Honor veterans with your care & your resistance

The lie of indispensability Our failed war in Afghanistan of 20 years should be a flashing red light and blaring siren of warning of the futility of war and military adventurism. Back in 1998 Secretary of State Madeline Albright famously declared, “If we have to use force, it is because we are America. We are the indispensable nation. We stand tall.” With those words she as much as declared that “might makes right” when we are the perpetrators. Andrew Bacevich, historian and president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, has called this the “Indispensable Nation Syndrome.”  We must remember that our military adventurism abroad has implications for what happens at home. President Eisenhower, in his farewell address, warned of the “military-industrial complex” that would seek to expand its influence throughout our country and the government. But in another address, he specifically warned that,  “Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed." According to Policy Advice, 11% of the unhoused population consist of veterans. Homelessness is a national disgrace and catastrophe and it is not likely to get better unless we stop feeding the monster of the military-industrial complex.  Read PPFer Geoff Browning's full reflections. On Veteran's Day this year, we invite you to also revisit this piece written about the history of armistice day by PPFer Bill Galvin, as we honor the veterans in our midst by recommitting to the gospel call to resist empire and the culture of militarism by which it is governed. Honor veterans by supporting them Some veterans experience moral injury. It’s important to look for signs so you can know how to respond and suggest other professional help when necessary. Moral injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder are related and can co-occur, but are not the same. Moral injury is the “distressing psychological, behavioral, social, and sometimes spiritual aftermath of exposure to” traumatic or extremely stressful events where a person  Does something against their beliefs Fails to do something in line with their beliefs Witnesses behaviors that go against their beliefs  Moral injury often occurs when someone experiences one of the above things at the command of someone who is an authority figure, i.e. someone does something against their beliefs because they were following orders of a superior officer. Check out this quick resource guide for Pastoral Care for those experiencing Moral Injury. Get the Resource Guide Take action in honor of veterans Some churches have found their conversations about scripture, war and violence evoked in them a deeper sense conviction and awakening. While the church universal has adhered to the theology of Just War for more than a millennium, Peace Churches are those who began to question whether such a theology is consistent with the scripture and our ministry of reconciliation to which we are called. Learn more about becoming a peace church!  PPF is working with others to repeal the draft registration law for young men. Congress is likely to expand the requirement for registration to include women. Please help us to repeal draft registration for everyone. Call your senators and tell them to support the Wyden/Lummis bipartisan amendment #4161 to the National Defense Authorization Act. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children... We pay for a single fighter plane with a half million bushels of wheat. We pay for a single destroyer with new homes that could have housed more than 8,000 people. Afghans for a Better Tomorrow are asking us to call upon President Biden to gradually and slowly unfreeze funds that belong to the Afghan People. Sign the Petition Presbyterian Peace Fellowship 845-786-6743 | presbypeacefellowship.org Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

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