RESOLUTION TO TORONTO CONFERENCE

TITLE: NOBEL LAUREATES’ PEACE STATEMENT

CONFERENCE ACTION:

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:cost of postage,  staff time

SOURCE OF FUNDS:budget for office and programme staff

STAFFING IMPLICATIONS: time of executive secretary and his administrative assistant to prepare and send letters to the Prime Minister of Canada, and the federal ministers of Foreign Affairs,  Environment,  Finance, and  Defence.

VOLUNTEER IMPLICATIONS:pastoral charge participation

MOTION by Shirley Farlinger/June Malabar that this 78th annual meeting, Toronto Conference encourage the Government of Canada to:
*Adopt the principles articulated in the Nobel Laureates’ Peace Statement of December 7, 2001
*And to develop and implement policy based on those principles from this moment on.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT Toronto Conference encourage all congregations to
*Study the Nobel Laureates’ Peace Statement of December 7, 2001
*And to meet with their Members of Parliament to discuss Canadian Government policy in light of this statement.

RATIONALE AND FAITH BASE:
On December 7, 2001 in Oslo Norway, a special symposium was held to celebrate the
100th anniversary of the Nobel Peace Prize. At that time, a Canadian Nobel laureate, John Polanyi, invited his colleagues to prepare a joint statement, identifying the greatest obstacles to world peace in the future. The resulting Peace Statement was co-signed by over 100 Nobel laureates.
 Important points raised in this document:
 * The greatest danger to world peace in the future will come from the “legitimate demands of the world’s dispossessed”.
* World poverty and global warming create a “tinderbox”, aggravated by “the power of modern weaponry”.
* Co-operative international action is key to counter global warming and a weaponized world.
* Commitment to the basis of law will help move the world away from war.
* “As never before, the future of each depends on the good of all”.
 
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shares his vision of a world where people live in peace together. Jesus reminds us that those who strive for peace and reconciliation will be blessed; that the paths of violence and destruction are not God’s ways. As children of God, we are called to live in ways that do not encourage violence but promote wholeness and good health for all. [Matthew 5:9]

Jesus taught us by example the importance of listening to and caring for the needs of the poorest and most marginalized in the world. The story about the Good Samaritan challenges us to look for creative new ways to become a healing presence in the world.

In a world wracked by increasing violence, it is not difficult to see the fragility of our planet and the urgent need for transformation. Following Jesus’ example, when he confronted the moneychangers in the temple, we are called to speak out for justice, so that the world may be freed from the web of violence and move on the path towards peace.

We are called as Christians to observe the World Council of Churches’ “Decade to Overcome Violence” from 2001 to 2010. Supporting the Nobel Laureates’ Peace Statement is one positive action we may take towards encouraging others to refrain from violence and to move towards peace and reconciliation.

Since  the 33rd General Council of August 1992, the United Church has had an environmental policy to live by: “One Earth Community–Ethical Principles for Environment and Development”. Most pertinent for this resolution are the following principles:
1–Human societies bear responsibility towards the earth in its wholeness.
2–Development strategies must be people-oriented and ecologically sound based on a just economic order with priority for the world’s poor

Using the One Earth Community policy as a framework, the United Church of Canada at the 37th General Council of August 2000 adopted a policy called “Energy in the One Earth Community”  In part, this Energy Policy reminds us to recognize the need for “quality of life for all people, with priority for appropriate and accessible energy for the world’s poor”, while calling on the Government of Canada to “base Canada’s energy policy on publicly stated ethical principles, moving towards managing demand and development of alternative renewable sources.”

In August 2000 at the 37th General Council, the United Church of Canada adopted a Housing Policy in response to the alarming growth of poverty across Canada, especially the tragic increase of young families in emergency shelters. While Canada is known globally as the “best place to live”, we as Christians cannot ignore the reality that one in five children in Canada live in poverty. We must continue to call on the Government of Canada to:
* remember its commitment to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
* develop a national affordable housing policy and initiate negotiations with the provinces and municipal governments to develop longterm plans, strategies and financial commitment.
* reject emergency shelters as “the” answer to the housing and homelessness crisis
* re-commit to the eradication of child poverty

Furthermore, we must encourage the Government of Canada to demonstrate the same level of political will to address the systemic causes of poverty as they showed when addressing security issues after Sept 11, 2001 Such action would have far wider and longer lasting results. .
 

NOBEL LAUREATES’ PEACE STATEMENT
The most profound danger to world peace in the coming years will stem not from the irrational acts of states or individuals but from the legitimate demands of the world’s dispossessed. Of these poor and disenfranchised, the majority live a marginal existence in equatorial climates. Global warming, not of their making but originating with the wealthy few, will affect their fragile ecologies most. Their situation will be desperate and manifestly unjust.
It cannot be expected, therefore, that in all cases they will be content to await the beneficence of the rich. If then we permit the devastating power of modern weaponry to spread through this combustible human landscape, we invite a conflagration that can engulf both rich and poor. The only hope for the future lies in co-operative international action, legitimized by democracy.

It is time to turn our backs on the unilateral search for security, in which we seek to shelter behind walls. Instead, we must persist in the quest for united action to counter global warming and a weaponized world. These twin goals will constitute vital components of stability as we move toward the wider degree of social justice that alone gives hope of peace.

Some of the needed legal instruments are already at hand, such as the Anti-ballistic Missile treaty, the Convention on Climate Change, the Strategic Arms Reduction treaties and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. As concerned citizens, we urge all governments to commit to these goals that constitute steps on the way to replacement of war by law.

To survive in the world we have transformed, we must learn to think in a new way. As never before, the future of each depends on the good of all.