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Parenting for Peace and Justice Network 1. History
The Parenting for Peace and Justice Network (PPJN) was begun in 1981 at the Institute for Peace and Justice (IPJ) as an interfaith, interracial, transnational association of families of all descriptions who seek "Shalom" - well-being, wholeness, peace, justice - in our own living situations and in the broader community. We recognize that the well-being of our families is tied to the well-being of our global family and the earth itself. Over the years, PPJN organized local chapters and nurtured local coordinators throughout the US and Canada and in over 20 other countries; promoted family support groups and family programs in faith communities and neighborhoods; and encouraged family advocacy on a wide range of peace, justice, and environmental issues.
In 1996, PPJN convened a national meeting to explore how to respond to the escalating violence in families, communities, and our world. From this meeting emerged the Families Against Violence Advocacy Network (FAVAN) and the Pledge of Nonviolence as the primary tool for educating and organizing families and communities to challenge violence at all levels and to live more nonviolently. PPJN leaders and groups across North America and beyond integrated the Pledge of Nonviolence and the FAVAN advocacy agenda into their own families and in the schools, faith communities, and other organizations in their local communities.
The PPJN has been coordinated by its founders, Jim and Kathy McGinnis, with Jim Vogt serving as PPJN and FAVAN Administrator until 2003 when PPJN and FAVAN were fully integrated into IPJ. Eight members of the PPJN Advisory Board were named the first members of the IPJ Program Committee and sixteen others formed the IPJ Faith Community Advisory Council.
Numerically over the years, more than -
2. Resources – Click on Resource Page for Families
3. Membership
Since January 2004, PPJN members are now designated as “Shareholder Members” of the Institute for Peace and Justice and receive the same benefits as before: the quarterly “Circles of Peace, Circles of Justice” Newsletter, discounts on resources, and access to experienced workshop/retreat leaders. Click on Donate Now for membership options.
4. "Circles of Peace, Circles of Justice" Newsletter
The quarterly Newsletter offers families, schools, faith communities and others ways to put the Pledge of Nonviolence into practice in our interpersonal relationships and in our communities and world. Each issue focuses on some aspect of the Pledge or a specific social issue that needs our courageous action. Currently, the Newsletter is focusing four issues on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his “giant triplets of racism, materialism, and militarism.” The Spring/Summer 2003 double issue related Dr. King’s “When Silence Is Betrayal” speech to the aftermath of the US war on Iraq. The Winter 2004 issue is focused on “Materialism.” Spring 2004 and Summer 2004 will focus on militarism and racism. Click on Newsletter for details and sample articles from recent issues.
5. Workshops
Kathy and Jim McGinnis, Susan and Jim Vogt, and other former PPJN leaders continue to conduct leadership training and family enrichment workshops. Formats include one to three day workshops, family camps and retreats, continuing education seminars through universities and seminaries. Click on Workshops and see “Parenting for Peace and Justice” for fuller descriptions and a schedule of upcoming workshops.
6. Networking and Partner Organizations
Faith Communities in the United States. This family-focused program of the PPJN continues to bring together the family life programming in faith communities with the peace and justice, women’s, multicultural/diversity, and religious education programming. Members of the Faith Community Advisory Council of the Institute for Peace and Justice are available to assist members of their various faith traditions.
CPPJ in the Philippines. Christian Parenting for Peace and Justice (CPPJ) is the family group/network in the Metro Manila area of the Philippines that continues to promote the family programs and resources of the Institute. Click on "Confronting Violence in the Philippines” for a description of some of their more recent efforts.
PCCPJ in South Korea. People Creating Circles of Peace with Justice (PCCPJ) is the family group/network in Seoul, South Korea that has taken the PPJN vision and translated the Family Pledge of Nonviolence and the resources for implementing it for Korean family. Click on “The Family Pledge of Nonviolence – A Tool for Social Reform in Korea” for how they are applying the Pledge to their own cultural and political situation.
Pax Christi USA. This US Catholic peace organization has put the family-centered vision and resources of Jim and Kathy McGinnis into a single packet entitled “Called to Be Peace at Home: Rituals and Resources for Peacemaking in Family Life.” See their website – www.paxchristiusa.org – for more detail on this resource and ordering options.
Little Friends for Peace. This family peacemaking program created by Mary Joan and Jerry Park in 1981 has developed a variety of “Peace Camps” for children and whole families; plus excellent resources for parents at home (PEACEMAKING FOR LITTLE FRIENDS), for peace camp organizers (CREATING A PEACE EXPERIENCE), and for intergenerational gatherings (FAMILY PEACEMAKING). See their website – www.lffp.org for more information.
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