From Quakerkristi at aol.com Sun Jul 2 18:01:54 2006 From: Quakerkristi at aol.com (Quakerkristi at aol.com) Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2006 18:01:54 EDT Subject: [saymaListserv] Earth Charter news forwarded Message-ID: <52b.24d1f68.31d99c52@aol.com> Correct link below: PLEASE SEE THE FORMATTED NEWSFLASH HERE 1. Council Meeting Moves Transition into High Gear On 2-4 April, at the University for Peace in Costa Rica, the newly formed Earth Charter International Council met for the first time and set the "Transition to Phase 3" formally on course. Since then, things have been moving quickly. This special edition of Newsflash provides an update on some of the changes that are already happening, and some that are planned for the near future. First, the Council meeting itself was a milestone in the history of the Earth Charter Initiative. Formed through an open nominating process, the 23-member Council is a geographically and culturally diverse group. It brings new faces together with people who have been with the Initiative essentially since the beginning. Members include senior figures in the international arena, Earth Charter leaders working at the national level, sectoral experts, business people, and youth representatives. In two days of intense dialogue, facilitated by Co-Chairs Steven Rockefeller (USA) and Erna Witoelar (Indonesia), the Council found remarkably quick pathways to consensus on key issues concerning organizational structure, strategy, and initial policy. (See sidebar, "Results of the Council Meeting.") In sum, the Council approved the following: · A formal Transition Plan based on the original strategic direction set by the Steering Committee in September of 2005. This affirms the strategy of creating a global network of Earth Charter Centers, as well as the Transition's overarching goals (the "Four E's"): Expanded Awareness, Engaged Endorsement, Education for a Sustainable Way of Life, and Ethics-Based Governance and Assessment. · An initial set of policies for Earth Charter International on issues such as fundraising, global engagement, and stewarding the Charter itself; and a set of Strategic Guidelines for prioritizing program development. The emphasis of these policies is on action and implementation, partnership development, and promoting a message of hope, while strengthening the role of the Charter as a common statement of vision and ethics for the world as a whole. · Guidelines for the operation of the Council itself, and for related governance issues such as the creation of an Executive Committee, and the like. The establishment of the Council ? and its creation, in turn, of these guiding policies and decisions ? means that the Staff of Earth Charter International was able to shift from planning to implementation. And as the rest of this newsletter describes, we have made that shift very decisively. We on the ECI Staff team were grateful for the Council's engagement, obvious dedication, and clear guidance to us, and we look forward to this continuing dialogue. 2. ECI Launches a ?Global Campaign for Commitment to a Sustainable Future? As a way of bringing all of its new outreach activity under one umbrella, ECI has decided to develop a ?Global Campaign for Commitment to a Sustainable Future? ? a worldwide effort to raise awareness about the Earth Charter, and to increase engagement with the principles and practice of sustainable development. The concept of the Campaign was launched at an event organized with ECI partners Earth Council Alliance and Roots of Peace in San Francisco on 10 May 2006. So far, the Campaign is focused on three messages, in the form of three requests: (1) Talk about the Earth Charter, and about the vision of a sustainable world. (2) Contribute to the sustainability initiative of your choice, with money, time, ideas, whatever resources you can. (3) Implement the Earth Charter in your, or your organization's, daily life. And if you are already doing such things, consider ways to increase your commitment, and your level of activity. The idea of the Campaign will continue to develop over time, with materials and outreach strategies, and a fundraising component as well. We will soon be writing you to actively invite your participation of in helping us to spread the word. Help us to grow the Global Campaign. 3. UNESCO and ECI Partnering to Promote the UN Decade for Education on Sustainable Development UNESCO has asked Earth Charter International to be a strategic partner in advancing the goals of this special UN Decade ("DESD"), and specifically to organize a major conference for the Latin America region. Dates for this international meeting, to be held in Costa Rica, are 1-2 November 2006. UNESCO is also making Earth Charter educational materials available through its networks, as is the UN Economic Commission for Europe. This partnership is a confirmation of ECI's leading role in the field of Education for Sustainable Development, the strategic focus of our Center at the University for Peace (the official name of which is "The Earth Charter Center for Education for Sustainable Development at UPEACE.") We will send more details about this conference in the months ahead. 4. New Earth Charter Web Site Up, Set to Expand We are in the process of redesigning our website to create an entirely new and expanded presence for the Earth Charter Initiative on the internet. The new site will feature a variety of "blogs," or continuously updated postings of events, articles, resources, etc. In fact, the site will actually be a small "family" of sites, including the recently launched "Earth Charter in Action" site (http://www.EarthCharterinAction.org/). Here you can already download the entire "Earth Charter in Action" book, for free, in three languages. Other articles and resources, drawing inspiration from the book, will provide a continuous window on the action side of the Earth Charter. Other "blog" (weblog) sites will focus on education, youth, and more. Eventually, our communications system ? including the Newsflash! ? will look very different, with email newsletters linking to continuously updated websites, with contributors from all over the world. We will be actively soliciting submissions of information on activities, projects, and the like ... you can already send your submissions to editors at earthcharterinaction.org. Let us know what you are doing! 5. ECI Receives Major Grant from Plan Netherlands ECI has received a two-year grant equal to over USD 580,000 to help advance its transition planning from the Dutch development agency Plan Netherlands, a branch of Plan International. The grant will also support the development of the Earth Charter Youth Initiative, as well as programming to explore new strategies for sustainable livelihood development, guided by Earth Charter principles. For more information on this important new partnership with Plan ? one of the world's leading development agencies, with a special focus on the well-being of children ? please see our website. 6. Earth Charter Commissioners to Attend 2006 Earth Dialogues in Brisbane, Convened by Green Cross Brisbane, Australia, 21-24 July 2006. Brisbane Festival 2006 is to host a major international "Earth Dialogues" forum, chaired by President Mikhail Gorbachev and Queensland Premier Peter Beattie. Earth Dialogues Brisbane 2006 will focus on the need for the ethical and sustainable management of natural resources and its potential for enhancing world peace. Earth Charter Commissioners Maurice Strong and Wakako Hironaka are expected to attend. International decision makers, Nobel Laureates in Peace and other dignitaries will speak, and the Earth Charter will be very much in focus during the proceedings. See http://www.brisbanefestival.com.au/p_earthdialogues.htm. 7. Germany's Earth Charter Champions Support the Philippines' Earth Charter Campus Caravan As an example of the Earth Charter in Action, the Ecumenical One World Initiative in Germany recently collected 1096,20 euros, and donated these to the Earth Charter Campus Caravan project in the Philippines. Ecumenical One World Initiative has served as an Earth Charter Focal Point, and took this action to "celebrate 30 years of exploring alternative lifestyles in Germany and ... 5 years of serving as national Earth Charter focal point. This step is meant to show our support and commitment to the worldwide efforts of promoting the ethics of sustainability and the Earth Charter." 8. The "Value of Values" Seminar: Report, DVD, and Audio Files ("Podcasts") Now Available Now you can attend, virtually, our successful Imperial College London event, featuring international sustainability leaders John Elkington, Jane Nelson, Princess Basma of Jordan, Ruud Lubbers, Alexander Likhotal, and Herman Mulder. Focused on the role of global ethics and the Earth Charter in government and business, "The Value of Values" Seminar also contributed to an international dialogue on this topic. We encourage our Affiliates to exlore creating their own "Value of Values" seminars around the world. We will provide you with a simple "kit" to guide the process, including a sample agenda, invitation letters, and slide presentation. You can download a free report from the London event with excerpts from the speakers, or listen to the speeches in full (in MP3 format) for free, or order a two-disc DVD for professional or educational use, for USD 39 / Euros 30, plus shipping. More info: http://www.earthcharterinaction.org. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From wrcsmith at cafes.net Sun Jul 2 21:57:34 2006 From: wrcsmith at cafes.net (wrcsmith) Date: Sun, 2 Jul 2006 20:57:34 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] sayma Digest, Vol 41, Issue 1 References: Message-ID: <000c01c69e44$0d5f4530$0401a8c0@Wib> Hi. sorry to be redundant. why do a continuing number of SAYMA Messages contain a bunch of ?????ZZZyyy???'s, such as the latest? Am I doing something wrong? 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(?Wiy???Z?? ?????w????'J???uf?jJ??'jF?????j????????]y???????zR???????v?az?b?x?j??????jF?v???Z???em?)?r?~?.???x-???v)????????y???j??????.z?????f????????jjb?{??h??x??w???Z?? ??????? ???^????j?^?)?????zx?jS?yj+?????+?q??f???z{e?%????????????axF???j?^?&?????jzk?7??)????)?G.???N??WH?+bj?z????jq?????hq?O?)?m??-?+r???zW???^??j?(}???????zX?z???g?????????????b?v???Z??~???"????z???????(??.??+?????????????]?^y?(~??b? ay??~????i??????xF???j?^??yV????nz??)????CT6?t ???b??????/j)ZnW?? ???j??????\???.q????&? ?ez??wh???j??x"????b?v???)?)b?)^i???!?Id?x-?rZ???>??q??&j???Z??t??m?W?jw^?????Z????s.???.?????^??z?r?v???Z???x(???w[??z????V???h?j????(??n???)??*'jWbjZ ?????bqg???????????+y?j?????0?V????nz??)???????]Y?Zk???aj??W????????z???v)???W???)?????^??v?u????b?v(??v?'???i???_??????z?????m????????b????az?y??)?Yb??~???????j?v+ P??k??'jZ+y?j???n??D????,?e????b?(???m????j?ar????-???????3 j?r????????DK?????w????z???_???z{l?m4??uu?????g??f ------------------------------ _______________________________________________ Southern Appalachian Yearly Meeting and Association list-server: -- address to subscribe (get on the list-server) or unsubscribe (get off): http://kitenet.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sayma -- address to send message to everyone on list: sayma at kitenet From bright_crow at mindspring.com Mon Jul 3 11:51:42 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Mon, 3 Jul 2006 11:51:42 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] SEYMpeace: Seventh Month Update Message-ID: <16920172.1151941902694.JavaMail.root@mswamui-blood.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, Please visit http://seympeace.org/, the website of SEYM's Peace & Social Concerns Committee, and read the "Thought for Seventh Month." This is a long quotation from the preface of Howard Zinn's PASSIONATE DECLARATIONS: ESSAYS ON WAR AND JUSTICE (2003, originally published in 1990 as DECLARATIONS OF INDEPENDENCE). Zinn's comments are extremely appropriate as we prepare to observe Independence Day in 2006. Thank you, Michael. From kcarlyle at main.nc.us Thu Jul 6 11:55:36 2006 From: kcarlyle at main.nc.us (Kim Carlyle) Date: Thu, 6 Jul 2006 11:55:36 -0400 Subject: [saymaListserv] SAF -- summer issue Message-ID: <007101c6a114$a5c2c220$5367ec48@yourfulkl1oh2q> Dear Friends, The summer issue of the Southern Appalachian Friend is now available at http://www.sayma.org/online_documents/SAF/SAF2006-Summer.pdf Please note that some wonderful opportunities for yearly meeting service are described on pages 7 and 8. Aside from the abounding spiritual rewards of these positions, one of them even provides financial remuneration! Please enjoy this issue --- and fill these positions. Susan and Kim Carlyle SAF editors -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From Quakerkristi at aol.com Tue Jul 11 19:27:42 2006 From: Quakerkristi at aol.com (Quakerkristi at aol.com) Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2006 19:27:42 EDT Subject: [saymaListserv] QUIT listserve forward Message-ID: <521.39e7bb2.31e58dee@aol.com> These are a few of the messages on the QUIT listserve this week. They may be of interest to you, so I put them together.....Kristi Estes Friends ? Interesting and potentially good news. Just before the Senate Judiciary Committee started its meeting this morning (on what to do in response to the Supreme Court decision banning military tribunals at Guantanamo), the White House announced that it will comply with Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. In a memo addressed to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and others, Gordon England said, ?The Supreme Court has determined that Common Article 3 to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 applies as a matter of law to the conflict with Al Queda?? He goes on to say that, aside from the military commission procedures, he believes that existing DoD orders, policies, directives, etc. (including the current, not the revised, version of the Army Field manual) comply with the standards of Common Article 3. So all of the various addressees are ordered ?to review all relevant directives, regulations, policies, practices, and procedures to ensure that they comply?? We disagree, of course, that current practices (at least) comply with Common Article 3. But acknowledgment by the White House that the Geneva Conventions apply is a very good step forward. FCNL will have information on its web site this afternoon, including a statement by Joe Volk, a blog entry by Dan Smith, and a copy of the England memo, which includes the text of Common Article 3. Check in an hour or so at http://www.fcnl.org/ Ruth Flower Legislative Director Friends Committee on National Legislation 245 2nd St. NE Washington D.C. 20002 202-547-6000 ext 2524 -----Original Message----- Fyi ------ Forwarded Message Friends, Letting you know that Brooklyn approved yesterday the display of a banner which is being sent to different churches and faith communities in NYC, "Honor God -- Say No to Torture" A copy of the minute follows; a copy of the banner is attached. The moving spirit behind this particular effort is Neena Das, who was also the moving spirit behind the City Council resolution supporting the peace tax fund bill. I've copied below some of her message which describes the origination of the idea. The larger group is National Religious Coalition Against Torture (see link in Neena's message). There's also a petition on the web site, which Neena also forwarded; 15 at Brooklyn have signed it so far. Minute: 2006.07.16 Friends approve the public display of a banner ?Honor God ? Say No to Torture? in cooperation with other communities of faith in New York City. When dates are selected for the display, they are to be provided to the meeting calendar. From Neena: The original inspiration was a woman in Texas who 'got' 13 churches to agree to put up the banner for a month. She funded the banners. Usually the churches had information available and apparently it was a started some fruitful conversation at the churches. The story is at www.nrcat.org . Riverside has a banner which we displayed for a week and we thought it would be a good idea to ask other houses of worship if they would like to do the same. We didn't want to put our banner in storage. ------ End of Forwarded Message -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From Quakerkristi at aol.com Fri Jul 14 10:30:39 2006 From: Quakerkristi at aol.com (Quakerkristi at aol.com) Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2006 10:30:39 EDT Subject: [saymaListserv] Job Bulletin Message-ID: <585.8c256e.31e9048f@aol.com> This is a reminder that the SAYMA Administrative Assistant Job Position is still open for applications. Sallie may be out of town, so go ahead and send inquiries to my email for now: clerk at sayma.org I'm attaching a job description here if anyone wants to look more closely. Thanks, Kristi Estes June 13, 2006 To: Clerks, Members and Attenders of SAYMA Monthly Meeting and Worship Groups SAYMA is in need of a new administrative assistant. Mary Calhoun, who has filled this position for the last 7 years is resigning as of June 30th. If you know someone who might be interested in the position, please let that person know. The application process consists of the submission of a resume and an interview. We will accept resumes until Monday, July 17, 2006. Please send resumes to: Sallie I. Prugh 3122 Monroe Street Columbia, SC 29205 Or by E Mail: sallieprugh at yahoo.com For additional information and job description write or E Mail me at the above address or call 803-254-0626 Thank you for your help. Sallie Prugh Clerk of the Personnel Committee -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: SAYMA-JobDescription.rtf Type: application/rtf Size: 15781 bytes Desc: not available URL: From Quakerkristi at aol.com Fri Jul 14 10:42:23 2006 From: Quakerkristi at aol.com (Quakerkristi at aol.com) Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2006 10:42:23 EDT Subject: [saymaListserv] SAYMA Contact info Message-ID: <3f7.6e6fba9.31e9074f@aol.com> To kitenet and clerks/contact persons, In case folks didn't get the word from Yearly Meeting Sessions - Mary Calhoun, our Administrative Assistant, has resigned after 7 years of service to SAYMA. We are currently taking applications for that position. In the interim a working group has volunteered to cover the essential tasks. To contact us about SAYMA business; email clerk at sayma.org for Kristi adminasst at sayma.org (different volunteers may answer) or you may phone me: (901)274-0833 or write: SAYMA c/o Kristi Estes, clerk 1793 Forrest Ave. Memphis, TN 38112 We hope to have the position filled before September Representative Meeting. Please hold the selection process in the Light. Thanks, Kristi Estes Clerk of SAYMA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From bright_crow at mindspring.com Sat Jul 15 09:05:43 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2006 09:05:43 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] Important new links on SEYMpeace.org Message-ID: <5875075.1152968743389.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, Please visit and share with others the new links at "What's NEW?" http://seympeace.org/#NEW They include -- Riverbend's cry of Iraqi rage and despair in her blog, Baghdad Burning http://riverbendblog.blogspot.com/2006_07_01_riverbendblog_archive.html#115264752348608248 -- the new Network of Spiritual Progressives http://www.spiritualprogressives.org/ described in the latest SAYMA newsletter -- the announcement of SEYM's September 8-10 "Faithful, Effective Work for Peace and Justice" workshop http://seympeace.org/Faithful.htm Blessed Be, Michael From nmwhitt at samford.edu Wed Jul 19 10:53:32 2006 From: nmwhitt at samford.edu (Nancy Whitt) Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2006 09:53:32 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] Letters from Lebanon Message-ID: <44BE011C020000F50002CD64@gw3.samford.edu> >From the Christian Women's Leadership Director at Samford University: Below/attached are messages from various CWLC friends in Lebanon and Jordan. In the attached PDF document you will read from Nabil Costa how Dr. Agnes Sanders; a young musician; and others are being instruments of peace in Beirut simply by being themselves and using their unique sets of skills. Below is a letter from a Lebanese Samford student to Professor Nancy Whitt, followed by letters from Ruba Abbassi, founder of Arab Woman Today, about the situation in Jordan as people there-once again-take in refugees. Please remember our Women in Black friends in Israel and Palestine as they continue their work for peace, one woman at a time. Sawsan Haddad's latest letter is at the website www.cwlc.us. As Nancy wrote to Claud, we hold our sisters and brothers in the Light. Shalom/Salaam, Carol Ann **************************************** Professor Whitt, First of all, I'd like to thank you very much for your concern and prayers. We're back in the news again, and how I wish we were not. In the last 24-hours Lebanon has witnessed a major security set-back with Israel. Aggressions and counter-aggressions are the theme of the day bringing about losses in the lives of innocent civilians and considerable destruction in the country's infrastructure. Unfortunately, Israel is concentrating on the infrastructure and vital areas; Till now, 3 airports were bombed, around 50 bridges were completely destroyed, and many pores and touristic places were striken by the Israel F-16 warplanes. As a matter of fact, the main cause of this war was the kidnap of the 2 Israel soldiers by our terrorist political party "Husb Allah". But unfortunately, Israel didn't limit its military actions on "Husb Allah", but expanded them to kill around 130 civilians (only 3 of them were from that political party), and pull down Lebanon's economy. I just wanted to give you a brief update, for you to know, how highly dangerous the situation is in Lebanon, nowadays. Please, continue on praying for my country and for the region. Pray for genuine peace. Pray as well for the safety of all my beloved people there. Lebanon needs your prayers ! Many thanks with much appreciation, Claud. ****************************************************** July 18 Dear Friends, Undoubtedly as you hear the news from Lebanon and Israel, you are wondering how life is in Jordan. Many folks are emailing to ask how we are and how they can pray. . . . Our hearts are heavy because of the bombings. Our hearts are heavy because we have dear friends in Lebanon whose lives and ministries are being affected by the situation. We would ask that you pray for Jordan and for us in the following ways: Jordan is a small country (the size of the State of Indiana) with limited natural resources, especially water. Already we have millions of refugees from Iraq and Palestine. Thousands of people are entering Jordan daily as they escape from Lebanon and Syria. Pray for Jordan to be able to handle this large influx of people and provide them with basic essentials of life. Pray that Jordan will remain strong as a country and that the government will remain stable. Pray that our team in Jordan will have opportunity to minister to the people that are already here. Nabeeh is responsible for the Levant Christar members, which includes one Lebanese-Canadian family in Beirut, one single American who evacuated from Syria to Jordan yesterday, and 10 family units in Jordan. As tension mounts in the region, it can be unsettling for non-Jordanians, especially those who are relatively new to the region. Pray God will give our Christar workers peace and wisdom in making decisions concerning their safety and their ministries. Our family will travel to the US on August 6, plans that were made months before the events of the last week. Ramzi will be enrolling in Samford University (Birmingham, AL) and we will be waiting to receive our green cards. Lord willing we will return to Jordan September 15. Ruba is facing great challenges as she proceeds with her masterâ€*s thesis [in women's studies] and must make some big decisions in the next week. Pray God will clearly guide her as to how He wants her to proceed. Continue to pray for the Husn Church during the transition of Nabeeh completely stepping aside this summer and laymen taking over leadership of the church. There is a small, Christian school in Ammanâ€*s northern village of Ajloun. The school is in desperate need of staff, remodeling and funding for both. Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, emails of concern, friendships and partnership in the Gospel. Serving for the Sake of His Kingdom, Nabeeh and Ruba ********************************************************** Thursday, 18 July 2006 Dear Friends of AWT Ministries, Undoubtedly you hear news daily of the difficult situation facing the Middle East. Many people are asking how this is affecting AWT Ministries and our staff I am writing to you to put your mind at ease that we are all well and safe. For those of us in Jordan, not much has changed but our hearts are heavy for our neighbors. I'd ask you to pray for the following items: Our AWT office in Beirut, Lebanon, has been closed due to the situation. Two of our AWT team are in Lebanon. Sawsan is Lebanese and is planning to stay in Lebanon with her family. Jennifer is American and is awaiting US evacuation plans to Cyprus where she will then get a plane to come to Jordan. AWT activities in Lebanon have been put on hold. We've been asked to hold a women's conference there, but cannot make any plans until there is calm and safety. Many of our listeners in Lebanon and Northern Israel could be affected. Please pray for their safety. And of course, without electricity, they will not be able to hear the broadcasts or correspond with us. AWT could be affected financially because Sawsan, Manager of Resource Development, will not be able to do any work during this time. Thank you for your prayers for AWT, for our staff, for our region and especially for our brothers and sisters being affected by this terrible situation. For His Glory, Ruba Abbassi General Manager Arab Woman Today Ministry Box 930101 Amman, 11193 Jordan Work # + 962 6556 2330 Cell # + 962 79599 8599 >>> "Nabil Costa" 07/18/2006 11:53:26 PM >>> Nabil K. Costa Executive Director Lebanese Society for Educational & Social Development (LSESD) P.O.Box 165 Mansourieh El Metn Tel: 961 4 401922 - Fax: 961 4 532481 The greatest good we can do for others is not just to share our riches with them, but to reveal theirs. Zig Ziglar >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Carol Ann Vaughn, Ph.D., Director Christian Women's Leadership Center Samford University 800 Lakeshore Drive Birmingham, Alabama 35229 205.726.4194 cwlc at samford.edu "We are not what we know; we are what we're willing to learn." --- Mary Catherine Bateson From Quakerkristi at aol.com Thu Jul 20 11:04:54 2006 From: Quakerkristi at aol.com (Quakerkristi at aol.com) Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2006 11:04:54 EDT Subject: [saymaListserv] forward from Atlanta Friends Message-ID: BeloFSTATEMENT OF THE ATLANTA FRIENDS MEETING ON THE ILLEGAL USE OF U.S. WEAPONS BY ISRAEL >From its earliest inception, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) has placed rejection of war as basic to our understanding of God?s will. We believe that human beings are capable of solving conflicts through reason, an empathetic understanding of the other?s point of view, and the courage to take principled, nonviolent action in the face of injustice. In this spirit, the Atlanta Friends Meeting urges all parties in the current conflict to declare a ceasefire and work toward a negotiated settlement of their grievances. As Quakers who are also U.S. citizens, we strongly object to the fact that tax-payer funded U. S. military equipment is being used illegally in this conflict. We are very concerned that Israel is using weapons supplied by the United States to target Palestinian & Lebanese civilians and civilian infrastructure in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon in violation of the US Arms Export Control Act and the Geneva Conventions. The Israeli air force fighter squadrons are composed of Lockheed Martin F-16I Fighting Falcons and Boeing F-15Is, which fire US-manufactured AMRAAM, Sidewinder, and Sparrow missiles. From 2000-2005, the United States licensed to Israel at least $1.062 billion of spare parts, engines, and missiles for its F-15 and F-16 fighter planes. >From 2000-2005, the United States licensed to the Israeli navy more than $572 million worth of patrol boat, ship, and submarine components and spare parts, torpedoes, and sonar equipment. From 2000-2005, the United States licensed to Israel more than $348 million worth of tanks, components, and spare parts. (Statistics for US weapons licensed to Israel are compiled from the State Department's annual report to Congress pursuant to Sec. 655 of the Foreign Assistance Act) By using US-supplied weapons to attack Gaza and Lebanon, Israel is violating the terms of the US Arms Export Control Act and Foreign Assistance Act. The Arms Export Control Act restricts the use of US weapons to legitimate self-defense and internal policing; US weapons cannot be used to attack civilians in offensive operations nor can they be used to destroy civilian infrastructure such as power plants. The Foreign Assistance Act prohibits US aid of any kind to a country that routinely kills civilians as a result of its military operations. The Atlanta Friends Meeting urges the President and Congress to act immediately to halt Israel?s military attacks in the Middle East that are being conducted with U.S.-supplied weapons in violation of our laws. We urge the President and Congress to stop all foreign assistance and military equipment exports to Israel until it ceases military attacks outside of its internationally recognized borders. Adopted in Meeting for Business - July 16, 2006 _________________________________ Sally MacEwen, Clerk of the Meeting -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From bright_crow at mindspring.com Sun Jul 23 13:41:39 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2006 13:41:39 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] First Lieut. Ehren Watada - Refused to deploy to Iraq Message-ID: <18124030.1153676499958.JavaMail.root@mswamui-backed.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, Please visit and share the new links on the SEYMpeace.org site at http://seympeace.org/#NEW Thank you, Michael From bright_crow at mindspring.com Wed Jul 26 17:37:25 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2006 17:37:25 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] "Sir! No, sir!" Message-ID: <7137184.1153949845703.JavaMail.root@mswamui-thinleaf.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, I just learned of a 2005 documentary about "the suppressed story of the GI movement to end the Vietnam War": http://www.sirnosir.com/ You might find it an interesting website to visit, and perhaps the film itself would be useful to some of you. Thanks, Michael From freepolazzo at comcast.net Thu Jul 27 10:05:21 2006 From: freepolazzo at comcast.net (free polazzo) Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2006 10:05:21 -0400 Subject: [saymaListserv] Truth emerges in Message-ID: <7.0.1.0.2.20060727095921.03370168@comcast.net> Hi Friends, News from a scientist who clears the air about being misquoted in much of the popular media. The internet can make it easier for the truth to be known. Pass this on to folks who are not sure about the "inconvenient truth" about global warming. Blessings, Free > >The New York Times > OPINION | July 27, 2006 >Op-Ed >Contributor: Cold, Hard Facts >By PETER DORAN >I would like to remove my name from the list of scientists who >dispute global warming. I know my co-authors would as well. > >Copyright >2006 The New York Times Company | >Privacy Policy -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: 97cae6e.jpg Type: application/octet-stream Size: 3990 bytes Desc: not available URL: From jewen at bellsouth.net Thu Jul 27 11:38:25 2006 From: jewen at bellsouth.net (Julia Ewen) Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2006 11:38:25 -0400 Subject: [saymaListserv] [afmdiscussion] Truth emerges in References: <7.0.1.0.2.20060727095921.03370168@comcast.net> Message-ID: <000f01c6b192$b39f7030$6101a8c0@amd1gig> There is an op-ed piece in today's New York Times by this same scientist. Quite a good article. He does correct the idea that he came out against the idea that there is global warming occurring, but he also pointed out that the evidence he was collecting was about Antarctica, and at that, about a particular peninsula that is a special case within Antarctica. He says it is problematic to extrapolate from data about Antarctica to what is happening or not happening globally. There are so many variables and the systems are so very complicated. However, what grabbed my attention in the op-ed piece (and the author would probably have my head on a plate for booting this bit out of context!) is that the ozone hole above the South Pole is healing! He attributes this to the drop in usage of aerosols that attack the ozone layer (GOOD!). However, as the hole closes, the "green-house" effect has been increasing, because less heat is escaping through the hole. (BAD!) Now this does not mean that we should all start using hair spray again to deflect global warming! But it does point up something that consistently puts ME in a bind...Whatever fix we come up with for an environmental problem seems to set up its own environmental problem! Several years back, some guys from Tech met with Social Concerns Committee about the effects of pollution and emissions, etc. on the environment. They had a computer program that could, they said, with great accurracy predict what sort of environmental catastrophes would occur and when. But when I asked them exactly what we needed to do prevent these things from occurring, they said that was extremely difficult, to impossible to say, because there are too many variables. It is easy to make a prediciton of disaster from a known variable or given value and extrapolate the probable outcome. But every time you change something, you set up new choices, which in turn set up more choices, and an infinite number of permutations based on different combinations of choices... The way to take care of tomorrow is to make today better! Because that is the only day of which we have a clear view, and a reasonably limited number of choices from which to choose... Or to put it more simply (and poetically): Look to this day. Yesterday is but a dream of what has been, and tomorrow is only a vision of what may be. But today, well-lived, makes yesterday a dream of happiness and tomorrow a vision of hope...Look well, therefore, to THIS DAY! Julia ----- Original Message ----- From: "free polazzo" To: ; "Atlanta Friends Meeting" Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2006 10:05 AM Subject: [afmdiscussion] Truth emerges in > Hi Friends, > > News from a scientist who clears the air about being misquoted in > much of the popular media. The internet can make it easier for the > truth to be known. > > Pass this on to folks who are not sure about the "inconvenient truth" > about global warming. > > Blessings, > > Free > > > > >The New York Times > > OPINION | July 27, 2006 > >Op-Ed > >Contributor: Cold, Hard Facts > >By PETER DORAN > >I would like to remove my name from the list of scientists who > >dispute global warming. I know my co-authors would as well. > > > >Copyright > >2006 The New York Times Company | > >Privacy Policy > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > To send a reply to the whole list, hit Reply All. To send a reply to only the person who sent the message, hit Reply. > > Please make sure your subject heading is clear and accurate, especially if forwarding an email or if the subject has changed. > > To receive the digest, send an email to: afmdiscussion-digest at yahoogroups.com > > To stop email messages, but remain on the list, send an email to: afmdiscussion-nomail at yahoogroups.com. > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/afmdiscussion/ > > <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > afmdiscussion-unsubscribe at yahoogroups.com > > <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: > http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ > > > > From bright_crow at mindspring.com Mon Jul 31 13:12:39 2006 From: bright_crow at mindspring.com (Mike Shell) Date: Mon, 31 Jul 2006 13:12:39 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: [saymaListserv] Christian Alliance for Progress Message-ID: <21154869.1154365960029.JavaMail.root@mswamui-blood.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Friends, Please visit "What's NEW?" on the SEYMpeace.org website:http://seympeace.org/#NEW We have linked to a new national organization: Christian Alliance for Progress http://www.christianalliance.org/site/c.bnKIIQNtEoG/b.592941/k.CB7C/Home.htm - A national movement that started in Jacksonville among ordinary Americans who want to reclaim Christianity and change this current political picture - The Jacksonville Declaration http://www.christianalliance.org/site/c.bnKIIQNtEoG/b.686289/k.ACEF/The_Jacksonville_Declaration/apps/ka/ct/contactus.asp?c=bnKIIQNtEoG&b=686289&en=jwKYJ6MQJiLYI8PPJeKUL7NPLiLYJjN1IdI0KoN0LmI9JrPeH Thanks, Mike From nmwhitt at samford.edu Mon Jul 31 13:28:36 2006 From: nmwhitt at samford.edu (Nancy Whitt) Date: Mon, 31 Jul 2006 12:28:36 -0500 Subject: [saymaListserv] Articles on Islam, Christianity, Israel and Current Events in Middle East - Martin Accad Message-ID: <44CDF774020000F50002E7D6@gw3.samford.edu> >>> Carol Ann Vaughn (Carol Vaughn) 7/31/2006 12:19:00 PM >>> As we prepare to address current events and our students' perceptions and beliefs about them, some might find helpful the following perspective on American Christian Zionism, which more than a few of our students bring with them to the classroom. Dr. Martin Accad, who has hosted several Samford faculty and administrators in Beirut, is publishing columns in _Christianity Today_ while he is stranded here in the U. S. His area of scholarship is Islam in the Middle Ages. - CAV Lebanese Scholar Says Errant Bible Reading Causes American Christian Bias for Israel Robert Parham 07-31-06 Errant Bible interpretation causes many American Christians to side with Israel against Lebanon, an Arab Baptist scholar said amid reports this weekend that Israeli air strikes killed dozens of children in the southern Lebanese village of Qana. Martin Accad, academic dean at Arab Baptist Theological Seminary in Beirut, charged "unquestioning identification of the modern state of Israel with biblical Israel" leads some Christians to misread the Bible. "Christians are not able to differentiate between 'biblical Israel' and today's political State of Israel," Accad told EthicsDaily.com. "As soon as you are able to make the difference between these two entities, your readings of history and of the Bible begin to be straightened up." Accad said the "new Israel" prophesied in the New Testament does not refer to modern Israel but rather to the worldwide community of Christ's followers. "The church is Israel renewed and restored," he said, quoting 1 Peter 2:9-10. "All of God's eternal promises, beginning with his promises to Abraham, are fulfilled in Christ." Stranded in the United States due to fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, Accad said conservative evangelical Christians in the U.S. are often equated with Zionist Christians, but he thinks there is a difference between the two. "I am myself a 'conservative evangelical Christian' believer in the Bible's absolute authority in all matters of life," he said. Zionism, on the other hand, he said, "is a secularist, largely atheistic ideology" that emerged in the late 19th century. Accad termed Christian Zionism, a belief by some Christians that the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 was prophesied in Scripture and is a precursor for Christ's return, a "contradiction in terms." Rather, he said, "There are only certain Christians that have adopted a Zionist ideology." Those people, he said, "would do well to read some historical accounts of the rise of Zionism in the late 19th century and to read about this ideology's early promoters." Accad said America has "blurred the lines between its own political and economic interests, on the one hand, and divine justice, on the other." "I have heard numerous American Christians speak of American foreign policy as just, fair and as the hand of God doing God's will on earth," he said. "This always leaves me in stupefied disbelief." Part of the problem, he said, is that American political leadership has expressed itself in such terms, using expressions such as "crusade," "divine justice," "judgment," conflict between "good and evil" and the "axis of evil" to describe enemies of the United States. With such talk, Accad asked, "How can Muslims and even Arab Christians view these foreign interventions as other than just another crusade?" The Lebanese Baptist leader said American Christians today "have a unique chance to make a difference by not falling for deceptive and manipulative political rhetoric. They can actually receive an open ear when they are willing to question the use of force and demonstrate that they really seek after justice, mercy and humility." Born in Lebanon and holding dual citizenship in Lebanon and Switzerland, Accad earned a Ph.D. degree from Oxford University. Ironically, he defended his Ph.D. dissertation on Sept. 11, 2001, the day terrorists attacked targets in the New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. A few days later, Accad returned to Lebanon and took up his job at the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary, where he also founded and directs the ABTS Institute of Middle East Studies. Accad wrote his doctoral dissertation on the history of interaction between Christianity and Islam and is writing a book on Christian-Muslim dialogue, hoping to find constructive ways to crack the ancient deadlock between these faith traditions. He wrote two columns that appeared on the Christianity Today Web site to offer perspective on the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, challenging both American Christian prejudice against Arabs and Muslims and Israel's current attacks in Lebanon. While expecting 90 percent criticism, he said, response has been overwhelmingly positive. "I got not more than five negative e-mails out of over 100 e-mails," he said. But critics didn't mince words. "Shame on you, foolish little man," said one negative e-mail. "You are one of Satan's moronic helpers and don't even know it." A similar response came from a blogger who self-identified as a conservative Christian fundamentalist. "Mr. Martin Accad, dean of Arab Baptist Theological Seminary in Beirut, blames Israel for just about everything that is happening in Lebanon--and blames the Americans, too," the blogger wrote. "Heeeeeee-hawwwwwww! Didn't he read Genesis 16 and sundry other passages that speak of Ishmael and his descendants as being like wild donkeys? He is certainly braying like one." Accad said he was shocked at such insulting words. "The fact that Islam is prone to using violence is no secret to anyone, and so are Western nations," he said. "But that these nations consider they are using violence in the name of Christ or Christianity is quite shocking to me, and that people who claim to be followers of Christ would be willing to use such aggressive talk is also shocking to me." "I can find no justification whatsoever for the use of violence in Christ's name. If Muslims want to do it in God's name, we need to deal with it and address this with Muslim leadership," he wrote. "It is, however, deeply distressing that so many in the church around the world are just as willing to carry arms and insult in Jesus' name." Accad told EthicsDaily.com that his wife, a filmmaker, had been evacuated to Cyprus, but that his parents, two siblings and eight nephews and nieces were still in Lebanon. He said he has given consideration on being smuggled back into Lebanon through Syria. "But the routes into Lebanon are all being bombed by Israeli jet planes on a regular basis. My friends and family, who have been using the roads between Beirut and the Bekaa Valley close to the eastern border with Syria, have described to me the scenes of horror. Multitudes of cars and trucks and human bodies burnt up on the roadsides. They have had to use a 4x4 [vehicles] in order to go and check on friends that are living in bombed up areas. Roads that used to be highways are now dirt tracks and practically inaccessible with normal cars," he said. http://www.ethicsdaily.com/article_detail.cfm?AID=7693 __________________________________ Carol Ann Vaughn, Ph.D., Director Christian Women's Leadership Center Samford University 800 Lakeshore Drive Birmingham, Alabama 35229 205.726.4194 cwlc at samford.edu "We are not what we know; we are what we're willing to learn." --- Mary Catherine Bateson