The only way to alter China’s hand in Darfur

April 30, 2008  The Christian Science Monitor

In this article, Mark Lange argues that “Beijing’s support for Sudan’s Khartoum government won’t be blunted by Western pressure and the West must constructively enlist China.” He clearly says that attempts to gain cooperation through humiliation won’t deliver results and only through positively addressing China’s economic self-interest, and its desperate need for energy, will the West find the humanitarian solution it seeks in Darfur crisis. Learn more about his opinion

How inclusive is the National Day of Prayer?

April 30, 2008  The Christian Science Monitor

On Thursday, several million Americans will gather in special observances across the country to mark the National Day of Prayer, first inaugurated by Congress in 1952. This year, however, voices are being raised to challenge the religiously exclusive nature of the task-force effort, which is coordinated by conservative Christians who have encouraged government leaders’ involvement in their events but rejected direct participation by other faith leaders. Other religious groups increasingly initiate what they call, “inclusive prayer day”. Read more about this.

Iran is Not the Enemy

April 28, 2008 The Washington Post

Ellen Francis, an Episcopal priest who spent a decade in Iran during the years between 1968 and 1978 and who has also co-led several delegations to Iran sponsored by the Fellowship of Reconciliation, dismisses the view of Iran as an “axis of evil” and instead explains why she believes Iran is a country with a human, loving, and hospitable face. Read more to find out why she believes so.

America’s apartheid mentality toward the world

April 25, 2008 The Christian Science Monitor

In an interview with Helena Cobban, author of Re-Engage: America and the World After Bush, the question “What kind of relationship do Americans want to build with the world’s 6 billion other people in the years ahead?” is asked. Cobban says that America’s current relationship with the rest of humanity has much in common with that between South Africa’s apartheid-era whites and their disfranchised non-white compatriots. She argues that Americans should start to think and act as though all of humanity constituted a single community and give fair weight to the views of the citizens of other countries on matters that affect everyone. Read more about this opinion.

China to meet Dalai Lama envoy

April 25, 2008  CNN

Beijing announced it will hold talks with a Tibetan envoy representing the Dalai Lama in the first direct talks since March protests over China’s role in Tibet. The Dalai Lama has long said that ”The only way we can solve our differences is with face-to-face dialog.” China, which has accused the Dalai Lama of agitating recent violence in Tibet, an autonomous region of China, has stopped any official meetings with Tibet since July 2007. Read more about this story.

Baltimore tries to heal wounds from riots – 40 years later

April 24, 2008    Christian Science Monitor

For 40 years, the violent civil unrest that erupted in Baltimore following Martin Luther King Jr.’s assasination in 1968 has been a taboo subject among citizens of the city. Today, however, a group of Baltimoreans have come together in an effort to confront this troubling past and wrestle with the issues that produced the unrest and which continue to haunt the city today. A number of initiatives have been launched as part of Baltimore’s experiment with truth and reconciliation, including a Baltimore ‘68 Mosaic Monument, an oral history project, a play, a dance performance, and even a literary magazine. Read about these inititiatives.

PeaceJam Inspires Youth to Think and Act

April 18, 2008  Good News Network

Nobel Prize nominee and legendary Detroit rocker, Ivan Suvanjieff, created PeaceJam to seek out nonviolent conflict resolutions from young people. To date the group has inspired 600,000 young people to community service and political or civic engagement. Check out the video clip that promotes this initiative.

The Way to Peace Can Be Paved With Forgiveness, Reconciliation and Negotiation

April 18, 2008   CommonDreams

Read this moving piece about three cases where forgiveness (among the Amish), reconciliation (in South Africa) and negotiation (in Burundi) were wielded with success, providing an inspirational model for humans to effectively and successfully deal with conflict around the world.

Kenya Swears in Historic Coalition Cabinet

April 17, 2008   The Epoch Times

On Thursday a 41-member cabinet–the result of the power-sharing coalition created to soothe fury over a disputed election that plunged Kenya into a bloody crisis–was sworn in at the official State House residence of President Mwai Kibaki. The cabinet is supposed to steer the redrafting of a new constitution within 12 months, to help address long-simmering issues of land, wealth and power that fuelled the crisis. Read more.

Pope, in Dramatic Move, Comforts Sex Abuse Victims

April 17, 2008   The Epoch Times

A source of recent conflict within the Catholic church in the U.S has led to an emotional and unprecedented scene of empathy and reconciliation between the Pope and victims of sexual abuse by the clergy. The 25-minute, which took place Thursday in the chapel of the Vatican’s embassy, represented the first time a pope has met with victims of sexual abuse within the church. Read more.