas: With a MAT in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) from USC, Stephanie is trained to work with international and multilingual students in writing and speaking. Currently, she is pursuing her PhD in Educational Studies at the Claremont Graduate University, and teaching writing at Pitzer College. When she isn’t studying, running the Pitzer Writing Center, or researching ways to be more inclusive, diverse, and equitable in her teachings, Stephanie indulges in vegan chocolate, travel products, the latest fashion and accessories, nature, children’s adventure series, and action movies.

Tukah Paul being a Cameroonian born believes violence is rooted in systemic structures of oppression. He commits strongly in nonviolence peacemaking, De-escalation of violence, monitoring/reporting human rights, accompaniment and unarmed civilian protection (UCP) work. Paul is Director of Global torch for development; a non-profit organization working to empower at-risk youth and transforming communities in Cameroon. He is the international committee member for Meta Peace Team (MPT) - Michigan USA. He is the Sub - Committee member for Meta Peace Team - Cameroon international exploratory Delegation. Paul served in different nonviolence peace teams including the Christian Peacemaker teams in Israel - Palestine. Paul is currently a trainee in the 2022 class of the Kingian Nonviolence curriculum looking forward to becoming a Certified KNV level 1 trainer and facilitator soon.

Valerie Helbert has over 15 years of experience coordinating and supporting educational efforts for conflict transformation, justice and peacebuilding. She earned an MA in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University and currently works as a program coordinator at the Center for Reconciliation(CFR) at Duke University’s Divinity School. In addition to her work at the CFR, Valerie is active in her church and currently serves as a board member of DurhamCares. She lives with her husband David in Durham, North Carolina, United States.

Sully - Edward Sullivan

Senior Trainer:

Cristobal Van Breen is a co-founder of the international grassroots animal activist network DxE (Direct Action Everywhere). They launched DxE in 2013 and left in 2019 to pursue other projects. Starting the group with 5 people in a living room and mobilizing over a hundred chapters around the world to take monthly action within 2 years. Cristobal leads nonviolence workshops around the country. They work with On Earth Peace and the Kingian Nonviolence Coordinating Committee to further the dream of institutionalizing and internationalizing nonviolence, including by offering trainings to all, with a focus on those who include fighting supremacy and promoting beloved community.

Cost: The value of this 16-hour workshop is more than $500.   Because of our interest in accessibility, there is no set fee to attend. The workshop will be offered on a gift basis -- we will explain more during the workshop!  In short, you will choose your own level of contribution. Some may choose to donate $500 or more. Some may pay significantly less or nothing. Some may be in a position to donate extra to support other participants! All participants will be invited to help cover the cost of the workshop by fundraising within your own personal or social media network. 

Email us at [email protected] with any questions. 

RSVP on this page to indicate your interest and intent to participate in the course. We will follow up with people who RSVP here, sending a detailed registration form you can use to confirm your participation.

Sierra Wildfire Song & Story Fest:

 After the Fire …

July 29 – August 4, 2023

Camp Peaceful Pines, Dardanelle, CA

A Family Camp featuring Brethren musicians and storytellers on the sunny slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains!

Twenty-six years ago, Camp Peaceful Pines hosted the first Song & Story Fest, and twelve years later a second one.  Now we return, to sing amid the ashes under the light of a billion stars and tell stories around the campfire once more.  Just five years ago, the surrounding area was devastated by a raging wildfire, but Camp Peaceful Pines survived due to some prudent thinning of dead trees and the hard work of smoke-jumpers that came to the rescue!  So, this Fest will be one of celebration, but also of contemplation, in a world littered with the scars of many fires.  And it seems like the fire has gone out of our country, our church, even ourselves in a number of ways.  We are left asking, So what’s next?  More fires?  Rest? Renewed hope?  Passion for change, or simply resignation to an ever-warming future?

Psalm 19:1-3 proclaims: “The heavens are telling the glory of God and the universe proclaims God’s handiwork.  Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares understanding…  their voice goes out through all the earth.”

So, What are we hearing?  How is God trying to move us in a time of conflagration, global warming, and the scorched earth policies being pursued by many?  Can you hear God calling you to the mountain to lift up song and spirit in grace and gladness amidst the ashes?  Answer the call! Join us and the moon and stars as we sing together in wonder and praise!

  Storytellers, Musicians, and Workshop Leaders:

Rhonda & Greg Baker    Hannah Button-Harrison  

Matt Guynn     Bill & Jacob Jolliff    Erin & Cody Flory Robertson   

Kathy Guisewite    Jonathan Hunter   Anna Lisa Gross

Katie Loomis-Adams  Mike Stern  Barbara West 

Celebrate the Light of God with us at Peaceful Pines!

An Intergenerational Camp for All Ages -

Single persons and families of any size and shape will enjoy this combination of performance and participation in the mountains of California’s Sierra Nevada.

Mornings - intergenerational gatherings and worship will be followed by workshops for adults, children, and youth to help us:

• Reconnect with the God of all creation and with each other
• Tell the stories that make for peace and rekindle faith
• Sing the words of our hearts in gratitude for the unceasing power of life
• Root and ground ourselves in the Biblical story
• Deepen our connections with each other and the earth
• Celebrate peace, creation, and life
• Dance in circles, lines, and squares
• Learn the skills of peace-making and justice-seeking

Afternoons - will be free for family time, recreation, story swaps, and music-making.

Evenings - campfires, snacks, and concerts or a folk dance. 

Song & Story Fest #27

This is the twenty-seventh summer in a row for these Song and Story Fests and marks our return to the place where we started, Camp Peaceful Pines.  The Fest will begin on Saturday evening July 29 with supper at 5:30 pm, an opening campfire, and some music and dancing.  We’ll close the Fest on Friday morning, August 4, after breakfast, worship, and hugs.  This should give ample travel time both before and after the Fest from and to wherever.

On Earth Peace will again co-sponsor the Fest, providing leadership and administrative support.

Camp Peaceful Pines is located between Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Park, 7 miles off CA Route 108 and west of Sonora Pass (near Dardanelle) in the beautiful Carson-Iceberg Wilderness Area.  The Camp features rustic cabin camping amidst the pines at 6200 feet above sea level.  There will be plenty of sun, hiking, clear skies, a river for fishing and wading.  Except for two close-in handicap accessible cabins, one with kitchen and shower for persons with limited mobility, cabins are not insulated or heated, so a warm sleeping bag or blankets are required, as folks at the first Fest found out (but we will be a month later and warmer this time)!  Hiking, Basketball, Volleyball, Four Square, Horse Shoes, Ping Pong and chipmunk feeding are the local sports.  Additional information about the camp can be found at www.camppeacefulpines.org .   

Cabins with 8-14 plywood bunks with mattresses are scattered in the woods.  You will have to share cabin space with other individuals or families so please indicate anyone that you want to share space with on your registration. There are a couple of cabins with bathrooms inside, so indicate your need for one of these. Please bring your own bedding and towels as the Camp doesn’t have these.  Hot showers are provided in common bathhouses.  RV or tent camping is available on site with some electrical hookups, but the electricity goes off every night at 11:00 pm.  Camping is also available at the Sand Flats Forest Service Campground just across the road ($11/night, no electricity either).  If you live nearby, please bring a lawn chair to sit in.

Please indicate if you want to eat Vegetarian. If you have special dietary, health, or housing needs, please note them on your reservation and we’ll do our best to meet them.

Let us know if you need to be placed in the accessible cabin or have a CPAP machine that you need to plug in to an auxiliary generator.

Campers will be expected to help serve food, wash dishes, and do other clean up.   

Bring a Table Grace to add to our repertoire.

Contact Clara McGilly at [email protected] if you have a craft project to bring and lead.

Registration for Song and Story Fest at Camp Peaceful Pines is now available, using this online form. 

If you have any questions, please email [email protected]