pax christi little rock

Pax Christi Little Rock

P A X C H R I S T I L I T T L E R O C K

October 7, 2019

Volume 3, Issue 10

Blessed are the Peace-

makers, for they shall be

called the children of

God. Matthew 5:9

PCLR Board Members

Sherry Simon (President)

Betty Jo King (V. President)

Tamara Tahat (Secretary)

Sherry Martin (Treasurer)

Sandee Haslauer

Mary Hunt

Jerome Ngundue

Sarah Ngundue

Jan Pipkin

Joanne Rausch

George Simon

Contact Information

Website:

www.paxchristilittlerock.

wordpress.com

Facebook:


Address:

415 N. McKinley St., #1040

Little Rock, AR 72205

Phone:

(501) 258-8653

Email:

[email protected]

Deacon Glover to Discuss Pathways for Healing

Following Church Sexual Abuse Scandal

Deacon Matt Glover, Chancellor

for Canonical Affairs for the Dio-

cese of Little Rock, will be the

featured presenter on Thursday,

October 10 at 7 pm at the Pax

Christi Little Rock

Speaker Series. The

meeting will take

place in Fitzgerald

Hall at St. John’s Cen-

ter (2500 N. Tyler St.,

Little Rock, AR). Dea-

con Glover will provide

information regarding

the scope of the cleri-

cal abuse scandal in

Arkansas. He will fo-

cus on the different

ways that the Catholic Church

is currently addressing the dam-

age done to the innocent people

who were harmed by identified

abusive members of the clergy.

Deacon Glover grew up in Little

Rock. He attended Holy Souls

and graduated from Little Rock

Catholic High School. Deacon

Glover earned his undergradu-

ate degree in Philosophy and Re-

ligious Studies, summa cum

laude, at Loyola University in

2001. He entered the seminary

and spent the next few years at

the North American College in Rome

earning a Master’s degree in Sacred

Theology. Deacon Glover left the

seminary in 2005 upon discerning a

different vocation. He began a teach-

ing career at both Mount

St. Mary and Catholic

High.

Deacon Glover obtained

his JD at the William

Bowen School of Law in

Little Rock. He clerked for

Federal judge Leon

Holmes and then joined

the Wright, Lindsey &

Jennings law firm. He

began working for Bishop

Taylor and the Diocese of

Little Rock in 2012, and in 2015 he

earned his Licentiate in Canon Law

from the Catholic University of

America in Washington, D.C. Glover

now serves as Chancellor for Canon-

ical Affairs and General Counsel for

the Diocese. He is married and has

two children. In May of 2016,he was

ordained as a deacon and assigned

to Christ the King parish in Little

Rock.

Deacon Matt Glover

See that you do not despise one of these little

ones, for I say to you that their angels in heav-

en always look upon the face of my heavenly

Father. Matthew 18:10

Peace Offerings


2019 ARKANSAS PEACE WEEK:

TEACHING PEACE IN THE NATURAL STATE

On September 20, Pax

Christi Little Rock mem-

bers attended peace walks

at both Rockefeller and

Pulaski Heights Elemen-

tary Schools. Mildred Cal-

vin, counselor at Rockefel-

ler last year, was trans-

ferred to Pulaski Heights

and she took her Peace

Week ideas with her. The

new counselor at Rockefeller, Marquis

Cooper, was also

e n t h u s i a s t i c

about Peace Week

and worked with

the art teacher,

Sharon Boyd-

Struthers, to

make the Peace

walk memorable.

Ms. Boyd-Struthers worked with students to

make about 15 silk banners with peace writ-

ten in several different languages. Students

from both

s c h o o l s

s k i p p e d ,

chanted, sang

and flashed

the peace sign

for the par-

ents, staff and

visitors who

joined them.

Students in Little Rock

School District, Pu-

laski County School

District and Arkansas

Catholic Schools were

provided with the

peace curriculum de-

veloped by Pax Christi

Little Rock and Arkan-

sas Coalition of Peace

and Justice as part of

Peace Week (Sept. 15-22). This curriculum was

initially developed for Rockefeller Elementary,

Partner in Education with Pax Christi, in 2017.

Mildred Calvin, school counselor at Rockefeller,

worked with all students in the school to par-

ticipate in activities related to peace during

each day of peace week that year. Activities in-

cluded a peace walk, charity drive, journaling

about peace, peace art contest and a pep rally

about bullying. Last year, the curriculum was

expanded and provided to all schools in the LR

School District. Although the added lessons on

conflict resolution and other social justice is-

sues are adapted for K-12 grade, the focus has

remained on elemen-

tary school involve-

ment. In 2019, the cur-

riculum was adopted

by Pulaski County and

AR Catholic schools.

The goal is to include

new districts each year

during Peace Week.

Peace Curriculum Expanded to

Three School Districts

Peace Tree-St. Theresa’s

Peace Flower-McDermott

Rockefeller and Pulaski Heights Ele-

mentary Walk for Peace

Rockefeller Rules!

Peace Banners-Rockefeller

Peace Eyes-PHES Mildred Calvin

Peace Offerings


One of the highlights of

Peace Week was the Youth

Summit held at the Dar-

raugh Center on Saturday,

September 21 from 1-4 pm.

Tristan Norman, a senior at

Hendrix College, organized

the summit which focused

on environmental problems

and what must be done to

prevent worsening climate

conditions, rising oceans and an increase in

the extinction of various species. Both high

school and college students were invited. The

National Geographic documentary, “Before

the Flood” starring Leonardo DiCaprio was

shown and the findings were discussed. A

message from Greta Thunberg was also

viewed, warning of cli-

mate breakdown and

the importance of de-

creasing use of fossil

fuels. She provided sci-

entific information on

the importance of slow-

ing this climate change by “leaving fossil fuel

in the ground” as well as decreasing the clear-

cutting of trees. She stated that over 200 spe-

cies were going extinct each day. She detailed

the melting of the polar ice cap and the rising

oceans. Of great concern is the ever warming

temperature due to the greenhouse effect that

is at the root of the problem. Following the

movies and questions, four break-out sessions

were offered. Individual and national means of

addressing climate issues were discussed.

YOUTH SUMMIT: CLIMATE CHANGE, GLOBAL WARMING & ECOLOGICAL COMMUNITIES

Tristan Norman

Youth Summit attendees

PEACE GROUPS TAKE A WALK On Saturday, Sept. 20 at 5 pm following the

Youth Summit, several peace and social jus-

tice organizations led by Arkansas Coalition

for Peace and Justice completed a two mile

peace walk that spanned both sides of the

Arkansas River. The goal was to walk a path

that passed by several monuments for peace,

including the Peace Pole and the Beacon for

Peace and Hope. Bob Estes, President of the AR Coalition for Peace and

Justice, planned the route. Organiza- tions involved included ACPJ, Pax

Christi Little Rock, Community of Christ, WAND, and the Episcopal

Peace Movement. Shawn Johnson, candidate for Little Rock circuit

judge and Kathy Webb, state repre- sentative, were also involved in the

walk. This peace walk may become a tradition as it promotes unity and

gives local peace organizations and associated groups an opportunity

to walk together in common cause, spreading the message of peace.

Peace Offerings


Peace Fest 2019 was held on September 22 from 2-4 at the Little Rock Central High National Historic

Site Visitor Center. Several different peace organizations provided snacks and different types of art

experiences for children. Art included peace rocks, multi-media peace art, origami, peace posters,

acrylic painting, and face painting. Each art table was designed to teach themes of peace and nonvio-

lence and information was shared about getting involved in local peace efforts.

PEACEFEST 2019:

TEACHING PEACE THROUGH ART

Pax Christi’s Monthly Mission

Our custom is to

contribute to a dif-

ferent peace and

social justice cause

at each of our

monthly meetings.

In October, we will be collecting dona-

tions for the Diocese of Little Rock

One Church: Unite Arkansas in Faith

and Mission. This initiative supports a

rural mission/parish in the diocese that

needs assistance in becoming a thriving

community. This year’s partner is Holy

Spirit Church in Hamburg, a young par-

ish in southeast Arkansas that has a

new parish building that it would like to

pay off so that it can offer more spiritual

and social programs in the church and

community. Please give generously to

this mission!

Pax Christi LR wants to invite all interest-

ed parties to send in articles pertaining to

peace and social justice to add to our

newsletter. Your story can be related to

your opinion on a topic, a personal experi-

ence or an event that affects our work to-

wards social justice. You can email your

article to [email protected].

Peace Offerings


GLOBAL CLIMATE STRIKE

On September 20,

young activists

gathered at City

Hall in Little Rock

to join in solidarity

with climate change

rallies across the

world. Millions of

people from more

than 150 countries

rallied as part of

the “Global Climate Strike” ahead of the

UN Climate Action Summit. Scientists

have warned that global warming will

subject the planet to rising seas and

more heat waves, droughts, powerful

storms, flooding and other problems, and

that some have al-

ready started mani-

festing themselves.

Doug Barton, an

organizer with Cli-

mate Emergency

Arkansas, said the

purpose of Friday’s protest was to urge

leaders to pass a Green New Deal, put a

tax on carbon, divest from fossil fuels,

stop subsidizing the fossil fuel industry

and increase incentives for renewable

energy. On a local level, Mr. Barton said

the group wants Little Rock to hire a full

time employee to conduct greenhouse gas

inventory, contract to build solar arrays

and set emission goals for the city. Mayor

Frank Scott ad-

dressed the protes-

tors in a friendly

manner when he

saw them from his

office at City Hall.

We love because he first loved us. If anyone says,

“I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar;

for whoever does not love a brother whom he has

seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 1

John 4:19-20

Peace Offerings


PEACE PARTNERS Peace Partners highlights various peace

and social justice organizations that share

our vision: active promotion of peace in

our neighborhood, state, country and

world. The goal is to increase awareness of

the many organizations in our area that

work for peace through social justice and

invite joint ventures between these groups

to increase the effectiveness of our mis-

sion.

One Church is an initiative of the

Catholic Diocese of Little Rock

that supports rural parishes that

need help to become a thriving

community. A new parish will be

identified each year and will be

supported by all of the other par-

ishes in the diocese. This year’s

partner is Holy Spirit Church in

Hamburg, a young parish in

southeast Arkansas that has a

new parish building that it would

like to pay off so that it can offer

more spiritual and social pro-

grams for the church and com-

munity. For more information,

contact Rebecca Cargile at

Catholic Charities of Arkansas

at 501-664-0304.

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY:

LET’S BUILD A HOME TOGEHER

Pax Christi Little Rock is coordinating a project between

several peace and social justice organizations in the Cen-

tral Arkansas area to sponsor part of one home construc-

tion through Habitat for Humanity of Central Arkansas.

We have now received pledges of almost $2500 from differ-

ent sources. This means that Pax Christi along with other

peace and social justice organizations will be listed as

Beautification sponsors. Once we receive all of our pledged

donations, in approximately 30 days, a date will be sched-

uled to spend one day on site providing landscaping ser-

vices to a Habitat for Humanity Home. All groups will be

listed as sponsors on this project. Pax Christi Little Rock

will get information out to all participating groups as soon

as it is available. Call Sherry at 501-258-8653 if you have

any questions. Thanks to all who contributed funds to

make this joint venture possible!

2019 LEGACY OF LIFE BANQUET

Thursday, October 17, 2019 @ 6 pm

Embassy Suites

11301 Financial Center Pkwy-Little Rock

No one has ever seen God; but if we

love one another, God lives in us and

His love is made complete in us. 1 John

4:12

Peace Offerings


SAVE THE DATE PAX CHRISTI LR SPEAKER SERIES

Msgr. Scott Friend

Diocese of Little Rock

PASTORING A MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITY: INSIGHTS FROM ST. IGNATIUS

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14 at 7 PM

FITZGERALD HALL, ST. JOHN’S CENTER 2500 N. TYLER STREET, LITTLE ROCK 72203

PAX CHRISTI LITTLE ROCK FUNDRAISER

OCTOBER 25-26, 7 AM-2 PM

34 BELLE RIVER COVE, MAUMELLE

PAX CHRISTI LITTLE ROCK IS HOSTING A COMMUNITY SALE IN WHICH OVER FIF-

TY PERCENT OF ALL PROCEEDS WILL BE DONATED TO PCLR PROJECTS. IF YOU

ARE INTERESTED IN DONATING ITEMS, CALL SHERRY AT 501-258-8653.

Peace Offerings


forms them over time about who they are in

the world and who they need to turn to for

protection and nurturance? These days, we

know how important it is to have those

“eyes of blessing” with a parent within the

first few hours of birth in order to impart

that initial sense of self and well-being to a

baby. Those eyes of blessing did not come

to me immediately,

but God works all

things into his plan

for our lives.

With this history, I

have wondered if

this initial isolation

was why I used to

have this sense of

being slightly apart

from others, feeling

just a little different

from everyone else.

As I have mentioned

in past writings, I

know that this dis-

connect was repaired over the years in Hon-

duras on a mission trip through Christ the

King Catholic Church. It was through the

beautiful connections I experienced with

the people of Honduras as well as my fellow

missionaries that I became able to connect

more comfortably with others. The fruits of

that miracle are in part the connections

made through Pax Christi Little Rock over

IMPRINTING ON GOD: SEEKING THE PATH

TO DEVELOPING THE TRUE SELF

My mother had been in labor for 36 hours

before the doctor decided to use forceps to

reposition me in the womb and assist in my

birth. Unfortunately, the forceps left a large

hematoma on the right side of my head that

led to a prolonged stay of 10 days in the hos-

pital immediately after I was born. Those

were the days when they did not allow par-

ents to stay with their

baby in intensive

care. So, with the ex-

ception of a few short

visits from my mom

and dad and the in-

termittent care of

nurses, my first expe-

rience of my new

home was pretty iso-

lated. According to

my mother, I was

kept in an incubator

for the majority of my

hospital stay.

Certainly, I have no

memory of this first experience and I know

that my mother made up for lost time when

she got me home. She has told me that she

spent hours holding me and letting me know

how much I was loved. However, I have often

wondered how my initial experience affected

me on my life path and even if it was a factor

influencing how I view God. You know how

newborns gaze into their mother’s eyes and

form that initial “imprint” and bond that in-

Peace Offerings


imprint on the Spirit and begin to under-

stand all that is asked of us. We must pay

attention and not allow ourselves to be dis-

tracted by the more superficial things of

this world. The Holy Spirit teaches us if we

are listening. St. John the apostle said

“His anointing teaches you concerning all

things.” In fact, I believe the Spirit teaches

us by using the things occurring in the

world around us. It is important to take

these events back to the Spirit in prayer

and contemplation so that their meaning

may be more fully understood and thus

inform our next actions. Martinez indicates

that through this process, the Holy Spirit

works in our souls to “bring to holy ma-

turity, to happy plenitude, that seed of life

which He Himself deposited in them.”

The good news is that we tend to become

that upon which we imprint and then seek

to emulate. And, as any good parent, the

Holy Spirit nurtures this union and feeds

our souls as we work to become the person

God designed us to be. As for our part, we

must trust the direction of the Holy Spirit

just as that baby trusts that he will be fed

and cared for by his mother. Even in dark

days, never to doubt that all is being done

so that we might grow in union with God.

We must exercise the three theological vir-

tues of faith, hope and charity if we are to

remain connected to the guiding light of

the Holy Spirit.

Back to that baby in the incubator. There

is peace in knowing that, despite the initial

isolation, a seed was already planted that

would be ready to grow when watered. We

have a Counselor, an Advisor to help us

create our lives in the image of God.

these past three years.

So, thinking about these events that have

led to this moment in time, I have been cu-

rious about this whole process of imprint-

ing and how who we imprint upon affects

our lives. Interestingly enough, I am read-

ing a book in an Ignatian study group enti-

tled True Devotion to the Holy Spirit by Luis

M. Martinez that actually speaks to this

issue.

Martinez talks about the fact that the gift

of the Holy Spirit to each of us is the first

gift of God. He defines the Holy Spirit as

the “Love that transcends to the depths of

our souls” and which enables us, if we use

our God-given gifts, to grow into the people

God designed us to be. Martinez emphasiz-

es that without the Holy Spirit, “not one

single character of Jesus would be traced

on our souls, no virtue would grow, no gift

would be developed, no grace would in-

crease, no bond of union with God would

be strengthened in the rich flowering of the

spiritual life.” So, it comes to me that our

heart’s desire should be to imprint on the

very Spirit of God that dwells in our soul

as a permanent Guest. It seems that these

“eyes of blessing” are within us and if we

seek them out we will become aware of our

truest identity as the children of God.

Sounds nice, doesn't it, but how do we do

that? As with all things, I think it must be

slowly, thoughtfully, one day at a time. I

am reminded of that little baby who is gaz-

ing intently into the eyes of his mother.

There is no distraction, nothing else that

matters to that child. For in that gaze, he

is learning all he needs to know about

himself. So it must be for us if we are to

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