Chorus of Church Bells to Ring Across Nation in Remembrance of the Fallen in Iraq
Bells Will Bear Witness to the Human Toll of War, Commemorate their Sacrifice, and Bring Forth a Moral Consensus on Next Steps in Iraq
Commencement Ceremony Thursday (9/1), 10:00AM;
All Souls Church, Washington, DC
Washington, DC: Religious leaders are calling for a coordinated tolling of bells to remember those who have lost their lives in Iraq. The National Council of Churches, Clergy, Laity Concerned About Iraq and Faithful America along with Democracy Rising are leading the call for churches and other religious institutions to take part in this healing. The groups were inspired, in part, by the actions of Gold Star Families for Peace seeking to understand why U.S. soldiers and Iraqis are dying.
"We are asking the faith community to remember our nation's fallen soldiers and their families by tolling their bells," wrote Vince Isner, director of FaithfulAmerica.org. "Let us all pause to remember their sacrifice, to remember their families as we seek God's help in sharing the burden of Cindy Sheehan, Celeste Zappala, and the other Gold Star families who are asking why their children had to die."
In an alert sent to 100,000 church activists, the National Council of Churches and Faithful Community are calling for a weekly nation-wide tolling of bells to extend the spiritual tone of Gold Star Families for Peace vigils and to deepen the moral dialog among Americans about whether the occupation should be continued or how it should be ended. Rev. Bob Edgar of the National Council of Churches said: "People of all faiths can participate by ringing hand bells, school bells or any other available bells." The alert suggests the bells be sounded each Sunday, tolling once for every soldier who died the previous week. Churches may also opt to ring their bells every day and add one additional long bell for the deaths of Iraqi civilians.
"Ringing for Remembrance" will begin on Thursday, September 1 at a ceremony at 10:00 AM at the All Souls Church in Washington, DC (16th and Harvard Streets, NW). The church, founded in 1821 as the First Unitarian Church, has consistently offered a prophetic voice for justice in the nation's capital. Of particular relevance is the church bell, the Revere Bell of Freedom, was cast in the Revere Foundry by the son of Paul Revere, Joseph Revere. For many years this bell was one of the "official" bells of Washington, clanging to warn of a fire, or tolling to announce the death of a public figure. However, when the church tolled its bell in 1859 to mourn the execution of the abolitionist John Brown, it was denounced as the "Abolition Bell" and the city discontinued using it for public purposes. Since that time, the All Souls bell has been rung to bear witness to peace, justice and freedom.
The Rev. Robert M. Hardies, senior minister of All Souls Church, Unitarian, said this about the effort to raise awareness of the causalities of war: "It says volumes that the military is afraid to let war speak for itself. That they're afraid to let us see pictures of wounded soldiers, and unwilling to share Iraqi civilian body counts. They fear that if the truth got out about the cost of war, the people would decide it's not worth it. This is one small effort to remind people of the human cost of war."
Ralph Nader, who first suggested the project to the National Council of Churches, noted that "throughout the Iraq war President Bush has avoided mention of U.S. casualties, has consistently undercounted serious injuries, serious diseases and disabling mental trauma that occur in non-combat situations. His failure to participate in a single funeral and his administration's approach to transporting the wounded from Andrews Air Force Base to Walter Reed Medical Center in the cover of night, deprives these soldiers of the respect they deserve and prevents an honest discussion among Americans about the impact of this war."
"Although the White House continues to hide the arriving coffins of our soldiers and Iraqi civilian, our houses of worship will ring our national conscience concerning the spiritual, physical, and fiscal cost of war," added Rev. Sekou, a Pentecostal minister who works with United for Peace and Justice organizing the national interfaith coalition, Clergy and Laity Concerned about Iraq.
This call to action demonstrates the growing breadth and depth of the anti-war movement. The people of the United States are more than ready for a conversation about how to get out of Iraq," concluded Kevin Zeese, director of Democracy Rising.
Contact Information
All Souls Unitarian Church
Rev. Louise Green
Rev. Rob Hardies
202-332-5266
202-246-7670 (cell for Rev. Hardies)
Rev. Victor Isner
Faithful in Americans
202-544-2350
Rev. Bob Edgar
The National Council of Churches
212-870-2141
Rev. Osagyefo UhuruSekou
United for Peace and Justice,Clergy and Laity Concerned about Iraq
212-868-5545
Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr.
United for Peace and Justice,Clergy and Laity Concerned about Iraq
Hip Hop Caucus/PDA
202-545- 0113
Ralph Nader
Kevin Zeese
Democracy Rising
202-232-7112
301-996-6582 (cell for Kevin Zeese)
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Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr.
President & CEO
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Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind...War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today."
-- John F. Kennedy