“Like a tree that’s planted by the water ....”


Ecumenical Peace Institute / Clergy And Laity Concerned (EPI/CALC) is a prophetic voice and witness, embracing all faith and earth-based traditions bringing to life universal values as we seek truth, work for justice, nurture compassion and courage, reach out to each other and to our larger communities of faith and tradition, bridge the divisions that wound the human family, transform ourselves and our world through dedication to nonviolence in education, advocacy, witness and action.

 

El Instituto Ecuménico por la Paz / Clérigos y laicos involucrados (EPI / CALC) es una voz profética y testigo, abarcando todas las tradiciones religiosas y terrestres que le dan vida a los valores universales a la vez que buscamos la verdad, trabajamos por la justicia, fomentamos la compasión y la valentía, nos conectamos los unos con los otros y con nuestras comunidades mayores religiosas y de la tradición, construimos puentes entre las divisiones que hieren a la familia humana, nos transformamos a nosotros mismos y a nuestro mundo a través de la dedicación a la no violencia en la educación, en la defensa, en el testimonio y en la acción.

Source: The above text was adapted from the Mission Statement of the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Church in Walnut Creek. The author(s) will be credited when their name(s) is/are learned. ¡Gracia! a Silvia Brandon-Pérez for the translation to Spanish.



About EPI

Since the 1980s (at least) Ecumenical Peace Institute / Clergy and Laity Concerned (EPI/CALC), a 501 (c) 3 organization, has continued to provide vital resources and a history of experience and understanding to the community of people working for peace with justice.

EPI’s newsletter, Planted by the Waters provides information and analysis on a range of subjects. Current and archived issues are posted here on our website.

In last November, 2021, at our virtual Fall Gathering we heard speakers from four countries, representing crises in regions often forgotten and/or left behind, while we are focused on fires closer to home. Often thought of as et cetera countries which suffer from U.S. driven crises, they are 20 or 30 down the triage list. It was an exciting gathering from around the world. Rev. Naim Ateek spoke on Palestine; Pierre Labossiere spoke on Haiti; Gloria La Riva spoke on Venezuela and Lorenzo Cañizares spoke on Cuba. You can watch a video of their talks here: https://youtu.be/7RpZgZ6X99k, or here in high def: https://youtu.be/B229JU4J0tM.

Regrettably we have had to discontinue the monthly Living Graveyard, due to the dangers of the COVID-19 virus. We shall return.

Over the years we continue to collaborate with other dedicated groups, including Haiti Action Committee, Jewish Voice for Peace, Friends of Sabeel, East Bay Peace Action and Berkeley Women in Black and with East Bay Sanctuary Covenant working in support of refugees here in California.

The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was signed by its fiftieth nation and entered into force January 22, 2022. On that day EPI organized a vigil at the West Gate of the University of California, Berkeley, celebrating this treaty and calling on UC to cease research and design of these weapons.

While our COVID-19-era Good Friday Interfaith service is largely virtual, there may be a small, representative masked and distanced group of us at the Livermore Nuclear Weapons Laboratory itself.

EPI will continue its mission until the Doomsday Clock will cease to be needed.


Board of Directors

Janet Cordes Gibson, president, United Church of Christ; Daniel Zwickel, vice-president, Unitarian Universalist; Carolyn Scarr, secretary & program coordinator, Trinity Fellowship of Berkeley; Nancy Taylor, treasurer, United Church of Christ; Marilyn Jackson, office coordinator, Lutheran,  ELCA; Silvia Brandon Peréz, ARCWP Priest (Roman Catholic), People without Borders, Justice Temple; Mark Coplan, Presbyterian Church USA; Gloria Escalona, Roman Catholic; Cynthia Johnson, Unitarian Universalist; Sally Juarez, Presbyrerian; Pierre Labossiere, United Church of Christ; Vivian Zelaya, Roman Catholic.

Advisory Board:  Diana Bohn, Berkeley Peace & Justice Commission; Rev. Nobuaki Hanaoka
United Methodist; Annette Herskovits, Jewish, Buddhist; Steve Kelly, S.J., Roman Catholic; Rev. Ron Stief, United Church of Christ; Father Louis Vitale, Roman Catholic; Lonnie Voth, Mennonite.

This, from our Board Retreat February 6, 2017, left to right: Mark Coplan (Videographer), Nelly Quinonez (not currently on our board), Nancy Taylor (Financial Secretary), Daniel Zwickel (Vice President), Marilyn Jackson (Office Coordinator), Janet Gibson (President), Vivian Zelaya, and Carolyn Scarr (Secretary & Program Coordinator). You may click on the photo to view full-size..