On Saturday, Feb. 22, 2003, Mid-Kentucky Presbytery approved sending the following letter to President Bush, with copies to members of Kentucky's Congressional Delegation.

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President George W. Bush
The White House
Washington, DC

Dear Mr. President:

The Presbytery of Mid-Kentucky, a church court of the Presbyterian Church (USA), in stated meeting on February 22, 2003, respectfully makes the following appeal to you, our President and Commander in Chief of our armed forces:

Our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, instructed his followers:

You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy." But I say to you, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous." (Matthew 5:43-45)

As followers of Jesus Christ, we believe that He would not approve a pre-emptive war by one nation against another nation perceived as enemy.

We appeal to you, Mr. President, as a fellow believer in Jesus Christ, to let our Lord's teaching guide you in the decisions you make concerning Iraq. Please cease all thought of pre-emptive war against Iraq, and follow all means of peaceful diplomatic negotiations to find a solution short of war to the problems posed by Saddam Hussein.

For the Presbytery of Mid-Kentucky,

Sincerely and respectfully,

Elder Elias Sahiouny, Moderator

The Rev. Kenneth J. Hockenberry, Stated Clerk

Presbyterian News Service recently published a good overview of some of those actions. 

We have reported a number of them in recent days.  And here are two more: another presbytery statement, and a letter to a local newspaper by a Witherspooner in northern New York State.

[2-8-03]

The Rev. John Shuck reports that earlier today (Saturday, Feb. 8, 2003) the Presbytery of Yellowstone passed a resolution calling on the President and government of the United States not to engage in a "pre-emptive strike" against Iraq, but rather "to exercise restraint and to work with the United Nations toward a peaceful resolution of this crisis."

Noting that the presbytery Stated Clerk is to make an official report of the action, Shuck said that the vote was 23 for, 21 against the resolution.

He continued, "There was a substitute motion to table it without discussion but it was defeated. Then we had 20 minutes or so of discussion. Folks who spoke against felt that church governing bodies should not be involved in politics.

"I frankly didn't think it would pass. I just wanted to get something out on the table. What I said after I introduced it was something like ... 'I would hate to have history look back on this moment as the possible eve of World War III and wonder why when we had the opportunity that we didn't even bother to debate the issue.' There wasn't much debate at this time but perhaps it will spur some more bold acts by other individuals and governing bodies."

The unofficial text of the resolution:

As members of the Presbytery of Yellowstone, we believe our faith dictates that we voice strong opposition to a pre-emptive strike by the United States against Iraq. While many of us hold that a state is justified in using force in certain situations, we believe that a military strike by the United States against Iraq at this time is not morally justified.

While we deplore the past actions of Saddam Hussein, he poses no clear and immediate threat to the United States or the nations of the world. A unilateral, pre-emptive strike by the United States would be viewed by the vast majority of the world's population as an act of aggression on behalf of U.S. self-interests, even if self-interest is not our motivation. If the U.S. sets this example, other nations might claim justification for attacking their weaker neighbors.

Peaceful alternatives have not been exhausted, but must be pursued through the United Nations. Iraq has been and can continue to be contained by a cooperative effort led by the U.N. If Saddam is a threat, he is a threat to the world not to the United States alone.

An attack against Iraq would lead to the deaths of thousands of innocent people, including children. It would further destabilize the entire Middle East. We cannot afford to increase tensions between the West and the Arab world, or escalate the spiral of violence around the globe.

Peaceful alternatives to war are not flashy or terribly exciting, but war will not lead the United States nor the world to the security we seek. Peacemaking is hard work, but the way of peace is the narrow road that leads to life.

Therefore, be it resolved that the Presbytery of Yellowstone joins other governing bodies within the Presbyterian Church (USA) and our ecumenical partners in urging the President of the United States to exercise restraint and to work with the United Nations toward a peaceful resolution of this crisis.

Witherspooner Rev. Dudley Sarfaty shares a letter he has sent to his local paper in Malone, New York (in the "North Country" of New York State, near the Canadian border).

{2-8-03]

Dear friends:

The United States seems on the verge of war in Iraq, despite anything our allies or a growing portion of our own population may say. The President's mind seems made up.

Secretary of State Powell certainly made a strong case to the UN that Saddam Hussein was not to be trusted.

But Mr. Powell did not prove that containment would not work. He did not prove that the USA should take unilateral military action or that it had to be done right away.

He did not detail the losses in life or the billions of dollars that the war there would cost the American taxpayer. He said nothing about how many innocent Iraqi civilians we would kill or how much we would have to pay to occupy and rebuild Iraq.

Before the President makes use of the sweeping personal permission the Congress gave him to start a war in America's name, as American citizens, we ought to be told what damage the war will do and what it will cost us in years, life and dollars.

Also, the USA's starting a way in Iraq seems like an open invitation to Al Qaeda to attack us. It would be far better for the UN to organize the Arab world to eliminate the threat that Saddam represents to the whole Near East and not just to the USA and the world.

We ought not let hate and fear make us support an irrational act, whatever level the terrorism index is raised to.

I hope that many of our fellow citizens who cannot travel to the national demonstration in New York City will rally with the area's peace groups in Canton at 1:00 PM on Saturday February 15, at St. Lawrence University's Gunnison Chapel. The local Sponsor is the North Country's www.AlternativestoWar.org whose web page gives the names details of the rally. AlternativetoWar's contact phone number is: 315-267-2554. The rally speakers will include veterans for peace, local clergy, labor leaders and others.