Proud as Punch

Is there any prouder moment for a parent than when their child stands up in front of an audience and performs with great confidence?

click to watch Patrick reading "Trouble on Mouse Island"

Probably. But no matter.

I was so proud of Patrick when on Thursday night he stood up in front of the Pendle Hill community and read his new book, "Trouble on Mouse Island", to great applause. It was his second reading of the book and his voice was loud and strong.

He lifted up each page so the audience could clearly see each illustration.

I love that Patrick's teacher, Mr Sweeney, encouraged the whole class as creative writers. I have little doubt that this will stay with Patrick his whole life.

Completing the Cycle of Life

This Memorial weekend marks the end of the first two weeks that I am in full "house dad" mode.

How much shopping can YOU handle?

Now that Samantha began full-time nursing school it's my job to:

                    get the boys up                                                  feed them breakfast

                    make sure they're dressed                                  and ready for school

                    make lunch for Patrick                                        cajole Patrick to finish his homework

                    walk Patrick to the bus                                       walk Isaac to his school

                    bring Isaac home from school                              entertain him for the afternoon

                    pick up Patrick from the bus stop                        clean the house

                    wash the clothes                                                cook dinner

                    put them to bed                                                  (after bath and tooth brushing)

                    tell them to stop horsing around                           and "go to sleep already!"

                    melt in parental bliss over their cute slumbering forms

Down the Hill. click image to watch video

One of my joys is bike riding. As a teenager my bike was my transportation and I rode pretty much everywhere. At age 12 our family moved "up the hill" so I learnt quickly that a hill was really no obstacle. Moving to the US I wanted to be a careful steward of the environment and limit the fossil fuel usage. This meant, most likely, riding a bike.

With two kids in tow it becomes a different challenge. My solution: the trailer bike!

Not only does it enable me to ride with one of my children, it adds load bearing capacity on trips to Trader Joe's. I can now carry almost a full shopping trolley (cart) full of food home (see picture above).

Yesterday I rode 5 miles there and 5 miles back from Pendle Hill to Linvilla Orchards. Doesn't sound too bad until you see the elevation change along the route. We made it and here's Isaac enjoying the ride behind me.

Ahhh, the Nostalgia of Parenthood

I overheard a father talking with his ten year-old son. "They're re-releasing Monty Python's The Holy Grail. We should go and see it!"

Kind Arthur and his servant Patsy

I chuckled inwardly and wondered what on earth a ten year-old would make of The Holy Grail.

This morning I walked back into the house after my morning run to find Patrick reading an Asterix comic book. I'd found a bunch of them in Pendle Hill's free room and immediately thought to myself, "Patrick will love to read them!" assuming that since I loved to read them as a teenager a 7-year-old would enjoy them, too ... of course.

Well, it turns out I'm right. Though he doesn't get most of the jokes and puns - but he loves the visual humour.

In reflection, much of parenting is re-living our childhood through our children. Inflicting on them the best and worst of our own experiences, hoping somehow that it will be an improvement for the next generation.

Reconciliation of Civil Hearts

My friend, and fellow peace activist, Simon Moyle, recently journeyed to Afghanistan to be with the Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers. They recently posted this call to a nonviolent way for peace in their country.

Some particular highlights from this document, that I think deserves more than a cursory glance.

"We are struggling because it seems that nowadays, the voice of war has its space and its rights; we wonder if the voice of peace has equal space and rights. We wish to raise our voice of peace to give it a chance, without fear or shame."

"We desire to patiently build our nation. So, while we appreciate your friendship and partnership, we desire just as much to trek on our own paths, build our own parks and choose which of our own mountains to climb."

"We’re not willing for one more international soldier, one more Afghan soldier or one more of our countrymen to die a violent death."

"We do not accept the violent actions or solutions that the world seems to be counting on. We have become a terror to one another, in our inconsiderate actions and in our cowardly silence, and this must stop."

"We wish to refuse the ‘insurgent’ any further excuse to hurt us; brothers killing brothers, friends killing friends, humans killing one another."

ANV in Cambodia

Cambodia is a beautiful country filled with natural resources and amazing people. But many communities are under attack for their land, fisheries, forests and other natural resources. Cambodian communities are learning to make use of active nonviolent resistance and this video shows a small part of their journey.

Reading Scripture, Rejecting Violence

This last week several friends invited me to offer thoughts and resources on how to address the question of how do we read the violence contained in Scripture, and therefore, how do we respond to those whose theology makes room for the use of violence by Christians.

Interestingly, I had mostly put the first question aside as irrelevant, at least personally.

About two years ago I made a week-long retreat in Colorado with a good friend and spiritual director. I was deeply concerned about this issue and having a hard time moving forward in my spiritual path because of it. I was also in the middle of a difficult conflict that seemed to be intertwined with the scriptural issue. I didn't really seem to get very far at this time so shelved active attempts to resolve the issue, mostly.

In response to my friends' recent requests I've re-engaged the question searching out resources on the issue and come acrosss some interesting websites and blogs. Interesting on several levels. Firstly, to see the pretty big split in theological readings of Scripture towards violence. From one group assigning all actions to God, whether we perceive them as "good" or "bad", arguing that because God is totally good and has a perspective much larger than any human, God's actions may look bad to us now, but are in fact part of a much larger good. The other perspective is God is completely good and therefore will never do anything we percieve as bad or evil or violent. Violence, therefore, comes from outside of God, predominantly from Satan and other beings that work against God's purposes. The second level of intereset was the difficulty with which these two "camps" have in dialoguing with each other.

Web blog comments generally don't allow for a positive and transformative conflict experience. There will be one group who argue their point of view, another group arguing theirs, and much name calling and dire proclamations hurled back and forth. There may be one, or two individuals who raise a more conciliatory voice to the discussion, asking questions, seeking some understanding, but they seem to be generally ignored on the whole. So the capacity for healthy conflict in these discussions are low. This is also interesting to me as I prepare myself for moving to the US next year and consider how to approach the roots of violence there.

So how have I dealt with the problem of violence in Scripture? I have several propositions on dealing with this:

Firstly, a clear rejection of the use of Scripture to endorse or promote any act of violence (in all it's forms) towards one person or group on another. And this goes right down to the cultural level. Any attitudes of hatred, racism, sexism, genderism - any form of domination - are to be rejected. Scripture, distressingly, has been used to promote all kinds of violence, from domestic violence to genocide. I emphatically reject this reading of Scripture.

Secondly, a change of language that no longer refers to Scripture as "the Word of God". "The Word of God" is used synonymously with "Scripture" and I think that is problematic making room for the abuses I mentioned above. The Word of God, according to Scripture, is God who enlightens us, and I would also say enlightens our reading of Scripture. Scripture is certainly useful for "traininig in righteousness" but must be read in the light of Jesus, first, as well as in appropriate context. If not readings of Scripture that lead to violence and domination tend to creep in quite quickly.

Thirdly, I suggest the employment of Nonviolent Communication principles in reading Scripture, that is to say, working hard to understand the feelings and needs expressed by the author of Scripture, particularly with those passages we find most difficult to grapple with. For me those passages are the ones where violence is endorsed, directly or indirectly, and where God and Jesus are described as having violent characteristics as in the book of Revelation.

I actually spent some time writing down some "psalms of renunciation" to the violence within Scripture and done because of our violent interpretations of Scripture. I found that incredibly freeing and I have renewed energy to re-engage Scripture on the whole, and those parts I have generally avoided.

Hungry for Justice

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled"

Earlier this week I spent two days with thirty community nonviolence activists from around Cambodia. In the evening of the first day I sat aside to read some Scripture. The passages I'm meditating on these days are the Sermons on the Mount, in Matthew and Luke, as well as Paul's version in Romans 12. I was surrounded by poor Cambodian farmers, fishing folk, foresters, day labourers, and villagers. Their homes, fishing grounds, forests, lakes and water ways are all under intense risk of destruction or appropriation. If anyone could be described as "poor in spirit", mourners, meek, seekers of righteousness (justice), builders of peace, and persecuted, these folk fit the bill. My eyes grew wide in awe as I sat amongst these blessed ones and watched Scripture come alive.

But how are these folk blessed? Regardless of current advocacy and legal efforts there are no concrete resolutions in sight for activists and their communities. A number of these folk have already lost everything.

What I saw, however, was a spirit of joy and thankfulness amongst them. Joy of being with others who know their struggles, pain, sacrifices and mistakes. Thankfulness that their story was being heard by each other, and one tall white foreign guy with a video camera on a tripod.

There is hope in togetherness. It is a fruit of the kingdom of heaven, it is comforting, it is an acknowledgement of an inheritance worth more than land and economic development. Their time together affirms their struggle for justice and the truth of their cause, an opportunity to show mercy for those in small acts amongst themselves, such as words of encouragement, promises to visit one another's village, and small acts of financial support.

And while I saw this hope, joy and thankfulness I know it is not enough. To stand aside resting in the assurance that God loves these folks is to turn aside from the gospel message itself, of liberation, freedom, concrete hope in a renewed reality. And so myself and many others work in supporting, advising and training in nonviolent tactics and strategies.

Women of Courage. 3 Stories

International Women's Day, 2010

The Christians for Social Justice celebrating Int'l Women's Day


Shiprah, Puah and the Hebrew Midwives

The first recorded event of civil resistance is fittingly an event of women affirming life in the face of death. Circa 1300BC The Hebrew people were living in Egypt and found themselves under the power of a king (Pharoah) who was afraid of them. They were a strong people more numerous than the indigenous Egyptian population, and Pharoah conspired to a program of genocide lest the Hebrews overpower the Egyptians. The Hebrew midwifes in Egypt were then tasked by Pharoah to kill any male child born to them. But the midwives refused the command, risking their own lives in the process. Their story is immortalised in Exodus chapter one.

The Rosenstrasse Prison Protest

In 1943, Berlin, the Gestapo swept through the city to arrest and gather up the remaining Jewish men living in the city. They were brought to a building in Rosenstrasse, Berlin, very close to the Gestapo headquarters. Within hours of the arrest the "Jewish Radio", an informal phone network, flew into action and were able to discover the location of the arrested men. The wives of the men, nearly 6000 women, gathered en masse in front of the detention center and clamoured for their husband's release. After a few days the men were released. Some who had already been shipped to concentration camps were quietly released. Why? The men were married to Aryan women. These women stood in front of Gestapo officers and yelled for their husband's freedom, fully knowing the brutality capable by the most feared section of Hitler's war machine. Almost all these men survived the war.

You can read more in Michael Naglers The Search for a Nonviolent Future, and a full length study called Resistance of the Heart.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

On August 8th, 1988 (8.8.88) Burma comes to a stand-still under a General Strike across the whole country. Led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the National League for Democracy were attempting to create space where the military junta would be forced to work towards democracy. Two years later in 1990 the NLD win 90 percent of the votes in a national election. Tragically the junta did not hand over power. Aung San Suu Kyi's face is an iconic representation of the people of Burma / Myanmar and to the unending resistance capable of those who practice nonviolent resistance.


These are simply three stories of how women have, and continue to, battle violence throughout the world. Often women bear the brunt of violence - physical, structural and cultural - in the most heinous ways. Yet women continue to respond with compassion to both victim and perpetrator.

Today is a celebration of all women, as well as a call to continued vigilance of violence in our world, particularly that which is directed at women. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon can be seen here making a video message on "equal rights, equal opportunities: progress for all".

Peace,
Chris Baker Evens

building a bike powered phone charger

Here are some links I'm looking at and trying to decide which one to try out first.

http://greenopolis.com/goblog/derekmarkham/7-great-pedal-power-plans

http://www.stewardwood.org/resources/DIYcyclepower.htm

http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2009/06/how-to_pedal-powered_phone_charger.html

http://www.instructables.com/id/Bike-that-charges-your-cell-phone-as-you-ride/

Resisting Empire

I've had some enriching discussions with folk since the last post on Empire, the US and Evangelicalism.

What's driving home to me now is that Empire exists in two locations: "out there" and "in here". The "out there" is in politics, economics, militarism, consumerism, domination, etc. Once you start seeing it, it is the easiest form of Empire to notice. For example: the US has over 700 military bases across 135 different countries, who's security is that really for? The US's economy and resource footprint is in the range of 80% for 20% of the population (those figures probably include OECD countries, not sure. You can look them up for yourself). We all agree that the US is "on top", the disagreement is whether this is a good thing or not.

For me I see it as a sign of Empire because there is little acknowledgement that the way we live in Empire impacts those outside of Empire. Well, that's not entirely accurate. Do we acknowledge that part of the Empire is left untended, has it's valuable natural resources transfered to the center of Empire and those left behind become the dumping ground for the center? Usually not. When we buy a consumable good, food, a mobile phone, a car, do we think beyond the cost-benefit equation to our self (usually in terms of money, time and effort) or to the planet (which requires thinking of product life-cycles, labour practices, environmental impacts, and the quality of human interaction? I'm guilty of the former for most of my consumption.

Jesus said, "why accuse your fellow human of participating in Empire when you are just as blindly complicit?" (my paraphrase). And I have to answer, "because it's easier to point the finger than seriously critique my own participation in Empire". It's time to stop that.

Martin Luther King Jr wrote in his famous Letter from Birmingham Prison that there are four phases to a nonviolent campaign: 1. collect the facts and decide if there is injustice going on. 2. negotiate with the relevant decision makers 3. spend time in "self-purification", and 4. engage in nonviolent direct action. I actually think that the beginning point is number 3 - "self-purification". When we are able to stand outside of the reaches of Empire, even for just a moment, we begin to percieve the injustices that we are complicit with, either passively or actively. At that point we are able to begin investigations, try to pursuade others to change and, if necessary, make the crisis of Empire so clear through nonviolent actions that change will become necessary (like the recent Avaaz.org campaign to prevent the increase in whale killing). But the key is self-purification.

Self-purification is not some high-faluting saint-like attainment. It is about reaching for the highest values that humans can attain, but humbly recognising how far off we are. Self-purification seeks awareness of all that binds us to Empire, whether it be job, status, education, possessions, area/zip code, make and model of car you drive. When we become aware of these sticking points, even temporarily, we are better able to see things from a bigger perspective. With compassion. What Empire is like for those not at the center and not connected to me? For the environment? For our families? It's not easy to do and I'm certain I've never attained perfect purification. But that, I don't think, is the point. Perfection is not the point. Rather, a gradual opening up of our awareness to how my life affects my neighbour's life, even if that neighbour is on the other side of the planet and I never ever meet her.

Gandhi used the word satyagraha, truth force, to help people understand that resisting an Empire requires a strong grasping on to the truth. Not just truth as in facts, but truth as in compassionate relationships. Satyagraha was the outward actions of defeating the British Empire. But it was also the struggle to ensure that those actions did not alienate the British, but allow them to leave as friends. And it worked. On both counts.

Islam has a similar understanding. It's called jihad, or struggle. The media feeds us jihad all the time as a militant islamic practice. However, jihad is first and foremost the inner struggle with Self. The Prophet, PBUH, called this the greater jihad.

The result of all this self-purification of mine is a growing desire to know the impacts of my life choices, as well as a growing list of potential new ways of living that resist Empire on a personal level. Gandhi is well known for his marches to the salt fields and facing down British military might, he is less well known for the constructive alternatives to Empire that he promoted. Village self-sufficiency was a huge part of what he called "constructive programme". His centerpiece was the charkha, or spinning wheel. Both tactically and symbolically it was genius. The British Raj organised the cloth trade so that India relied on cloth made in Manchester. It kept over a million textile workers in employment. But it kept 300 million Indians in dire poverty. He asked each Indian to spend half an hour or so spinning, carding and weaving their own cotton and cloth. It created massive self-reliance and employment in India. It demolished the English textile industry, but the workers were so convinced of the justice of Gandhi's approach they whole-heartedly supported it. So I'm looking for my own "charkha", that symbol of resisting empire which is at the same time practical and constructive. I also like the symbolism of the wheel, but I have no idea how to spin wool or cotton. But I have a bike. And bikes have wheels - two of them. Riding my bike reduces my reliance on oil. Oil is the life-blood of Empire. It's a start. But there's more bikes can do. The energy inherent in a bike (pedal power) can power lights, recharge batteries and run computers. So I've searched the net and come up with some designs for phone recharger from recycled materials and a bike-powered home generator, (2) and (3). I'm itching to give them a try, even though I'm no electrician.

I am also researching the product lifecycle of the technology I use (nokia mobile phone, hp laptop, Palm TX, the internet - the servers that keep it going and store this blog for you to read, cloud computing, ebooks, etc) and for ways to reduce the environmental impact of these while I use them (eg using human-powered generators to power them). There are some interesting and useful resources on the 'net. A Greenpeace report on computer, phone and game-console manufacturers rates how well they work towards products that reduce or eliminate toxic chemicals, pvc plastic and carbon footprints. There's more research to be done: labour practices throughout the component cycle of mineral extraction, manufacture and retail, etc.

The key to being prophetic is not being noisy, but practical. It's one thing to shout and yell "Empire is Evil", but what is the alternative, and is it liveable? I see this as part of my experiment with truth, of self-purification and inner satyagraha and my greater jihad.