Here is another reason why I am devoted to building Shalom House.

The ICAHD website reports: “At around 11p.m. Monday, a bulldozer accompanied by a contingent of heavily armed Israeli soldiers appeared on the Anata hills, to promptly demolish Beit Arabiya, along with residential and agricultural structures in the nearby Arab al-Jahalin Bedouin compound. 3 family homes were demolished along with numerous animal pans, and 20 people including young children were displaced, left exposed to the harsh desert environment. While standing in solidarity with Palestinians, ICAHD staff and activists were repeatedly threatened by Israeli soldieries. ICAHD Co-Director Itay Epshtain [who I met in Palestine] was beaten and sustained minor injuries.”

Read the full story here from the ICAHD point of view. [link] More pictures from Ryan Beiler of MCC Palestine [link]

Salim Shawamreh walks among the rubble of his house, Beit Arabiya, which was used as a peace center by the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions and was demolished for the fifth time by Israeli authorities on the night of January 23.

The Israeli government is completely militarized and devoted to military solutions for their numerous relationship problems. The largest military the world has ever known is their strongest friend and financial supporter. Last night in the state of the union address the president promised unwavering support.

There needs to be a consistent alternative voice against that soul-killing strategy.

We need to find Christians who will band together to keep demonstrating that there is another way.

Yes, the church is that alternative community and we do keep making that noise. But Circle of hope, among the churches, has benefited so much from the concentrated voice of Shalom House and from their radical community lifestyle that I can’t let it go.

To be honest, it is hard to keep Shalom House going. We cannot find people who can keep their mind on the purpose. Our latest member is about ready to leave because she wants community living more than the cause, and Shalom House requires passion for the cause of proactive peacemaking.

But we have plans. We are going to recruit. We came up with a little funding. The Guidance Team has been energized. We have a decent house to use. We are part of a supportive community.

And the powers-that-be represented by the Israeli military and the U.S. government met for the state of the union address are inspirations. Our existence itself, in any way, is resistance.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17
I am not what I ought to be yet, but I am not what I was before and I will never be the same. The country lyrics of Alan Jackson remind me “just be patient, I’m a work in progress”. The Prince of Peace transforms us. In His love we truly develop. Transformation in Jesus is a process which we cannot engage in alone. I hid for so long, avoided being known for fear of hurt and pain. This year I joined Shalom House with the intention of being a proactive peacemaker, I became an active part of Circle of Hope as the treasurer at Broad and Washington, I gave forgiveness in a broken relationship from which I could not heal on my own, I am willing to accept feeling emotions like anger and intense love, I recognize the difference between aggression and assertion, the Lord is teaching me to practice self-discipline in new areas of my life particularly in giving volume to His voice in me. I am more open and vulnerable in my relationships, I am able to let go of expectations and trust in the unknown. This is an ongoing development that my Father began in me long ago and He will see to the finish of it with the coming of Christ Jesus! I have also experienced doubt, hopelessness, failure, and I have chosen again to ask my Lord’s help in laying my burdens on Him. It’s a daily decision. The Spirit sands down the layers of my being, exposing me in nakedness again and again to be remade by the glorious power of the Potter’ s creative hands. My humanity battles with my divinity; Jesus continually restores peace in me.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart… see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” – Psalm 139: 23-24

Do not be conformed by this world, but be transformed by it…Live in harmony with one another…Do not repay evil for evil…If your enemies are hungry, feed them (Romans 12).

Christian peacemaking is rooted in knowing God who is peace, gives us peace, and calls us to be peacemakers. The teaching of Jesus involved accessibility to God through his loving actions. Jesus offered healing touch, ate with tax collectors and sinners, and spoke to everyone.  Peacemaking is a specific way of living out our lives as Jesus did. It is an everyday mindfulness of  adversity to the presence of evil, being always aware of the humanity of our opponents. Shalom is more than kindness and peace; it includes justice, transformation, and inclusive community. Shalom seeks to bridge the gaps between religious faiths, mend ethnic or racial tears in communities, and reconcile all people, including the adversary, to the heart of God. God gives each of us spiritual gifts through which we can live out, in our own unique ways, Jesus’ mission of peacemaking.

Jesus seeks to live in us and work through us to reconcile our opponents to God. Mighty sanctified soldiers of Jesus Christ have some heavy ammunition with the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit in our camp. An army full of loving, joyful, peace-filled, kind, good, faithful, gentle, self-controlled, God-driven brothers and sisters in Christ. That is simply undefeatable!   Our Father brings us together to share our gifts with one another. We form His army, you and me, as the body of Christ. We are His hands and feet on this earth and each of us has a way we contribute to the collective community.  When we express our God-given gifts in even the smallest of ways, we are telling the truth in love.

God delights in our expressivity; He works through our interests, in our relationships, and transforms us from within. Mother Theresa says that “Jesus is the truth that must be shared”.  Jesus is love. He gave His life for us that we would be reconciled to God, the Father. When we genuinely share ourselves in love, we chop at the roots of the tree of evil. Peacemaking is the ongoing process of chopping down the trees of injustice, stagnation, and idle community. It is shedding Jesus’ light in the dark corners of the battlefield where people hide out in loneliness and despair. It is making relationships rooted in love. As peacemakers we do not believe that violence is the answer to conflict, but instead we wage a different kind of war, a war for souls with the sword of truth.

Shalom House’s mission is that “the house lives in peace, works in the community for peace daily, creates a network of peacemakers and includes Circle of Hope in it” (Shalom House Rule, 2011).  We are seeking the peace of Jesus in our house where we pray together daily, practice direct address and confession, and share our resources with one another as taught in the book of Acts. We share the peace of Jesus in our work places where we help resolve conflicts with loving patience, where we act kindly toward those who oppose us. We are active in Circle of Hope as we share our gifts on the Worship Team, the Common Fund Team, with our cells, and as we encourage, support, and love those in our community.  Shalom House exists and resists with prayerful contemplation with the Guidance Team, the Circle of Peacemakers, and Circle of Hope as to what is next. We ask that you pray with us. Meanwhile, I see the Circle of Hope Community further carrying out the mission of Shalom House with the Listening Tour Team, the Urban Farm Team, Anti-Fracking Team, and other mission teams. The mission of Shalom House is also being lived out through Circle at Occupy as Jesus’ representatives stand in solidarity with the 99%; and with those participating in New Sanctuary Movement’s Global Day of Action coming up December 18^th. We are all in this peacemaking mission together! With the Guidance Team, Shalom House is open to the will of God, accepting the transformative hand of the potter, and seeking peace within.  Peace be with you.

I therefore… beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all lowliness and meekness, with patience, forbearing one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, which is above all and through all and in all. (Eph. 4: 1-6)

Jesus said that “anyone who loves father, mother, brother or sister more than me cannot be my disciple”. When we come into community we let go of the values that were ingrained in us from our family life. We choose to accept Jesus’ beatitudes rather than holding onto wealth, possessions, social prestige, or whatever else interferes with our rebirth in Him. Choosing to live in community can evoke a fear of losing our freedom. “Inner growth is only possible when we commit ourselves with and to others” (Vanier, 1979). We may fear that if we put down roots in new soil that we are unable to move. That anxiety can be paralyzing until we realize that living in community is a beautiful form of movement, it is a dance. Accepting the music of God’s everlasting love connects us in our movement. Even when we are not consciously relating to one another, just like in a dance, the music holds us together. We naturally synchronize, influence one another; we never dance entirely alone with the music playing. When saturated in the Spirit, community living comes naturally because we are more receptive. It is not about being under one roof, necessarily, as in a monastic community. The spirit of community transcends rooftops, race, and religion because God does! Community is a living organism that is cultivated through loving one another. Loving the people in your life just as they are and supporting one another through trials, celebrating the joys of those you build relationships with; this is community life!

“Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God” (1 John 4:7b). Love begins with carefully attending to the relationship we have in Jesus. It takes work, just as any relationship does. Sometimes when we commit to relationships it is an act of the mind rather than of the heart. Commitments may be made with willfulness. But Jesus wants us to rely on Him. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” ( Phil 4:13); acceptance is not an obligation to love but, instead, it is receptivity to love. Acceptance is trust. The relationship we have with Jesus is the fundamental foundation to having healthy relationships with the people in our lives. We must seek Him first. “He must turn from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it” (1 Peter 3:11). The Bible teaches that not a hair on our heads will be harmed without Him knowing, and He provides for all our needs. Trusting in the infinite love of Jesus’ sacrifice, having faith in God’s plan for our own good, and recognizing that silver is refined in fire is acceptance. Not pulling away from the flames but allowing ourselves to be consumed in the warmth of Jesus’ passion for us is acceptance. Receptivity transcends obligation because the heart, filled with Jesus, loves with unrestrained devotion. Jesus taught us to love one another as ourselves. Only when we seek peace within, with Him, can we then be the devoted change that sustains, maintains and builds community.

Do not deprive the foreigner or the fatherless of justice, or take the cloak of the widow as a pledge. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the LORD your God redeemed you from there. That is why I command you to do this. When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to it. Leave it for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat the olives from your trees, do not go over the branches a second time. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. When you harvest the grapes in your vineyard, do not go over the vines again. Leave what remains for the foreigner, the fatherless and the widow. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt. That is why I command you to do this. -Deuteronomy 24: 17-22

Does this look like peacemaking? Generosity is a way to combat fear; peacemaking is daring to tell the truth in love. The foreigner, the fatherless and the widow are all loved, too! That’s the truth. We are all broken but Jesus restores us. “God has restored our relationship with him through Christ, and has given us this ministry of restoring relationships” – 2 Corinthians 5:18. Jesus is the Prince of Peace. As Christ-followers, we are called to be peacemakers in our everyday lives. Today, we Shalom ladies, considered that relationships are always worth restoring. “Do everything possible on your part to live in peace with everybody” – Romans 12:18. We pondered the broken relationships in our lives where we recognize a need for Jesus’ restoration. We know that peacemaking is not avoiding conflict! In fact, sometimes conflict needs to be created in order to flesh out the heart of a matter so that true peace can be restored in a relationship.

Peacemaking is also not people pleasing. We are not giving in to what other people want all the time, nor are we letting people run all over us like a doormat. Christian peacemakers are not doormats! Existence is resistance! Jesus’ third way to dealing with conflict and violence (from Jesus’ Third Way by Walter Wink) offers us an alternative to the other two general responses to evil. We do not choose passivity (flight) and we certainly do not advocate for violent opposition (fight). We embrace Jesus’ summons “to pray for our enemy’s transformation and to respond to ill-treatment with a love which is not only godly but also… can only be found in God” (Walter Wink). This is the purpose of our existence, to resist evil. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” -Ephesians 6:12. In this week’s study of Waging Peace: Strategies for Brethren Seeking and Working for Enduring Peace, we are learning about the origins of the “alternative lifestyle” of the Brethren in Christ. It is a radical stance to prefer leaving room for differences of opinion rather than forcing/requiring people to accept a certain set of beliefs. God’s justice comes about as a result of peaceful living. Practical methods of problem solving should be loving and gracious so that the end result is meaningful and long lasting (Radcliff & Mazur, 2001). Our commitment to peacemaking means that we practice Christ-like service to neighbor and enemy. Pause and talk to God. What hurts need to be forgiven? Who comes to mind? How can relationships be restored? “Work hard at living in peace with others” – 1 Peter 3:11 Peacemaking is not easy, but we are not alone.
Father, give us the clarity of vision to see how to best restore broken relationships as You have called us to do. We need the wisdom, humility, love, and courage that only You provide. Bring us inner peace so that we might be a light unto the world, and that we may be open to taking the first step to restoration. (Warren, 2003)

Check out the findings from our Listening Tour team.  This is based off of what they heard over the last 10 months going around the Philadelphia area asking people how they and their communities have been impacted by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Listening Tour Findings (pdf)
Listening Tour slideshow

And please share with us your thoughts.  What stood out to you as you read these findings?

NOV 19, 10am-12pm, Broad/Washington!

Our 12 weeks are up! We told you back in August that we were taking 12 weeks to figure out if Shalom House is viable in its current rendition. The answer to the question of viability: we’re still here! But we certainly feel that it’s a tenuous situation, and we are still eagerly awaiting God’s guidance for next steps.

Since August, we have interviewed three potential applicants and extended invitations to two of them (one withdrew his application). Two people moved in to the house, but three people moved out (one of our recent additions moved back out this week, as we determined that our missions were not compatible). One person is still discerning her calling, and will be coming to visit us for a week in November.

The Guidance Team is getting better at we do. There are eight of us who meet face to face monthly, interact on e-mail at least weekly (often daily) and spend time at the house as time allows (Monday night potlucks are a fun time to be there). We have new communication tools that help us stay connected to each other and the house members. We are growing in depth of understanding about our roles, encouraging one another and the house members, exploring fundraising ideas – and successfully raising money. While losing Chase from the House feels like a step backward, it’s also an opportunity for us to consider how we can better discern if an applicant is a good fit for our mission of proactive peacemaking. We are taking each event in stride, reflecting together and listening for God’s truth in the midst of our uncertainty.

The House is down to two people this week, which is not where we want it. We want all 6 bedrooms filled! But we are keeping busy just the same. You’ve probably heard about the Listening Tour Summit on November 19 at 10 a.m. at Broad and Washington. We hope you’ll come and hear about the work Shalom House and friends have been involved in this year. You’ll have a chance to meet members of Shalom House, the guidance team, and Circle of Peacemakers.

Last week, 2 cell groups and others from the community gathered to actively support the house, winterizing it just in time for this weekend’s snowfall.

Oh, and by the way, while we’ve been doing all of this, the U.S. remains at war, spending billions (and earning billions for the top 0.01% of wealthy Americans: the military contractor CEOs.)

We are thankful for your prayers! We’ll keep you updated as we continue our journey.

Peace,

Jane Clinton
for the Guidance Team

Get to know Michelle on our “Meet Us” Page.  Read how she has come to live in Shalom House.