This FWCC Conference, entitled "Friends Peace Witness in a Time of Crisis", was held at Guilford College on January 17-20, 2003.  It was intentionally held on the Martin Luther King Memorial Weekend and was highlighted by 29 of his quotations (peace, evil, non-violence, dignity, worship, goodwill, etc.) in the Conference Program brochure.  About 250 Friends from almost all Yearly Meetings (30 Yr. Mtg. were represented) were present plus staff, speakers and worship leaders.  It was a joy to see that about 1/5th-1/4th of the participants were Young Friends, who were active in participation and leadership.  The following paragraphs reflect some of the wonderful messages, but space limits greater detail.

The conference leaders at the Friday opening session, "Spirit-Led Peacemaking", both welcomed us and then challenged us to be faithful.  Val Liveoak, South Central YM, who has a long cherished background in peace activities, emphasized the necessity of a spiritual community to be supportive in work in non-violence; "...God's love is the ultimate security".  Max Carter, Campus Ministry Program at Guilford College, emphasized that a life of peace making and the power of non-violent witness "...has roots in a faith-based community".  Beyond Joy, a recent graduate of Guilford College, articulated that "...passionate peace-making is built on small acts every day that draw on the Inner Light" for guidance.

For the Plenary on "Biblical Experiences with the Peace Testimony", Janet Melnyk, an evangelical Friend from Atlanta, GA, emphasized the dual nature of peace - "Peace is the intimate work of justice", and that "Peace is a gift that comes as a result of an Inner Command".  Larry Ingle, a History professor at the University of Tennessee, described the feeble nature of the Peace message of the late 1600s, and then how (and why) this Testimony 

A Plenary Session on "Wrestling with the Peace Testimony" was beautiful in richness. Mary Lord's, from Baltimore YM, AFSC and FCNL, message highlighted that "...God is still guiding... God is practical and understands human inadequacies... We must change the mythology of violence, and yet guard against arrogance..." Jane Orion-Smith, a young Canadian Friend, emphasized that "...her faith was rooted in God's love, which lasts forever" and leads her to practice many daily acts of simplicity.

The writer attended an excellent Workshop, "Peaceful Prevention of War - Alternatives to War", led by Joe Volk and Bridget Moix, key staff of FCNL.  While it is difficult to obtain a change of national policy with the present reliance on military solutions and the spread of weapon systems, they reported that Congress wants also to hear new ideas, but this takes time to adopt.  The U.S. policy is based on a Bush administration report, "Nuclear Posture Review", (Mar. 2002) and emphasizes the iniquitous "preemptive war" policy and renewed reliance on nuclear weapons.  By contrast, the United Nations relies on two reports by the Secretary General, "Agenda for Peace" (1992) and "Prevention of Armed Conflict" (2001).  The latter document emphasized the increased need for steps to prevent war before hostilities, State Dept. diplomacy, small arms control, nuclear non-proliferation steps and support for the reconstruction of Afghanistan.  However, UN action on this Report was subverted by the "9/11" violence at the World Trade Center and