Day 18 October 28, 2002

1. Names. Collect historical surveys and WORTH journals. Continue with War Memorials for next time.

2. Introduce Jim Juhnke, one of the best-respected Mennonite historians; has written the third volume in the Mennonite Experience in America series and at least four other books in addition to co-authoring The Missing Peace, which we all know well and stimulated such lively and sometimes conflicted responses from all of you.

Jim can be with us until shortly after 10, when he needs to move to a reception in Marbeck and then to Yoder for the Keeney Peace Lecture. I expect a big crowd, so get there early.

Ask Jim to start by saying a bit about his hopes for Missing Peace and the reception that the book has had, and then we’ll open the floor for questions from you about the book, about nonviolence and American history, about war and peace and the search for justice, etc.

If things get slow:

Ask about Hitler, the question pacifists are always faced with.

About what a nonviolent response to current events, Iraq, Al Qaeda, etc., might be.

I got a response one day when I quoted the old saw: “If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” Do you think the U.S., with all our weaponry, is tempted to use force first and consider other options later?

What relation do you see between nonviolence in affairs and issues that aren’t directly “military”—civil rights, women’s issues, economic justice—and what Mennonites have typically considered “peace” issues?

I’ve been arguing all term that pacifists and just-war folks can find a lot of common ground in the search to make war and violence truly a last resort, to increase our resources and options for resolving/transforming conflicts without killing people. What do you think?

Best of times, worst of times. What’s your view of the current moment? Has 9/11 really changed everything?