An Interfaith Public Witness REGISTER to participate in reading names of the war dead at Congressional offices on November 1: Send an e-mail to PropheticVoiceNov1@yahoo.com
On All Saints' Day, Tuesday, November 1, Reclaiming the Prophetic Voice is urging clergy and people of faith throughout the state of CT and beyond to act on their faith, at district Congressional Offices, speaking out against the immorality and illegality of the Iraq War and of the abuse and torture of detainees in US custody. All Saint’s Day, devoted to prayers for the dead, falls two weeks after the Jewish holy day of Sukkot when prayers are said for the protection of God’s peace and two days before the end of Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting and atonement for faults and misdeeds. This convergence of religious holy days invites prophetic witness: atonement for our government’s immoral conduct and activism to end the war and end torture. Reclaiming the Prophetic Voice is organizing public witnesses at the district offices of each of the five CT Congressional Representatives on Nov. 1, while encouraging groups in other states to do the same. A liturgy of prayer, including recitation of the Jewish Mourner’s Kaddish, and readings from the Quran, will be followed by the reading of the names of US military people and of Iraqi civilians who have been killed in this war. In preparation for that witness, we urge people to call their Congressperson and demand that they take a public stand on 4 key questions. Will you publicly demand an immediate end to the use of torture, and call for a full, independent investigation into the abuse of detainees? Will you publicly demand an end to the war in Iraq and a timeframe for bringing our troops home? Will you publicly demand that no permanent US bases remain in Iraq? Will you publicly call for an end to the draining of resources into the Iraq war, giving priority to urgent domestic needs, including relief for hurricane victims? Please spread the word about this action, organize within your congregations, and plan to participate both in the lobbying and in the public witness on Nov. 1. Follow the links to get information on how to sign up and to download the documents that are part of an organizing packet. The packet includes: flyers about the action and lobbying to be used as a bulletin insert; a sample agenda for the day; a sample letter to the Editor; a sample Op-ed piece to submit to your local paper and a variety of other resources for use during the action itself. For more information, email us at: PropheticVoiceNov1@yahoo.com.		Documents to Download Lift the Prophetic Voice Flyers Detailed Action Draft Sample November 1 Agenda Sample Letter to Editor Media Handout Irag Memorial Wall Press Release Local Site Information Proposed Liturgy Civil Disobedience Prep To view and print these documents you will need a copy of the FREE Adobe Acrobat Reader
Members of the RTPV Steering Committee: Rabbi Donna Berman, the Rev. Dennis Calhoun, the Rev. Sonnie Fish, John Humphries, the Rev. Kathleen McTigue, Kasha Ho, Father Tom O'Rourke, the Rev. Allie Perry, the Rev. Susan Power Trucksess.