"Christian Peacemaker Teams: Joining God's Non-Violent Way Out of War," was the title of the address given by Rev. Carol Rose, the guest speaker of the annual Norwood Jones Lecture at Ottawa University. Rose, who is co-director of Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT), spoke of the peacekeeping missions in countries directly affected by war and asked the audience what they are doing individually to bring about peace. To illustrate her point, Rose turned to the words of a song. "May my life be such that war is affective, and is pushed away and diminished by my life."

A peacekeeping mission to war-ravaged Colombia was the focus of her lecture in the Ottawa University chapel on Wednesday, April 30. The mission took place on New Year's Eve some years ago and her group came upon a particular village where people had recently returned home from internal exile. The villagers were celebrating the New Year despite war going on about them. "Women were cooking, men were throwing rock-like firecrackers and the kids were dancing," recalls Rose.

Rose and her colleagues were asking the villagers what they were hoping for in the New Year. "Some said they wanted to farm again, some said they were hoping for peace and others were hopeful that the schools would reopen," said Rose.

Rose detailed how the peace-keeping skills came into play when a group of soldiers came upon the celebration. The soldiers were kept at bay with the same questions of new year's hopes. One soldier even led the group in prayer. After a while, Rose recounted how the soldiers left and the peacekeepers followed them downstream. "The commander realized we weren't going away," said Rose. "They did not want to go back up stream."

These are the types of efforts that CPT is involved in throughout the world. Multiple invitations were extended for people to join them. "What I'm hoping is that people will hear God's call," said Rose. "We need people that have retired from another career and students that are fresh out of college. I hope for people to step up."

Other requests for help were made, but Rose said that even if the only thing a person can do is pray for CPT's efforts, that is acceptable as well. "We need prayer-backing," said Rose. "I don't want to do this work without the community of God behind me and surrounding me and upholding me."

Rose has been involved in peaceful activism since the late 1970s while she was a student at Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington. After graduating in 1981, she worked with the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) by accompanying refugees who fled the war in El Salvador, participated in the Pledge of Resistance to nonviolently help stop the wars in Central America, was part of the international peace network Synapses, and joined the social justice organization Service Order. By earning seminary credits from a number of schools over a decade of activism, Rose received her MDiv in 1997.

Founded in 1984 by Mennonites, Brethren and Quakers, CPT places violence-reduction teams in crisis situations and militarized areas around the world at the invitation of local peace and human-rights workers. Since joining CPT, Rose has helped formulate and work on the organization's Columbia project; has served on-site in the Middle East, Latin America, Asia and North America; and is the facilitator/presenter for the Biblical non-violence portion of the CPT core training. Click here for more information.

Rose's lecture was made possible through the Norwood L. Jones Convocation Fund established in 1973 by Mr. and Mrs. Norwood L. Jones, Carolyn Jones Fletcher, and Anne Jones Compton. The fund enables Ottawa University to invite distinguished individuals to campus to stimulate and inspire students in their religious life and involvements.