Author, peace activist John Dear to spread message of nonviolence

Author, lecturer, and peace activist John Dear
Author, lecturer, and peace activist John Dear

Nobel Peace Prize nominee the Rev. John Dear is in Juneau as part of a national tour for his most recent book, “The Nonviolent Life.”

Dear has written over 30 books and devotes his life to giving lectures and organizing demonstrations.

He has two masters in theology from Graduate Theological Union in California and says nonviolence is at the heart of all world religions.

“You cannot claim to be a Christian or a person of any religion and support violence or war. Period. In other words, to be a Christian and to be Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist is to be a person of nonviolence,” Dear says.

Dear has worked with Mother Teresa to stop capital punishment and was mentored by anti-war activist brothers David and Philip Berrigan. Dear was nominated in 2008 for a Nobel Peace Prize by Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

“But most of all I know thousands and thousands of ordinary American activists who are working to change our country and our cities and move it from militarism and corporate greed toward greater equality and more peaceful attitude toward the world. And it’s those ordinary people who give me the most hope,” Dear says.

Dear wants to reach more ordinary people during his time in Juneau.

Tonight he’ll speak on “Peace Making, Civil Disobedience and Truth Telling in a World of Permanent War.” He’ll talk about how he got involved in the peace and justice movement, his experience in war zones, and spending time in jail.

On Saturday, Dear gives an all day workshop on “Living a Nonviolent Life.”

“How can we become like Gandhi and Dr. King? How can we help Alaska become more nonviolent and the whole country and the whole world become more nonviolent? That’s our only hope and it’s the most crucial question of our time,” he says.

Tonight’s talk is at 7 p.m. @360 and Saturday’s workshop is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Northern Light United Church.

For more information, go to johndear.org.

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