Orthodox Peace Fellowship to US President George Bush: Step back from

[Steve Hayes]

The following statement has been sent to President Bush and members of th=
e US
legislature:

=93Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.=
=94
Christ spoke these words not just to the crowd assembled before him, but =
to
all men and women of all nations and all times =96 including those dealin=
g with
international relations in the 21st Century. The current state of affairs
between the United States and Iran causes American members of the Orthodo=
x
Peace Fellowship to speak out before it is too late to step back from the
brink of war.

This is a crisis with larger dimensions. The interests of Israel, China,
Russia, Afghanistan, Iraq and other nations are involved, but the focus o=
f
this perilous standoff is a line drawn in the sand between Tehran and
Washington. If a solution is not found there, it will not be found.

The current impasse was reached by a road littered with misunderstanding,
insults, provocations and meddling. The US helped to overthrow Iran=92s
democratically elected government in 1953, aided Saddam Hussein in his br=
utal
war against Iran during the 1980s, and threatened to use nuclear weapons
against Iran in 2006. This is not to ignore transgressions by other natio=
ns,
especially Iran, such as the taking of hostages in Tehran , systematic
violation of human rights within Iran, or recent inflammatory statements =
by
the Iranian government.

Actions lead to reactions in a cycle of ever-escalating hostility. The fi=
rst
step on the way to peace, however, must always be putting one=92s own hou=
se in
order. To do that =96 to show the forbearance and compassion Christ asks =
of us,
rather than the bellicosity of those who =93live by the sword=94 =96 we u=
rge that
the following policies be adopted by our government:
Telling the Truth:

Our leaders should admit that they do not, in fact, know whether or not t=
here
is a nuclear threat from Iran, that nuclear enrichment is not in itself a=
n
offense, and that human rights abuses have occurred and do occur on our s=
ide,
not only on theirs. The New Testament makes clear that it is in each huma=
n
soul that the blessings of God are won: through meekness, mercy, and puri=
ty of
heart. If =96 as Abraham Lincoln noted during our Civil War =96 we would =
hope to
be on God=92s side, we must avoid deception, spin and disinformation.
Inclusiveness:

The Orthodox Christian tradition of conciliarity (decision-making by the =
whole
Church, rather than a single leader or a small group) can also be helpful=
in
international relations. The US must not just pressure our allies to see =
the
world as we see it, but needs to be prepared to listen to and consider th=
eir
perspectives.

Moreover, there are many other countries, not on the UN=92s Security Coun=
cil or
members of the =91Nuclear Club=92, whose destinies are affected by whatev=
er more
powerful nations decide. We need to heed their voices as well.
Seeking Common Ground:

There must be direct negotiations among affected parties. America has
legitimate needs; so does Iran. Neighboring nations need to be reassured =
that
they will not be the unwilling victims of regional chaos. The conflict in=
Iraq
, a resolution of the world-wide =91peak oil=92 crunch and many other cha=
llenges
would be immeasurably easier with a constructive US-Iran relationship in
place.
Commitment to Reducing Nuclear Risk:

So long as some nations claim a right to stockpile and use nuclear weapon=
s in
their own self-interest, it is inevitable that other nations will see no
reason not to follow suit. Since the recent tests by North Korea, nine na=
tions
are known to possess nuclear weapons. As the only country which has used =
such
weapons in war, the US has a special responsibility to work for their
reduction and eventual elimination. Realistic humility leads us Americans=
to
see that we have no special claim to the wisdom needed for this reduction.
Every nation and all our children are at risk, and all must be part of th=
e
solution.

Since the credibility of the US was damaged at home and abroad after we
invaded Iraq on the false claim that the Saddam government was stockpilin=
g
weapons of mass destruction, it is no wonder that there is now a widespre=
ad
and non-partisan lack of confidence in their government among the America=
n
people. Staying the course is a good idea only if the course is right. Th=
e
recent elections demonstrate a growing consensus that a new direction mus=
t be
found.

If President George W. Bush desires to forge a legacy of real statesmansh=
ip,
it is not too late to step back from the brink. With a genuine will to fi=
nd
alternatives to war, they can surely be found.

Have we the will to wage peace?
Partial list of signers of the Iran Appeal:

Bishop Basil of Amphipolis
Bishop Dimitrios of Xanthos
Bishop Tikhon, Retired Bishop of San Francisco, Los Angeles, and the West=
;
Orthodox Church in America
David A. Beck
Fr Ted Bobosh,St. Paul Church, Ad junct Professor, the University of Dayt=
on
Dr. Peter Bouteneff,Assistant Professor of Dogmatic Theology, St Vladimir=
=92s
Orthodox Theological Seminary
Archpriest John Breck
Eleni Cambourelis-Benedikt
Alice Carter
Mary Dibs
Jim Forest,OPF international secretary
Aaron Haney, MD
Archpriest Stephen C. Headley
Dr. John D. Jones, Professor, Marquette University
Carol M. Karos
Joel Klepac
Monica Klepac
Maria C. Khoury, Taybeh, Palestinian Occupied Territories, author
Dr. Kevin Lawrence,Chair, String Department, North Carolina School of the=
Arts
Allison and Don Lemons, Wichita, KS
Dr. Jacques-Jude Lepine, Media Center Director Profile School
Dr. Daniel F. Lieuwen
Michael Markwick, artist berlin,netherlands
Frederica Mathewes-Green, author and columnist
Joe May, Director, Matthew 25 House, Akron , Ohio
Fr. John McGuckin. Professor of Byzantine Christianity, Columbia Universi=
ty
Archpriest George Morelli,Ph.D., Coordinator, Chaplain and Pastoral Couns=
eling
Ministry, Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese
Joanna Novac, Irvine, CA
Archpriest Michael J. Oleksa, adjunct faculty, Alaska Pacific University
John W. Oliver, Professor Emeritus, Malone College
Kimberly Pandorf
Fr. Harry Pappas,faculty, St. Vladimir=92s Seminary
Alex Patico
Fr. Michael Plekon, St Gregory the Theologian Church, Professor, Baruch
College of the City University of New York
Dr. Albert Raboteau,professor, Princeton University
Mother Raphaela, abbess, Holy Myrrhbearers Monastery, Otego, NY
Cathy Rusyniak
Sheri San Chirico, coordinator, OPF- North America
Monk James Silver, member OPF-NA Steering Committee
Eric Simpson
Sbdn. Matthew Spoonemore
James Weave, Bellingham, Washington
Renee Zitzloff,coordinator, OPF Minnesota chapter
In Communion number 44 / Winter 2007

http://tinyurl.com/2qhgns


--=20
Steve Hayes from Tshwane, South Africa
Web: http://hayesfam.bravehost.com/stevesig.htm
E-mail - see web page, or parse: shayes at dunelm full stop org full stop=
uk

[Matthew Johnson]

Post by Steve Hayes
The following statement has been sent to President Bush and members of th=
e US

Well, I hope when it was sent to them, it was not sent with MIME-encoding. Those
"==94" characters are _really_ irritating!


[snip]

American members of the Orthodo>x

Post by Steve Hayes
Peace Fellowship to speak out before it is too late to step back from the
brink of war.

Nice try, but it is already too late. War is the only way to stop the current
regime in Tehran from acquiring nuclear bomb capability, thanks to the
incredible bungling allowing Aga Khan to spread bomb technology all over the
Muslim world. And war _will_ result if they get the capability. We cannot stop
it.

It take _cooperation_ to avoid war. To _start_ a war is far too easy.

Post by Steve Hayes
This is a crisis with larger dimensions. The interests of Israel, China,
Russia, Afghanistan, Iraq and other nations are involved, but the focus o=
f
this perilous standoff is a line drawn in the sand between Tehran and
Washington. If a solution is not found there, it will not be found.

But this is not true, either. If Washington does nothing, Israel _will_ act on
its own. And that would be just about as disastrous as anything Washington might
do.

Post by Steve Hayes
The current impasse was reached by a road littered with misunderstanding,
insults, provocations and meddling.

Which, unfortunately, this little encyclical contributes too. See below. This is
_not_ just a repeat of the nonsense that got us into Iraq.

Post by Steve Hayes
The US ... threatened to use nuclear weapons
against Iran in 2006.

Where's the evidence for this?


[snip]

Post by Steve Hayes
Actions lead to reactions in a cycle of ever-escalating hostility.

This is one of the few genuine insights in this document.

Post by Steve Hayes
The first
step on the way to peace, however, must always be putting one's own hou'se in
order.

If you really believe this, then it is high time to give up on expecting peace
EVER.

Post by Steve Hayes
To do that =96 to show the forbearance and compassion Christ asks =
of us,

You expect this out of a _government_? This has been exceedingly rare throughout
the entire history of the Orthodox Church, even when the Christian Emperor ruled
over a Christian Empire.

Post by Steve Hayes
rather than the bellicosity of those who =93live by the sword=94 =96 we u=
rge that
Our leaders should admit that they do not, in fact, know whether or not there
is a nuclear threat from Iran,

But this is not true. It is clear that the real goal of their nuclear enrichment
program is to acquire the ability to build nuclear weapons themselves.

Why is this so clear? Primarily for two reasons: 1) if it was just the enhanced
power production they were after, they would have accepted the offer of the
Russians to do the enrichment for them. But they rejected this. 2) nuclear power
plants are _not_ interchangeable with coal and gas plants. They require special
enhancements to the power grid (since the reactor requires a constant load).
Tehran has done NONE of this work.

The conclusion is clear: they want it for weapons technology. They want it to
destroy Israel.

[snip]

Post by Steve Hayes
So long as some nations claim a right to stockpile and use nuclear weapons in
their own self-interest,

This clause makes it clear that the author(s) have NO idea what the realities of
nuclear strategy are like in the wake of the Cold War. It is NOT "in our own
self-interest" that we keep the stockpile. It is because once the world made the
mistake of _starting_ the arms race, there IS no easy way to back down.
Especially not after the collapse of the Soviet Union. So it is out of
_necessity_, not out of "self-interest".

[snip]

Finally, I saw the list of signatories. I see notable Church leaders, authors
and theologians, but I saw _nothing_ to indicate they understand the realities
of nuclear proliferation or the strategy of nuclear warfare. But without
understanding these things, how can they presume to speak on these things?