Justin Fung asks, "Who would Jesus shoot?" in response to a Jan. 20 BBC story about a military manufacturer who imprints Bible verse references on its gun sights.

The BBC reports that  John 8:12 is one of the refences used: "Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”'

At the Sojourners magazine web site, Fung writes, "It’s absolutely mind-boggling to me that carved onto weapons of war are words of truth and peace — words from a man who embodied and heralded a kingdom characterized by peace, and from a man who announced an alternative to empire and spoke of faith, hope, joy, gentleness, goodness, and peace. How in the heck do these things go together?!”

We at liveforpeace.org, can’t figure this out either. As Fung asks, have we learned nothing from the Crusades, the Inquisition, etc.?

The Mennonite has published a thought provoking reflection on President Obama's Nobel peace Prize Award speech. Author Harold A. Penner quotes King when he writes that, "'Violence never brings permanent peace. It solves no social problem. It merely creates new and more complicated ones."' So spoke Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in his 1964 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech."

Although Obama considers himself a beneficiary of King's legacy, Penner asserts that Obama nonetheless dismisses non-violent peace builders like King and Gandhi as "ineffectual and naive."

A gathering of ecumenically minded Christian peace builders will be held in Elkhart, Indiana, July 28-31, 2010. Organized by the World Council of Churches and sponsored by nine ecclesial, peace minded bodies, the event will gather global, non-violent peace leaders and key note presenters to reflect on the future of the ecumenical peace movement in North America and beyond. To learn more, review the brochure and schedule.

The parents of a girl who was bullied into jumping to her death are seeking peace by forgiving their daughter’s tormentors.

“We continue to pray for those who are responsible for Rosi's death. We want them to know that we forgive them. That does not mean that what they did doesn't matter, of course it does," said the girl's father, Rev Simon Boxall. See the full story here.

A December, 2009 report on Canada's military spending states that the Canada First Defence Strategy is expected to cost each Canadian $13,000 over the 20 year life of the plan.

On Dec. 10, 2009, the National Post reported that the Canadian Council of Churches - the biggest ecumenical organization in Canada comprising 22 member denominations - has issued a brief to Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper calling for and recommending diplomatic solutions to the war in Afghanistan.

Update: Dec. 8, 2009:  Added photo of train poster. - photo by Allisa Bender

Update, Nov 27, 2009:
Calgary - Two large format billboards appear on Macleod Trail south of 52 St. Ave. and on 14th St. north of of Kensington Rd. The posters appear at the following train stations: Anderson Station, Chinook, Erlton/Stampede, University and Whitehorn stations.  The balance of the 40 posters are on the C-trains.- photo by Alissa Bender

Six Alberta congregations in the Calgary area will be the first to launch a Live For Peace Campaign. First Mennonite, Trinity Mennonite (DeWinton), Foothills Mennonite, Calgary Chinese, Calgary Vietnamese and English langugae congregations, and Bergthal Mennonite (Didsbury) churches are banding together to sponsor the first ever Live For Peace campaign on Nov. 23, 2009. The launch will see two 10 by 20 foot billboards and forty Light Rail Transit posters on the C-Train and at train stations in Calgary, ending on Dec. 23.

Visitors arriving at this web site via the Calgary campaign are encouraged to spend some time here browsing the site to learn more. Anyone wishing to know more about how to Live For Peace is invited to contact and/or visit the church nearest you:

First Mennonite Church, 2600 Richmond Rd SW, Calgary; Phone: (403) 249-8784

Trinity Mennonite Church, Hwy 552 and 232 Ave W, MD of Foothills; Phone: (403) 256-7157

Foothills Mennonite Church, 2115 Urbana Road NW; Phone: (403) 289-7172

Calgary Chinese Mennonite Church, 1237 - 28 Street SE; Phone: (403) 248-5988

Calgary Vietnamese Mennonite Church, 167 Whitefield Drive NE; Phone: (403) 293-8885

Bergthal Mennonite Church, Disbury, Alberta; Phone: (403) 335-4451