by Miki Kashtan New to this blog? Read Miki’s Introduction to this series ‘All -in: fully committing to a life of nonviolence’ before getting started. *** Whenever we make a decision, we are drawing an arc between the moment of deciding and the moment of completion. We are always faced with the choice: which of any number… read more
Posts by Metta Center
Commitment #18: Nonviolent Struggle
———– by Miki Kashtan New to this blog? Read Miki’s Introduction to this series ‘All -in: fully committing to a life of nonviolence’ before getting started. Check in every other week on Mondays for a new commitment and practice for daily living. If you feel called, please comment on posts and engage with one another. *** Nonviolent… read more
Catholic Nuns and Nonviolent Action
By S. Francesca Po, Metta Strategic Advisory Council member and liaison to wisdom traditions. Contrary to popular images, many contemporary Catholic nuns (or Sisters) no longer wear habits, live in cloisters, or slap mischievous schoolboys in the hand with a ruler. They are among the most socially active individuals committed to social and cultural progress… read more
Commitment #17: Celebration of Life
———– by Miki Kashtan New to this blog? Read Miki’s Introduction to this series ‘All -in: fully committing to a life of nonviolence’ before getting started. *** Celebration of Life: even when I am faced with difficulties, personal, interpersonal, or global, I want to maintain an attitude of appreciation and gratitude for what life brings me. If… read more
These Days: A Poem by Alexandra Karam
My comparative literature background is far behind me, but not so far that I couldn’t respond to the power and poignancy of this poem. Nonviolence usually stays in the ‘real,’ being cautious about the symbolic, but nonviolence is nothing if not creative, and this is an example of creativity put to the best possible use.… read more
A Peace Team in action
Here is an inspiring story from Mary Hanna of Meta Peace Team (formerly Michigan Peace Team), highlighting that local police admit to effectiveness of peace team work. (Interested in joining a national or international peace team? Contact them for more information on how to join MPT.) When we first started placing peace teams in… read more
How Women in One Syrian City Keep Protests Alive, by Maryam Saleh
While news coverage of recent events in Syria has been largely devoted to violent clashes between security and opposition forces, a less visible story has been that of the nation’s simultaneous movements of nonviolent resistance, notably led and sustained by Syria’s women. Women in Salamia, a city in western Syria, have been involved in nonviolent… read more
Privilege, torture and non-killing by Richard Matthews
In this powerful article Richard Matthews expands our understanding and definition of torture. With this expanded foundation, he explores and describes the relationship between privilege, masculinity and torture, encouraging the reader to value a gendered analysis in proposing a “way out” of the mindset that recreates systems of domination. Read the article online at this… read more
Commitment #16: Accepting What IS
———– by Miki Kashtan New to this blog? Read Miki’s Introduction to this series ‘All -in: fully committing to a life of nonviolence’ before getting started. If you feel called, please comment on posts and engage with one another. *** Accepting What Is: even when change happens (welcome or unwelcome, small or large), things fall apart,… read more
She prevented a school shooting.
Antoinette Tuff was working at the front office of her school when white-male 20 year-old Michael Brandon Hill walked into her school and began threatening a school shooting. He said that he was “off of his medication,” and he said he had nothing to live for. Ms. Tuff maintained that she had been thinking… read more
