Olive Branch Interfaith Peace Partnership

Communities and individuals of all faith traditions and spiritualities who are committed to ending the war in Iraq are planning an interfaith witness in Washington D.C. on March 7, 2008 to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to the sacredness of human life. The world cries out for a common voice for peace from across religious traditions and paths.

Together we can end the war in Iraq and bring our troops home. Together we can stand against fear and violence, and live into a longing for wholeness that unites us across all boundaries. Together we can offer a path toward reconciliation. Together we can learn to build security through right relationships.

This is the moment in which we must show the greatest possible resolve in rescuing the fundamental values of respect for life and dignity from those who offer empty promises leading to a downward spiral of militarism and domination. As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “A time comes when silence is betrayal, and that time has come for us.”
Design:
On Friday, March 7th, 2008, we will gather at noon in temples, mosques, synagogues, and churches near the Capitol Mall for worship in each of our different traditions. Following worship, participants will process to a jointly planned, interfaith event on the Mall at 2:30 p.m. The interfaith event will include a speaker of national or international reputation, an expression of our common commitment, and a nonviolent public action with the potential for participants to risk arrest in acts of civil disobedience as they feel led to do so.

We are also planning workshops and nonviolence trainings on Thursday evening and Friday morning.
Invitation:
Communities and individuals of all religious traditions and spiritualities are invited to participate, so long as they share a common commitment to nonviolence, a positive vision of peace through justice, and a desire to witness through both worship and public action. Our five common commitments are below. Planning has already begun, and we need assistance from volunteers from each participating tradition.

There are planning phone calls each Thursday at 1 p.m. Eastern time, and all are welcome. Please contact us for more information.

Commitments
As people of faith and spiritual yearnings, we are called to pray and act for peace and justice. At times, our faiths compel us to speak truth to power. Therefore we commit to work, witness and pray to:
End the U.S. war and occupation of Iraq and support Peace with Iran We confess our complicity in this merciless violence in Iraq. We proclaim that security cannot be obtained through military domination, but through building just relationships with all people. We call our government to immediately begin an orderly process of withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq, closing U.S. bases with a timetable supported by the Iraqi people, and to work toward a relationship of diplomacy and peace with Iran.

Support our troops We pray for our soldiers and their families, will work diligently to bring them home safely, and will welcome them into our communities with respect and love. We call our government to provide generous support for veterans to heal their physical, mental and spiritual wounds and to rebuild their lives.

Support an Iraqi-led peace process We repent of the devastation wrought. We will support relief efforts for Iraqis whose lives have been shattered by this war. We call our government to make reparations and to fund international reconstruction, with particular concern for refugees and internally displaced persons.

Say NO to torture We commit to love our enemies, and call for a process of truth and reconciliation regarding the treatment of detainees. We insist that our government treat all enemy combatants humanely and that torture be unequivocally banned by all agencies of our government.

Say YES to justice We commit to love our neighbors, to work to end poverty, racism, violence and injustice across the land, and to make the connections between war abroad and poverty at home and between local and global violence. We call our government to fully and justly fund human needs at home.