Peace Train Canada

Peace Trainers participated in a rally and walk for peace on Oct. 31 in Ottawa. The rally was held at the Peacekeeping monument, with singing and remarks by Walter Dorn, before the group walked to and around the Cenotaph and then made their way to Parliament Hill.

A new all-party peace caucus will be created for members of Parliament and start meeting before the end of the year.   That announcement was made Oct. 29 by Elizabeth May, leader of the Green Party of Canada and member of Parliament for Saanich—Gulf Islands in B.C.   “We need to find ways to raise peace issues in Parliament,” said May, speaking at an event in Ottawa organized by Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Canada and the Canadian Friends Service Committee. Read the full story in Canadian Affairs.

Before walking to Parliament Hill from the peacekeeping monument on Oct. 31, Peace Trainers hear Walter Dorn speak about the monument and the history of Canadian peacekeeping.  Dorn, who is a  professor of defence studies at Royal Military College and Canadian Forces College, said the monument as created in 1988 to honour Canadian  peacekeepers and peacekeeping in general—men and women who out humanity before national interest  The three figures on the monument include a soldier with binoculars, which represents monitoring a cease-fire. Another soldier has a gun; that figure is protecting civilians in a fire zone.  The last soldier has a radio to be in communication between parties in conflict who are not in communication with each other, to keep them from shooting at each other.  Leading up to the figures on top of the monument is a path filled with broken concrete that represents the destruction of war. “It looks like a war zone,” Dorn said, addin...

  By Arnold Neufeldt-Fast This is the second part of Arnold’s reflection on the new national security strategy, In part one he reflected on how it prepares Canada for conflict, but not for preventing it. The week Canada’s new security strategy was released, 29 Canadian churches and organizations released an open letter for the Prime Minister  about what constitutes security from aChristian perspective. Signed by Mennonite, Catholic, Baptist, Anglican, Quaker, and United Church bodies, the letter acknowledges legitimate security concerns but challenges the assumption that security can be achieved primarily through military means. It argues that conflict prevention, diplomacy, development, climate resilience, and peacebuilding are not luxuries but essential components of genuine security. What strikes me most about this letter is that it does not begin with military strategy but with Christian anthropology. The signatories begin with the claim that war diminishes t...

  By Arnold Neufeldt-Fast   Yesterday, October 29, Prime Minister Mark Carney's government released "The Plan for a Stronger Canada: National Security for Canadians," Canada's first comprehensive national security strategy in more than two decades.   The document is ambitious, wide-ranging, and in many respects persuasive.   It starts from a simple premise: the assumptions that governed the post-Cold War era no longer hold. Canada's sovereignty faces new pressures, strategic competition is intensifying, technological change is accelerating, and economic resilience can no longer be taken for granted.   In response, the government proposes a significant expansion of Canada's defence, industrial, technological, and diplomatic capacities.   Indeed, the world has become a more dangerous place. Russia's invasion of Ukraine grinds on and Gaza remains devastated; new conflicts and proxy wars stretch from the Middle East to Africa; artificial intelligenc...

An important part of Peace Train Canada’s annual trip to Ottawa is visiting Members of Parliament. This is done through a reception , and also through personal visits by Peace Trainers with their local MPs. During those visits, they have conversations about various peace-related topics, including the request for a national peace and justice centre and about how the idea of national security can be broadened beyond preparing for conflict to include conflict prevention and resolution through activities like peacekeeping.

By Keith and Bernadette Wyton Address given to the Oct. 28 Parliamentary reception Peace Train Canada (PTC) unites people across the country in renewed commitment to Canada’s first principles for enduring peace, justice, and common security as agreed to in the UN Charter. Peace is the domain of physical, social, mental, and spiritual well-being. It is a  fundamental condition for our survival and the only condition that allows relational harmony and non-violent coexistence for this and future generations. The prosperity of peace can be cultivated in Canada by cultivating a robust centre for peace and justice. This is our one ask of government. A peace centre is necessary for shaping what is called Positive Peace: the attitudes, institutions, and structures that sustain peaceful societies. As the Global Peace Index shows, peaceful societies are marked by wellbeing, happiness, higher GDP growth, lower interest rates, greater political stability, and more resilience to shock...

Members of Parliament from all five parties welcomed Peace Train Canada to Ottawa at a reception on Oct. 28. Ernie Klassen (Liberals) noted he grew up in a Mennonite household where his parents came to Canada from war-torn Europe in a quest for a peaceful life. “I grew up with peace always in the background,” he said. “It’s always been part of my life.” He praised the work of the Peace Train, referencing the song “let their be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.” “You are bringing forward a vision for peace on earth to Ottawa,” he said. “I hope in my lifetime that we see peace on earth . . . peace is an option worth pursuing.” Gord Johns (NDP) said that “peace is not a partisan issue . . . we have seen the terrible cost of conflict.” Noting the federal government is increasing its spending on the military, he said “we also need to leading on spending for peace. If we can invest in war, we can surely invest in peace . . . we need your voice louder than ever.” Leslie ...

  The Peace Train Send Off took place Oct. 22 at Canadian Memorial United Church in Vancouver. Here is the video from that event.

The leaders of 29 Canadian Christian denominations and civil society organizations have sent a letter to the Prime Minister expressing “deep concern” over the government’s approach to securing Canada’s economic and national security.   “While we are also concerned about our own national security, our hearts break considering all of those impacted by global conflict, and those who will continue to be impacted as conflicts increase,” the leaders say.   The letter, which was initiated by Mennonite Central Committee Canada, was sent Oct. 26 at the start of International Disarmament Week , an annual week created by the United Nations to promote awareness about disarmament issues.   War, the letter says, “diminishes the human dignity inherent in each person, both those who experience violence and those who are asked to carry it out. We write to remind you of the core principle from the moral foundation of our Christian faith: that we are called to love our neighbours, a...