. EDUCATION FOR PEACE .

An article sent to CPNN from J.S. Sadin

In 2015 I needed to accurately reproduce a peace sign for a project. Searching the Internet for imagery I selected a thick lined peace sign posted on Wikimedia Commons representing the iconic image from the 1960s anti-war movement. A few measurements led to A Proportional Peace Sign specification enabling anyone to create a peace sign of any size. (image 1 below)

Later I learned the peace sign was originally created in 1958 by an English graphic designer, Gerald Holtom. It was adopted as the British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament logo. Holtom based his design on a composite of the semaphore flag positions for the letters ’N’ (a downward facing ‘V’) and ‘D’ (a vertical line) for Nuclear Disarmament, all within a circle.

(click on image to enlarge)

In 2024 I heard NASA positioned the James Web Space Telescope on the opposite side of Earth from the Sun, at a location in space called Lagrange point 2 (L2), because L2 is a gravitationally stable point in space, which means it takes minimal fuel to keep the Web telescope (or any satellite) correctly positioned.

There are five Lagrange points on or near the orbit of Earth around the Sun. It turns out there are also five unique Lagrange points like this on and near the orbit of each planet in our solar system, and the orbit of every planet orbiting every star in the Universe, because the laws of physics defining Lagrange points are universal. (image 2 above)

Lagrange point history began around 1750, when Lagrange points L1, 2 and 3 were discovered by Leonhard Euler, a Swiss mathematician. The remaining Lagrange points, L4 and 5, were then discovered a decade later by Joseph-Louis Lagrange, the Italian mathematician, physicist and astronomer, who later worked out the details in his “three-body problem” essay, published in 1772.

Nearly two centuries later, in the late 1950’s, the post-war nuclear arms race was well underway. Average people began pushing back against the existential danger posed by the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Gerald Holtom’s Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament logo could have been based on any number of things, but his creative decision to combine elements of the semaphore system used for nautical and emergency communication led to what eventually became the iconic peace sign.

It’s notable that these unrelated histories, separated by hundreds of years, produced remarkably similar symbols: one intentionally, the other inherently. Many of us might not even notice the differences; a coincidence that nearly defies explanation: What are the odds that a peace sign, a symbol representing the absence of war, would exist in every two-body system in the Universe?

Today, the changes we’re witnessing on the world stage are jarring and disruptive. The international rules- based order established eighty years ago by the U.S. after WWII is faltering, and mid-power nations are reconsidering security alliances thought to be iron clad. They know historically chaos can breed chaos, forcing some to begin rearming while Russia, China and America eye regional opportunities created by events, increasing the odds of conflict.

Life is the animate of the inanimate of the infinite, existing only on Earth. By any measure life is the most precious thing in the Universe. The next war this world is capable of delivering upon itself would be devastating to civilization and higher forms of life. And while the world will turn with or without us, we have a stake in humanity’s future for our children and their children’s children. All of us living today owe our descendants a peaceful clean planet, and peace is the precondition to equitably share the only world we may ever know.

A coincidental symbol resembling Holtom’s original may simply be a sign more peace is our only hope. (image 3 below)

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EDUCATION FOR PEACE .

An aticle from the World Council of Churches

The editorial team of Ralf Becker, Rev. Karen Hinrichs, Prof. Dr Heinrich Schäfer, and Dr Theodor Ziegler are presenting “If you want peace, go and talk to your enemy: An Ecumenical Peace Treatise–2026.”

Published as a special volume in the “edition pace” series, the publication is being presented in cooperation with the Ecumenical Peace Network and enhanced by a preface by Dr. Konrad Raiser.

Through the concept of “peace logic,” the book points to ways in which conflicts could be resolved through diplomacy and civil conflict resolution, and wars may be prevented. 

The document aims to provide Christians and humanists with a clear, ethical orientation toward peace. It calls for an unequivocal commitment to military disarmament and for all states to join the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in times of massive rearmament. It notes that churches, in particular, can be a strong, clear voice for peace and contribute to building a culture of peace.

Coeditor Schäfer said that the treatise attempts to offer the perspective of grassroots organizations. “Within the team, we first decided to orient ourselves closely to the prophetic-Jesus tradition, following the example of the prophet Micah and the Sermon on the Mount,” he said. When viewed in the light of their original context, the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount contain clear, practical recommendations even for policymakers on how to prevent violence. “This theology is most in line with grassroots Christian movements, but of course aiming at the entire church. These theological reflections were complemented by a critique of the “myth of redemptive violence” by the American theologian Walter Wink. Finally, we incorporated a political science perspective through Hanne-Margret Birckenbach’s ‘Peace Logic.’ ”

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What are the most important books about the culture of peace?

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Schäfer described how all of this was repeatedly discussed and expanded upon over the course of about half a year in online plenary sessions as well as among individual plenary members. “In this way, more ideas came to light during the editorial process than initially anticipated, such as the perspective of the churches in East Germany, documents from the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Vatican, and theological input provided by historic peace churches,” he said.

Schäfer also noted that, when it comes to secular ethics, there are various points of connection.

“The program of strengthening grassroots initiatives, cooperating with secular peace actors, and fostering a culture of nonviolence—these strategies are entirely in line with our approach,” he said.

Spiritually speaking, the Sermon on the Mount contains more than just practical recommendations, he noted. “It also establishes prayer as a source of courage and points to the coming Kingdom of God,” he said. “Furthermore, the prophet Micah offers us a magnificent vision of the success of our commitment to peace: the beating of swords into plowshares.”

Schäfer noted that, first, the prophets’ call for justice and peace—as such, but not in its theological rationale—can be directly linked to the demands of secular ethics. “Nuclear armament has been an issue for the peace movement in Germany since the mid-1950s.”

The problem has been exacerbated today by the fact that the chancellor has decreed the purchase of nuclear-capable Tomahawk missiles for Germany, Schäfer notes. “This violates important international treaties, most notably the Two-Plus-Four Treaty, which is fundamental to the right of a united Germany to exist,” he said. “ The peace movement, however, is always at a disadvantage when faced with such decisions made without public or even parliamentary debate.”

“Despite everything, the challenge set forth by the prophets and Jesus—to speak to the enemy rather than threaten him—remains the best guide for those who seek peace,” concluded Schäfer.

Download a free copy of the book

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