Feast of the Holy Innocents Faith and Resistance Retreat “Take the child and his mother and flee… Herod seeks to destroy him…”

A fluctuating number of people, between 70 and 100, gathered in D.C. for the Holy Innocents Faith and Resistance Retreat. We started Thursday night, Dec. 27. Steve Baggerly, Kristin and Sam from the Norfolk Catholic worker opened the retreat with a reflection on the theme: the hope and cost of Advent; the conflict between babies and Kings, between hope and power.

Early the next morning, Dec. 28, we went to the Pentagon to remember the war refugees– every bit the victims of Empire of today as the Christ child was of the Roman empire .

A large horse and donkey puppet reminded us that all creation is endangered by the Pentagon and its wars.

Several people participated in a die-in. Sr. Margaret McKenna and Aaron Weiss from New Jerusalem Community in Philadelphia , Tom Lewis from Emma House Catholic Worker in Worcester , Mass. , Marcus Melder, Little Flower Catholic Worker in Virginia , and Liz McAlister from Jonah House in Baltimore were arrested; they have a court date March 21, 2008 at 9 a.m. at the Alexandria Federal Court.

Late that afternoon we went to the Department of Energy. About 20 of us went inside where there is a display lauding the glories and history of nuclear weapons which included a missile and a timeline of weapon testing and use. We asked to talk to a representative of the DOE about the display: a lying history which omits any reference to the fact that it displays weapons of mass destruction that have destroyed untold human lives and created incalculable and irreversible damage to the earth in the mining, development, testing and use of nuclear weapons.

As no one was willing to talk with us, we began to correct the history by adding pictures to the display, and then gathered for a closing circle. Two security men came to tell us that we had to leave. We told them our concerns and invited them to join us in a closing prayer. One of them joined in our prayer circle…

Outside, a well prepared and humorous street theater was happening. Simulating the sham DOE briefing of late, Bill Streit played the DOE director as he attempted to defend its death dealing programs with the ever-present aid of Fox News. Watch for this on Youtube! Special thanks to Sue Frankel-Streit for the street theater….

That evening, Kathy Breen spoke on her experiences working with refugees from Iraq who are in Jordan , Syria , and Lebanon . She spoke of their intense suffering, how they can't work, can't get papers to leave, can't support themselves and use up any savings they have. The US is not accepting its share of refugees.

Remembering the massacre at Wounded Knee , Dec 26, 1890, Cornelius Red Deer spoke Saturday a.m.of the native way which is in harmony to the earth, the creatures and each another. What a contrast to the way of domination; military conquest and empire which is endemic to the U.S. conduct in our world.

Later on Dec. 30, the Jonah House donkey joined Mary, Joseph and Jesus, as we walked through Lafayette Park to the White House. Continuing the theme of the retreat, we were accompanied by many war refugees to the “Refugee Camp” tent set up in front of the White House.

The donkey was given a ban and bar from the District of Columbia , and Patrick O'Neil from Martin de Porres Catholic Worker in Raleigh , North Carolina and Eve Tetaz from D.C. were arrested at the White House. They have a court date Jan 22, 2008.

In the evening, we celebrated the marriage of Gary Ashbeck and Eden Coughlin, who met at a Faith and Resistance retreat, and who were engaged on Jan 11, 2007 at the Close Guantanamo occupation of the Federal Courthouse.

The next day we ate breakfast at the Nipponzan Myohoji Japanese Buddhist Temple . Sister Takako Ichikawa welcomed us and led us in prayer that included drumming and chanting. Then we heard from Ashim Pannasami and U Indasara who spoke to us (through an interpreter) about the plight of the monks and the people of Burma , and who encouraged us to work so that Burmese people would not be deported: a certain death.

Together with the monks we processed to the Burmese Embassy. Sister Ichikawa led us in drumming and chanting Na Mu Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo. We were joined by children and adults from Burma . At the Embassy, we held banners on the steps, and remembered the nonviolent struggle of the monks and people who are suffering under military rule. We were joined by many Secret Service police.

Later we had a closing circle in a nearby park.

The retreat was skillfully facilitated by Eda and Mike Uca-Dorn.