Growing Your Church

The Decade to Overcome Violence:Churches Seeking Reconciliation And Peace simply called DOV is an initiative of the World Council of Churches (WCC). The decade long observance began in 2001 and will culminate in 2010. Each year the DOV focuses on a particular region. In 2009 global ecumenical eyes will turn on the Caribbean.

The Caribbean theme for 2009 is One Love: Building A Peaceful Caribbean. I recently attended a gathering of religious leaders in Panama City, Panama from various Christian Councils across the Caribbean region and Europe where I witnessed the launch of the 2009 campaign. I continue to pray that the exciting plans shared might be successfully implemented.

The Caribbean religious leaders at the launch made it clear that they wanted the world to know that the Caribbean is more than ‘sun, sea and sand’. I’ll add to that, the region is more than a string of all-inclusive resorts. There are real people with real issues and a history of violence that has for too long been suppressed for the sake of tourism and investment.

The DOV’s Caribbean focus aims to strengthen and resource churches and movements working for peace in the region, and deepen the churches’ understanding of the violence involved in issues such as migration, human trafficking, food security, HIV and AIDS, drugs abuse and trafficking, amongst others.

DOV’s Annual Focus Schedule
2001:Launch of the Decade to Overcome Violence
2002: Palestine / Israel
2003: Sudan
2004: USA
2005: Asia
2006: Latin America
2007: Europe
2008: Pacific Islands
2009: The Caribbean
2010: Africa- Closing of the Decade to Overcome Violence

After the DOV ends in 2010, a special convocation, the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation (IEPC) will take place May 2011 in Kingston, Jamaica. I am as pleased as punch that Jamaica is the chosen location for this event.

In the newsletter “Bits and Pieces” Nan Braunschweiger the coordinator of the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation (IEPC) had this to say:-

I am particularly pleased that the convocation will take place in Kingston, one of the seven cities in which the Peace to the City Campaign was grounded in the late 1990s, at the time sowing the seeds of an ecumenical peace movement. Additionally, with the DOV annual focus highlighting the Caribbean in 2009, we truly hope the convocation will be a poignant, enriching and significant event for all concerned but especially for the region.

Keep abreast of what is happening with the DOV by signing up for the newsletter Bits and Pieces at the official website Overcoming Violence.

Connect with your sisters and brothers in the Caribbean at the website of the Caribbean Conference of Churches (CCC).

And more than anything else keep the region in your prayers for 2009 and find ways to establish and deepen your mission partnerships in the region for 2009 and beyond.

Peace,
Marvia

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