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As the year draws to a close, we have so much to be thankful for ... and so much to look forward to as we pledge anew to embody the peace of Christ in word and action this coming year. Thank you for all you do to witness to the peace of Christ and to support our movement. Our gratitude for all of you in our Pax Christi USA family cannot be adequately expressed in words. It is your strength, your commitment, your compassion and passion which invigorates and enthuses our movement. We hope this next year is a blessed and peaceful one for you and for our entire world.
If you're in a position to support Pax Christi USA with a year-end donation, we hope you will. You can read the appeal that Sr. Patty shared at the beginning of Advent, highlighting all we have done together over the past year, by clicking here. We'll share with you one last time the full appeal (below), as well as links for giving right now, today, securely online, before the year is out. We thank you for your generosity!
In peace,
Johnny Zokovitch
Director of Communications, Pax Christi USA
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 Long before Jesus first appeared in the arms of Mary, he had already stirred up the world. Endless eras of expectations were pre-requisites to Jesus the Christ setting foot upon our human stage. All that went before was a vital part of the labor that brought Jesus to become one of us.
In the Catholic tradition, the Advent season is a time of preparation that directs our hearts and minds to focus on what the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires, now Pope Francis, taught in his Christmas homily in 2008: "Only if people change will the world change; and in order to change, people need the light that comes from God, the light which so unexpectedly [on the night of Christmas] entered into our night." (Homily at Mass for the Solemnity, of the Nativity of the Lord, December 25, 2008)
PCUSA members and supporters of all ages have lived the mantra of change that serves the common good and takes to heart the Christmas message for change within and throughout. As Pax Christi celebrates over forty years of laboring non-violently for peace with justice, our members' influence has been a testament to effective and just public policy precisely because of the commitment and persistence in advocating for change - not only on global and national issues but also on the rights and dignity of people.
I'm writing to you today in the hope that you'll continue to support this important work, not only with your prayers and witness, but by making a special financial gift to Pax Christi USA before the end of the year to help us keep the witness for peace with justice alive in our world today.
Click the donation button to make a special gift today!
(NOTE: You don't need to have a PayPal account to give through PayPal.
Just look for "Don't have a PayPal account?" and use your credit card!)
Over the past two years, the National Council and staff continued to focus on reconnecting with our local members and their leadership throughout PCUSA's 20 regions. The dialogues and sharing of our experiences and discovering the many gifts and activities that the Catholic Peace Movement offers were a wonderful affirmation to the relevancy of PCUSA in these times. As a member and supporter of Pax Christi USA, here is some of what we have accomplished together over the past year:
- Sr. Patty Chappell, SNDdeN, Executive Director of Pax Christi USA, was included as the Catholic representative in the short film, "There's Nothing Faithful About Torture," produced by the National Religious Campaign Against Torture
- The first national conference in 3 years, highlighting our 40th anniversary, was held in June in Atlanta, including a prayer service at the MLK Center
- Twelve regional dialogues, from Southern California to Maine, Minnesota to Florida were invigorating and affirmed the local Catholic Church's efforts in working for peace with justice
- Over 400 were in attendance at our annual Pax Christi USA at the SOA gathering in 2012, focusing on drones with PCUSA Teacher of Peace Bill Quigley and Medea Benjamin (and another 200 for our program this year, focusing on gun violence)
- Our program director, Sr. Anne-Louise Nadeau, SNDdeN developed "Praying Pacem in Terris," a resource for regions and local groups to observe and celebrate the 50th anniversary of the encyclical
- Our staff developed electronic and hard-copy resources for prayer, study and action throughout the holy seasons of Advent and Lent
- We collaborated in the creation of a peace education curriculum and training of facilitators for SAKALA, the joint project of PCUSA and PC-Port-au-Prince in Haiti
- We reprinted the Prayer for a New Society prayer card in the wake of the tragedies of gun violence in our nation this past year
- Sr. Patty was a featured speaker in "A Catholic Conversation on Race, Religion and the March on Washington," and Pax Christi USA co-initiated a call for a "national conversation on racial justice" in the wake of the George Zimmerman trial and the Supreme Court's decision regarding the Voting Rights Act
- PCUSA will continue its dialogue in six regions this spring with Catholic Adults of Color, specifically inviting them to learn about the Catholic Peace Movement and to participate in the many relevant issues our members have initiated locally
Because of your support, we can do so much. Please consider offering an extra gift to Pax Christi USA during this season of hope by sending a check, going to our website and giving online, or by becoming a monthly sustainer. We need you. And our world needs the witness of the 'peace of Christ,' Pax Christi USA.
Click the donation button to make a special gift today!
(If you prefer to send a check, send to Pax Christi USA, Advent Appeal,
1225 Otis Street NE, Washington, D.C. 20017 or give us a call at 202-635-2741.)
In closing, Advent reminds us of our personal and communal commitment to love ourselves and others and to be hopeful and confident. The Pax Christi USA National Council and staff wish you a warm and peaceful Advent and a Christmas filled with the hope Christ's birth gifted us for all time. Thank you so much for your support and prayers.
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