A Letter My Grandmother Wrote to Me on the Nuclear Arms Race When I Was 1 year Old

Recently, while my mom was going through my Grandma Gladstone's stuff during preparations to sell her (Grandma's) house, she came across a letter that Grandma had written to me when I was one year old.

I don't have a scanner set up in the new apartment, but I wanted to share this, so I typed it up as best I could.

June 18th, 1984

Dear Jeremy,

Today Grandma was in a class concerning missions of Peace. Because of the arms race that is now happening in the world between governments and the use of nuclear weapons being made, Grandma is concerned about the kind of world you might grow up in.

The kind of world I would like to see you grow up in would be much different than the kind caused by an arms race.

I would like to see you grow up in a loving family free from the threat of war. I would like to[sic] to get the education you need and want. I would like to see you grow up by playing and enjoying your friends and family in a free and clean atmosphere. I would like to see you enjoy the outdoors and all of God's beautiful creation. I hope you will understand that God loves you and by having God in your life you will be able to do great things. Have religious freedom.

The world will have to put a stop to the arms race by the time you read this. There would be less hunger in the world. You will not have to face a draft or conscription. You will be free to find the job you want, marry, become a parent.

What will Grandma do to help some of these things happen for you. She will pray. She will join prayer groups for peace. She will attempt to write letters to congressmen, telling them what her opinions for peace are.

When you are with me I will try to be a good example of a Christian that would like to see peace in the world and a peaceful world for her Grandchildren.

Good News! Holy Innocents Parish Accepted into Margaretville Interfaith Council

The issue that I blogged about earlier has now been resolved and the Holy Innocents Parish has been accepted into the Margaretville Interfaith Council.

More info can be found at this article on Diversity Rules!

More Info on Margaretville Interfaith Council and The Holy Innocents Church

A church's struggle for interfaith inclusion goes viral via The Watershed Post

A public outcry has erupted in a tight-knit Catskills community over a local interfaith council's reluctance to allow an independent Catholic church to join as a member. The dispute has prompted the council's pro bono lawyer to resign in protest, and stirred up local tensions about same-sex marriage and religion.

Bishop Francisco Betancourt, a founding pastor of the independent Catholic Holy Innocents church in Halcottsville, said that his church has been trying to join the Margaretville Interfaith Council for 12 years, ever since the church was established. Throughout that time, Betancourt said, his efforts have been met with a resounding silence -- a response that was never quite clear enough to be 'no,' but never a welcoming 'yes.'

The reason his church has not been welcomed, Betancourt says, is Holy Innocents' willingness to perform same-sex marriage, an issue that Interfaith Council leaders acknowledge is deeply controversial among their members.

Read the whole article here

Local Issue: Shame on Margaretville Interfaith Council!

Sharing because of the shortage of local pro-queer media:

From Diversity Rules Magazine: Shame on Margaretville Interfaith Council! by Jim Kouri

The Margaretville Interfaith Council is not allowing membership to Holy Innocents Catholic Church, an Apostolic Catholic Church independent from Papal Authority, primarily because of its acceptance of queer folks and marrying them. The council is concerned that other churches will leave the council if “the gay church” is allowed to join. Holy Innocents Church does a lot of good things in the greater Margaretville area and it's a real travesty that the Interfaith Council sees fit to discriminate against this church, a fellow Christian Church helping people in need and ministering to them.

Here's a link to Holy Innocents and check out for yourself what great church they are:

http://www.holyinnocentscacina.org

If you want to help in battling discrimination in this small Delaware County village, contact Francisco J. Betancourt, Co-Pastor, at 845.586.2201. Tell him you heard about his plight from Diversity Rules Magazine and you want to know how you can help!

If you want to express your outrage directly to the Interfaith Council the contact person is, Rev. Richard Dykstra, Secretary/Treasurer. His contact information is as follows:

Rev. Richard Dykstra
PO Box 702
Margaretville, NY 12455
607.326.7101