In a time when war and violence appear to be on the rise across the globe, the emphasis on peacebuilding and conflict prevention is more important than ever.
This week, FCNL advocates from throughout the country are gathered in Washington, D.C., and online for FCNL’s 2023 Annual Meeting and Quaker Public Policy Institute (Nov. 15-19, 2023). Guided by the theme, “Justice Calls Us, Love Unites Us,” they have spent several days learning about the need to protect federal investments in conflict and atrocities prevention, building up their advocacy skills, and lobbying Congress to invest in peace to prevent future conflict.
As part of their preparation to meet with their members of Congress, FCNL’s Associate General Secretary for Policy and Advocacy, Amelia Kegan, offered a rousing speech calling us to action. Too often, she reminded us our government and the public respond only after war and violence break out. And it is usually a military response.
“No other grassroots advocacy organization has people around the country lobbying for international peacebuilding programs. None,” she said. “We need your voice right now.”
What follows is an excerpt of Amelia’s remarks. They have been lightly edited for clarity.
I want to share a story. A few years ago, I joined some friends for a long night run out in the Virginia mountains. Now, I am slow. So, by midnight, I was alone. And I am barreling down this mountain trail, carefully following the purple tree markings.
My directions say clearly, “As you go downhill, be very careful to turn left off the purple trail onto the pink trail. If you cross a stream, you’ve gone too far.”
I see a turnoff to the left, and the blaze on the tree looks pink. In my gut, I’m sure it’s the turnoff. But here’s the thing. In the black of night, dark pink and light purple look awfully alike.
And I question. I begin to doubt. Am I in the right place? On the right path?
And just as I start to panic that I might be lost in these vast Virginia woods in the middle of the night, I hear the voices of other runners in the distance. So, I continue on.
Soon, the doubts return. I don’t see the runners. I don’t hear their voices anymore. And I cross what technically could be characterized as either a small stream or a large water runoff. Again, I question whether I am on the right path. And again, just as I begin to panic, I look down and see the wet markings of running shoes emerging from that waterway. And I am reassured.
Yet, as I keep going, I lose faith a third time, worried I have lost my way. Again, just as I start to panic, I come to a muddy patch, and my flashlight lights up the footprints of the runners who have come before me.
I persisted on that path that, in my gut, I knew was right.
How many times do we feel lost alone in the woods? Doubting that we’ve chosen the right trail. Second guessing the signs around us.
How many times do we feel lost alone in the woods? Doubting that we’ve chosen the right trail. Second guessing the signs around us.
It reminds me of the story of Gideon’s call in the book of Judges. God says to Gideon, “I am calling on you.” And Gideon is like: “Really? I don’t know. I don’t think I heard you right. I’m the runt of the litter. How do I know this is really coming from God? I need a sign.”
So, on a rock, Gideon puts raw meat and unleavened bread. And God sets a fire that cooks the meat and the bread.
But again, Gideon has doubts. So, he says to God: You know what? Just to be really sure, I’m going to put out this fleece overnight. And if dew is only on the fleece, but the ground is dry, then I know you’re truly calling on me.
So, he puts out the fleece, and the next morning, there is dew only on the fleece while the ground is dry. And Gideon’s thinking, “Yeah, but that could’ve been a fluke. I still have my doubts. I will put this fleece out again, but this time, if the fleece stays dry while the ground gets wet, then I will know.”
And again, when he gets up the next morning, the fleece is dry, but the ground is wet. And Gideon knows what he must do.
You see, we all have those moments in our lives. Sometimes, it may feel as though you’re lost in the woods, but really, you’re exactly where you need to be.
Sometimes, it may feel as though you’re lost in the woods, but really, you’re just navigating a dark and confusing world, and all those contradicting worldviews and alternate realities can be disorienting, but you’ve still got that sense in your gut that this really is the road of righteousness.
Sometimes, it may feel as though you’re lost in the woods, but really, there are some fleece moments right in front of you, calling you on this path.
Sometimes, it may feel as though you’re lost in the woods, but the dew on the fleece is saying, this country needs your advocacy right now, needs a prophetic call right now, needs some peacemakers right now.
Sometimes, it may feel as though you’re lost in the woods, but the dew on the fleece is saying, this country needs your advocacy right now, needs a prophetic call right now, needs some peacemakers right now.
So, let’s commit to waking up to those fleece moments in our lives and run with a renewed energy and a renewed purpose towards the world we seek.
Are you in need of some fleece moments? Let me give you some examples.
As federal spending conversations have dominated this year’s congressional debates, and as we approach the end of those negotiations, members of Congress are still deciding whether to keep to the overall numbers agreed to in the debt ceiling deal or renegotiate further cuts. And you all are talking to your legislators as these talks are going on. This is a fleece moment.
Congress just passed a short-term spending bill extension—coinciding with our lobby ask for federal funding. One of the forefront issues in Congress right now. That’s a fleece moment.
If you’re looking for a fleece moment, know that in a world where conflict and war seem to be escalating, you are the only grassroots advocacy cohort specifically focusing on funding international peacebuilding accounts. That’s a fleece moment.
At this moment, around the country and around the world, the peace movement is growing like never before as folks are watching the news, horrified by the escalating violence on their screens. They are showing up, speaking out, and marching on. The movement includes more and more faith leaders, young people, and politicians who are looking at the Middle East and naming the word ceasefire.
This is a fleece moment!
But the work is still hard. And it can be exhausting. What do you do when discouragement’s grip on you claws in deep? Where do you go when it seems as though the hate and the fear, the violence and militarism are winning out?
What do you do when discouragement’s grip on you claws in deep? Where do you go when it seems as though the hate and the fear, the violence and militarism are winning out?
As I mentioned, I’m a distance runner. And my favorite distance is the 100-mile distance. In a hundred-mile race, there is always at least one moment when I doubt. When I get so tired, my legs begin to falter, and the talk inside my head spirals downward. And the more negative my attitude, the slower I become. I lose strength. I start making excuses. I consider quitting.
Earlier in my ultrarunning career, my response to that feeling was to put my head down and grit it out. Society tells us that when times get rough, tough it out. Reject weakness, and simply do not give up.
But, I found that this is not the most effective strategy. You see when your head is down, you can’t see around you. And if you can’t see in front, behind, or to the side of you, you can’t see who is around you.
And what I learned is that I need to look up and find another person. Rather than gritting it out on my own, I needed to find another runner, and if I started to focus on that person, rather than being stuck in my head with my negativity and self-doubt, if I focused on encouraging that person, soon that encouragement spontaneously spread to me.
We live in a society obsessed with and terrified of scarcity. But remember the parable of the loaves and the fishes. People talk about how that was a miracle because five loaves of bread and two fish fed 5,000 people. But I say that for the food of the soul, that is no miracle. Because the food of the soul is the ultimate renewable resource.
The bread of hope and the fish of love do not dwindle the more you use them—they multiply. And the more you give out some hope and offer up some love, the higher the return on your investment.
So, let us be what Joan Neal calls “God’s instruments of hope.” If you need to find some hope, then let’s give some hope. If you need to find some encouragement, then let’s give some encouragement. We are designed for relationship. We are wired for community.
Let us step out into our advocacy today with what Dr. King called a “greater readiness.” Knowing that “we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses” (Hebrews 12: 1-2).
There is a reason you are here today. Moved by faith. Guided by Spirit. You are being called at this moment to lose the bonds of injustice and “run with perseverance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12: 1-2).
Let us join together in this moment, guiding each other, supporting each other, leading each other…Proclaiming that peace through peaceful means is not some naive pipedream but a repeatedly proven, effective strategy.
We may have some dark days in front of us, but let us “not grow weary or lose heart” (Hebrews 12:3). And let us join together in this moment, guiding each other, supporting each other, leading each other, redeeming each other, feeding each other, nourishing each other, encouraging each other, praying with each other, being with each other, truly seeing each other, speaking up with each other, in solidarity with each other, shaping each other, molding each other, holding each other, emboldening each other, marching with each other, recharging each other, being in community with each other—professing how violence only begets violence. Proclaiming that peace through peaceful means is not some naive pipedream but a repeatedly proven, effective strategy. Declaring that those passages about peace in the scriptures are more than trite quotes for Sunday mornings inside stained glass walls but fundamental values we are called to live out and embody even when they’re unpopular.
Let us dare to believe in a world free of war and the threat of war. To lend witness and prophetic voice towards that bold vision of the world we seek.