The work of the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns on peace is focused on identifying and eliminating the root causes of violence and conflict with a focus on specific regions, expressions of violence and areas of conflict affecting Maryknoll missioners, and U.S. aggression and national security policy (e.g. war on terrorism). The nexus of violence and poverty is clear. Unless we dedicate ourselves to building true human security for all, nations – especially poor ones – will continue to fall victim to an unending cycle of economic, political and social violence.
Maryknoll Leadership Statement on Pope Francis’ Fratelli Tutti
Maryknoll Leadership Statement on U.S. elections 2012: Sustainable peace and security for all
Maryknoll Leadership Statement: A call for the abolition of torture
POLICY BRIEF: Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Invest in Peace
WEBINAR: Nonviolence and the Web of Creation
WEBINAR: Human Rights Advocacy and the Legacy of Sr. Dianna Ortiz
WEBINAR: Rethinking Security in a Pandemic: No Justice, No Peace
WEBINAR: Sanctions — Nonviolent Tool or Lethal Weapon?
WEBINAR: Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Invest in Peace
The people praised David for his bravery in defeating and slaying Goliath. We know through scripture that King Saul was very jealous of David’s success and eventually sought to kill him. David had to run. But, in today’s reading, David is given the chance to turn the tide and slay King Saul. He refuses to…
Watch the recording of “Responding to the Foreign Aid Freeze” Feb. 20, 2025.Since the new Administration imposed a spending freeze and stop-work order on almost all U.S. foreign aid, Maryknoll missioners…
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined 38 other faith and civic organizations in a letter to President Trump urging him to work on improving relations with North Korea, including by formally ending the Korean war. Read this letter as a PDF. January 29, 2025 Dear President Trump, The undersigned coalition of national organizations write to…
The international body that addresses peace and security currently has no permanent seats for the often underrepresented and historically marginalized continent. The following article was published in the January – February 2025 issue of NewsNotes. On September 13, 2024, the United States declared to the UN General Assembly its support of the creation of two…
The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined a letter to Trump nominee for Secretary of Sate, Senator Marco Rubio, requesting he prioritize ending the violent crisis in Sudan through nonviolent interventions. The Sudanese American Physicians Association, an organization made up of physicians of Sudanese descent living and working within the United States, organized a letter…
Peace Advocates from around the United States gathered in Pennsylvania to discuss goals and strategies for bringing about an end to the Korean War and peace with justice on the Korean Peninsula. The following article was published in the January – February 2025 issue of NewsNotes. Korea peace advocates are organizing for an uncertain future….
In his annual World Day of Peace message, Francis urges the forgiveness of international debt, the abolition of the death penalty, and the reallocation of military funds toward ending hunger. The following article was published in the January – February 2025 issue of NewsNotes. Every New Year’s Day since 1968, popes have issued a World…
Iqbal Ahmad, Kroc Institute Fellow from the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame, shares what he has learned as a peace and nonviolence intern for the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns. The following article was published in the January – February 2025 issue of NewsNotes. In many parts of the…
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined 75 human rights organizations, faith-based groups, legal associations, and academic institutions in an open letter to Congress and the incoming US Presidential administration decrying sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC). As the House of Representatives is scheduled to review this legislation among its first orders of business, we…
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined a letter to the leadership of the House of Representatives, organized by Asian Americans Advancing Justice with the partnership of fifty faith and civil society groups, in opposition to the reauthorization of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party,…
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined 33 other faith and civil society organizations in a letter to President Biden and Vice President Harris requesting protections for Haiti and Haitians, namely ending the mass deportation of Haitians, stemming the flow of guns to Haiti, sanctions against the specific individuals responsible for human rights abuses, and encouraging…
This reflection was originally published in the 2024 Advent Reflection Guide: One Family of God. God indeed is my salvation; I am confident and unafraid. ISAIAH 12:2 What should we do? A people “filled with expectation” pose this question to John the Baptist. How often do our own hearts burn with the same question? Look…
Tuesday, December 10, we celebrate Human Rights Day, an opportunity to advocate for the full enjoyment of human dignity by everyone everywhere. Human Rights Day falls in Advent as Christians…
This reflection was originally published in the 2024 Advent Reflection Guide: One Family of God. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads, because your redemption is at hand. LUKE 21:28 The first scripture readings for the Season of Advent tell of difficult times ahead. In the gospel reading from…
The first reading from Daniel reminds me of one of the most impactful mission experiences of my life from my time living and working in Kenya. Our team of Maryknoll Sisters focused on building bridges across deep divides within communities, among individuals, and within families torn apart by violent conflicts. Mothers lost children, children lost…
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined 15 faith groups in a letter to Congressional staffers with an invitation to Congressman Jim McGovern’s Special Order focusing on the pressing issues surrounding nuclear weapons. Read as a PDF. November 5, 2024 Subject: Invitation to Participate in Special Order on Nuclear Weapons on November 13 Dear [name of…
The Catholic Nonviolence Initiative’s new institute held weekly seminars in Rome throughout the second assembly of the Synod on Synodality. The following article was published in the November-December 2024 issue of NewsNotes. Pax Christi International’s Catholic Nonviolence Initiative (CNI) launched a new project on September 29 in Rome: the Catholic Institute for Nonviolence. The institute’s…
The 2024 Letelier-Moffit Human Rights Awards were given to Rabbis for Ceasefire and the Institute for Middle East Understanding (IMEU), and the Concejo de Autoridades de 48 Cantones de Totonicapán of Guatemala; and a slain former awardee was honored. The following article was published in the November-December 2024 issue of NewsNotes. The Institute for Policy…
