SUNDAY GATHERINGS

Seasons for Peace and Nonviolence

SNV

Jan. 30 - April 4, 2010

Gandhi King Season for Nonviolence

Carrying forth the timeless principles of nonviolent social change

Compassionate Activism for Global Healing

The Gandhi King Chavez Season for Nonviolence, Jan. 30 through April 4, is an international, educational, media and grassroots campaign dedicated to promoting nonviolence as a powerful way to heal, transform and empower our lives and our communities. The Season for Nonviolence began in 1998, inspired by the 50th and 30th memorial anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This international movement strives to honor the vision of these great peacemakers through action and education.

Each day during the 64 days of the season, we practice a new principle of peace and Nonviolence in our personal and communal lives. We learn to practice nonviolence one step at a time, one choice at a time, one day at a time. This is how each of us, in our own way, moves the world in the direction of peace.  This is the Season for Nonviolence.
 

Principles of Nonviolence

  • Nonviolence means honoring the dignity and inherent worth of every human being
  • Nonviolence means believing that our lives are linked together, that what we do impacts the lives of other people. Therefore, we are responsible to and for each other
  • Nonviolence means dedicating ourselves to guaranteeing the fundamental rights of every human being (justice, equalit, equity).It means using our talents to empower others as well as ourselves.
  • Nonviolence is courageously choosing to practice compassion with our apparent adversaries. We oppose injustice, not people.
  • Nonviolence means recognizing love as the power of the human spirit to triumph over injustice, social inequity and suffering. Nonviolence IS the hero's journey

Please join us in practicing these principles and help us spread the word. Begin and end each day this week with a prayer for peace. Let peace begin with you.

Together in peace and nonviolence we can change the world. As within, so without!

WEEK 9
Nonviolence challenges us to stand for Truth by taking action that honors the dignity and worth of every human being.


Day 58 – CITIZENSHIP (March 28)
Robert Muller, former assistant secretary general to the UN, urges, "use every letter you write, every conversation you have, every meeting you attend, to express your most important beliefs and dreams.” Today call or write one of your legislators and register your views.
Day 59 – INTERVENTION (March 29)
Alcohol and drug abuse is both a consequence and a cause of violence. Today have the courage to intervene in a caring way. Through your honest and straightforward communication, encourage yourself and others to get educated, get help, and get sober and free from drugs.
Day 60 – WITNESSING (March 30)
"We are each other's bond," writes poet Gwendolyn Brooks. Those who practice nonviolence cannot close their eyes to injustice or cruelty. We are here to be a witness for justice and compassion. Today, be willing to stand up for Truth by
your presence, your words and actions.
Day 61 – PEACE (March 31)
Thich Nhat Hanh wrote, "Practice watering seeds of joy and peace and not just seeds of anger and violence, and the elements of war in all of us will be transformed." Today, make a choice to meet each experience with an intention for
peace.
Day 62 – COMMITMENT (April 1)
Spend five minutes reflecting on your commitment to nonviolence.
Write down what it means to you and what you are willing to do as a consequence of your commitment to it. Make your commitment public by sharing it with at least 2 people.
Day 63 – RELEASE (April 2)
A Sufi proverb says, "When the heart weeps for what it has lost, the spirit laughs for what it has found." Today look at how far you have come during this 64 day journey. Release the weight of your past, judgments of yourself and others, and the idea that world peace is not possible by acknowledging that you do make a difference.
without becoming weaker.” – Mohandas K. Ghandi
Days 64 and 65 – CELEBRATION (April 3 and 4)
Today, rejoice in the work that you have done. Celebrate the journey that you have made with countless others who believe that every individual can move the world in the direction of peace with their nonviolent choice and action.


"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead.