Most striking (and amazing) about this conference was the breadth of religious thought about the subject of "Peace."  Following are some of the many quotes that I wrote down from the plenary panels.  Note:  All individuals are identified by the Yearly Meeting they belong to.  This was the context in which they were presented at the conference.  I have a program for the event that lists additional information about each speaker.

There is no biblical basis for the peace testimony.  It is the spirit of the scriptures - Janet Melnyk, EF-Mid-America Yearly Meeting

Quaker pacifism is fuzzy.  As Quakers, we are called to radical obedience to the spirit and to always be open and prepared for God's message.  So, how can we be convinced of our position?  How do I know I won't be called to kill? - Ron Mock, Northwest Yearly Meeting

This is our dilemma.  Should we love our neighbors and protect them from enemies?  Or should we love our enemies? - Ron Mock

Peace is a road - not a destination.  - Emma Lapsanski, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

Heaven and hell are not places we go when we die - they are places we create by how we live our lives.  Emma Lapsanski

How complicated a peaceful existence is! - Emma Lapsanski

John Woolman was amazingly unsuccessful in his lifetime.  By the end of his life Philadelphia Yearly Meeting had only freed 2% of its slaves.  We are likely not to see the fruits of our witness 

[I come here out of] a dedication to the Peace Testimony based on not using bombs to create the same terror that was created for the families of the 9/11 tragedy.  - Young Friend from New York City

The Peace Testimony is a gift. - Doug Bennett, New York Yearly Meeting

We need to let Christ teach us [that] the Peace Testimony is much more than pacifism.  It is living in a way that does not seed war.  - Jane Orion Smith, Canady Yearly Meeting

God does not require peace of us; he requires kindness. - Jane Orion Smith

The Peace Testimony will not save you.  Christ will. - Jane Orion Smith

Faithfulness [means] keep doing what you are called to do.  To love to the point that you would lay down your life.  - Rubye Braye, North Carolina Yearly Meeting - Conservative

Christ's death serves as an example of God's ability to receive and absorb pain and turn it into love. - Jan Wood, Northwest Yearly Meeting

Most of the diplomats work very hard and are very good people.  Jack Patterson, Executive Director, Quaker United Nations Office

We are not doing these good works to save the world - we are doing them to get closer to the divine.  - John Calvi, New England Yearly Meeting

The more mercy you have for yourself, the more mercy you will have for others.  - John Calvi

The cross represents the ultimate surrender to