Welcome Home Project

Peace Witness
Welcome Home Project
A Living Peace Church Initiative
for Returning Military Personnel

Military personnel from the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan are now coming home to communities across the United States -- communities that are often at a loss for how to provide genuine healing and reintegration after life on the battlefield.

While some return with physical injuries, there are others who are affected emotionally or spiritually. Others may need someone to walk with them as they re-enter the work force and re-enter family and civilian life.

Many individuals and congregations desire to address the needs of returning military personnel and the communities to which they return with wisdom and compassion, going beyond "just" a yellow ribbon and a pat on the back.

“How does one witness for peace, standing against the powers, yet build trust to serve the needs of individual veterans and their families dealing with the physical, emotional, social, and spiritual injuries caused by war?”

This was one important question discussed at On Earth Peace’s workshops on “Healing the Troops”, a part of the broader Olive Branch Interfaith Peace Partnership activities in Washington, DC. Doris Abdullah, a mother of a Marine who has served two tours in Iraq, explained that, although war and the troops are connected issues, the problems of the soldiers, sailors, and Marines must be separated from the issues of the broader peace witness. Mel Menker, the father of an Army Reserve soldier who has served a tour in the Afghanistan theatre and is in training to return to Afghanistan or to Iraq, described how the soldier and his/her family are changed forever by deployment and combat.

On Earth Peace believes that the Christian message of love, justice, service, and humility includes reaching out to soldiers, who may be hurting, afraid, silent, and marginalized. Too often, Christian pacifists have been separated from those who have served in the military. A living peace church accompanies all those who have experienced the violence and trauma of war.
We believe that soldiers returning from battle are sometimes harmed spiritually as much as physically. Because we understand health holistically (mind-body-spirit), we know that returning soldiers often need healing for the rest of their lives. Those committed to nonviolence can accompany returning soldiers as they heal from their experiences, thus improving their mental wellbeing and possibly preventing further harm that sometimes leads to domestic abuse, divorce, abandonment, homelessness, and untreated mental illness.

We envision religious communities committed and equipped to provide both immediate re-integration and long-term healing for returned soldiers. This involves creating a caring environment and connecting people to community resources.

On Earth Peace is affiliated with the Church of the Brethren