Crisis and Opportunity

The twentieth century witnessed an unprecedented acceleration in the destructive capacity of weapons of war. The nature of warfare itself has changed. It has become more and more impersonal and increasingly civilian populations have been subject to indiscriminate slaughter. The international arms trade has secured the dissemination of weaponry and fed innumerable
conflicts large and small. Millions have died and many more rendered homeless. The tragedy is compounded by the fact that militarism contributes to the global problems of environmental pollution which threaten the future of the whole of humanity. Precious resources which are needed to combat this common enemy are squandered on wars between and within nations. As we face another century the paramount need is for conversion: a fundamental change of priorities, a massive re-direction of human and material resources from armaments to "building peace". For us, the change of priorities is rooted in the Gospel.

The Supremacy of Love

Jesus taught unlimited love -not a sentimental emotion, but goodness in action, forgiving without limit, responding to evil with good and encompassing friend and foe alike. On the Cross, unarmed and vulnerable, he confronted evil by sacrificial love, not by the violent. rebellion of the freedom fighter Barabbas nor by the discipline, order and might of the Roman Empire. Love means food for the hungry, justice for the poor, liberation for the oppressed. But it also means not killing, maiming, burning
destroying -the typical actions of armed national defence or armed liberation struggles. To us it is inconceivable that the love taught by Jesus can be expressed in the killing of fellow human beings, no matter what the pretext may be. We believe that violence breeds violence and usually destroys more than it defends. But our conviction is not based on such weighing up of consequences: it is a moral imperative and an affirmation of faith, a belief that in the real world of selfishness, conflict, aggression and oppression, the Christian response is the one taught and exemplified by Christ. The outstandingly radical element of the Gospel is his revelation that the Christian., God is a non-violent God. All attempts to lay down conditions under which
war-making might be considered 'Just" seem to us to miss the central truth that organised slaughter is simply not the way of Jesus. Even on its own terms the doctrine of the "Just War" cannot be made to endorse modern warfare as we have described it. More recently non-violence has been used effectively in some of the most violent situations. There are better ways of
conflict resolution than war and its like.

The Fellowship of Reconciliation
In July, 1914, on Cologne railway station, a German and an Englishman parted company with the words, "We are one in Christ and can never be at war". Inspired by that pledge, about 130 Christians of many denominations met in Cambridge during the last days of 1914 and founded a movement, the Fellowship of Reconciliation, committed to the personal renunciation of war and "the enthronement of Love in personal, commercial and national life." They recorded their general agreement in a
statement which became, and still is, the Basis of the FoR. A few years later an international movement was established and FoR, England (FoRE) is now a national branch of the International FoR (lFoR).

The Methodist Peace Fellowship
The MPF is an association of Methodist pacifists within the FoRE. h was founded in 1933 by Rev. Henry Carter, to inform and unite Methodists who covenanted together "to renounce war and all its works and ways." We in the MPF are committed to the way of love and rejection of violence, to reverence for life and respect for every human person as a child of God. We believe that the Church should be God's peace movement, and that we are called to accept, to live in, and to witness to, the Peace of Christ.
For many years now, the MPF has been incorporated in the FoR and accepts its Basis. Anyone who joins the MPF now
automatically becomes a member of the FoRE and subscriptions are paid to FoRE which largely provides the fmance for the work of MPF. The word "Fellowship" is important. Peacemaking can be a lonely and stressful commitment and the church family is not always sympathetic to its pacifist sons and daughters. Through MPF we share our experience, our griefs, our insights, our hopes and our learning. The MPF arranges a public meeting each year in connection with the Methodist Conference, and in other ways seeks to witness at national level through Methodist channels. At the local level members normally express their commitment through the FoRE or other local peace organisations. Depending on time, opportunity or enthusiasms, this may take the form of meeting in study or discussion groups; supporting vigils or nonviolent demonstrations; letter writing; seeking to influence political leaders and powerful interests such as management and trade unions; and above all, prayer .We also
manage the R. J. Barker fund to assist young people interested and engaged in peace projects of various sorts.
The primary role of MPF is to be the peace-leaven within the Methodist Church, calling all Methodists to a re-examination of the Peace of Christ, as part of the Church's mission of reconciliation. We are small in number and we do not know all the answers, but it is our conviction that God has called us to this task. If you share this conviction, we invite you to join us. There is no fixed subscription, but we ask members to subscribe annually according to their means. It is helpful it: tax-paying members sign a Gift Aid form to enable us to recover about 28p for each £1 given MPF also supports and where possible participates in ecumenical and international initiatives for peace and reconciliation. Another aim is to .galvanize concerns for peace among Methodists
including those not able to accept the full pacifist position. Enquiries about
current initiatives to the Secretary , please.

FoRE Publications
FoRE has two publications: a bimonthly newsletter, Peacelinks which is free to all members, and, in partnership with the
Network of Christian Peace Organisation, Peace & Reconciliation, for which there is an annual subscription. You may get more information about any of these by emailing the FoRE at

• That Love as revealed and interpreted in the Ijfe and death of Jesus Christ, involves more than we have yet seen, that it is the only power by which evil can be overcome and the only sufficient basis of human society.