Dutch Quakers focus on ‘just peace’
Upcoming Netherlands Yearly Meeting to focus on 'just peace'
Dutch Quakers are preparing to move beyond discussion of ‘just war’ with a weekend focused on ‘just peace’. This is the theme of Netherlands Yearly Meeting (NYM), taking place in Barchem from 17 to 20 May.
NYM’s secretary, Hadewijch Touwen, said: ‘This concerns all levels, from the global to the personal. We will share our thinking and our actions about this during the Yearly Meeting, asking ourselves what we can do ourselves and trying to be practical and concrete.’
The phrase ‘just peace’ was adopted by the World Council of Churches last year as a principle that could unite Christians with varied views on the ethics of war.
The event takes place at Woodbrookershuis, a centre founded by Dutch Christians in 1908 following their experience of the Woodbrooke Centre in Britain.
Tony Weekes, of South Belfast Meeting, hopes to lead a session on economic justice. He told the Friend he appreciates Dutch Quakers for ‘their enthusiasm, their passion and their real understanding of Quaker values and Quaker heritage’.
