The Challenge and Responsibility of Peace
Indianapolis First Friends Quaker Meeting
Bob Henry
May 25, 2025
Good morning, Friends and welcome to Light Reflections. This morning the scripture I have chosen is from Ephesians 4:3 from the Voice Translation.
Make every effort to preserve the unity the Spirit has already created, with peace binding you together.
This is Memorial Day weekend. For many that means the official start of summer. As a Quaker, I am kind of glad I live in Indiana on Memorial Day weekend, where instead of focusing solely on memorializing war efforts, the entire month of May culminates in a car race of epic proportions with traditions for families and friends at its core. And I know some of us are hoping I keep this short so we can catch the race after worship since it is being aired on TV this year.
But this does not mean that here in Indiana we don’t celebrate the real meaning of Memorial Day by honoring the sacrifices made by many in American wars. Let’s not be too quick to forget that our great city of Indianapolis holds the distinction of having the most war memorials in the United States, excluding Washington, D.C. Honestly, I think there is something weird about that. But that is just my opinion.
As we discussed recently in Ministry and Counsel, Memorial Day can be complicated for many Quakers because of our peace testimony (actually, the Peace Testimony itself can be a bit complicated for some). Even though most Friends don’t usually have too many issues honoring the sacrifices made by individuals (because that may be seen as rude or disrespectful), they often cannot in good conscience support the goal for which those lives were given. That is why many Friends boldly profess, “War is not the answer.” I find that often my fellow Quaker pastors (even myself at times), simply avoid the Memorial Day holiday, and refuse to bring up the tensions involved.
If you do a quick Google search, you will find that Memorial Day was first observed on April 25, 1866, when two women in Columbus, Mississippi, placed flowers on both Confederate and Union graves. This story about women recognizing lives sacrificed on each side of the Civil War by visiting gravesites with flowers became the impetus for Decoration Day and then our modern Memorial Day.
The ambivalence felt by many Friends comes from our Peace Testimony and belonging to the “historic peace churches.” Along with Mennonites and Brethren, we all teach non-violence, not just in reference to war but as a comprehensive lifestyle.
As most of you know, peace is one of our testimonies or S.P.I.C.E.S. And that testimony goes all the way back to our origins with George Fox who, along with other Friends, wrote to Charles II of England in 1660,
We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and
fighting with outward weapons for any end or under any pretence whatsoever;
this is our testimony to the whole world.
As well, Friends are famous for having been conscientious objectors in many of the wars and advocates and educators for peaceful solutions to human conflicts.
I am pleased to report that we are currently seeing a resurgence among young people to consider and even study conscientious objection and question the United States’ involvement in any wars. Which honestly could now get them jailed or deported depending on what they stand for or against.
We at First Friends and Western Yearly Meeting are gathering materials for our young people asking for more information about conscientious objection. We already have a couple books on the subject in our First Friends library to help with discernment.
A moment in Memorial Day history that many among the historic peace churches find solidarity with is Harry S. Truman’s Memorial Day Declaration after World War II. In his Memorial Day letter he tried to change the focus of the day to a day focused on Permanent Peace. He said,
…the Congress has fittingly provided, in a joint resolution which I approved on May 11, 1950, that Memorial Day, which has long been set aside for paying tribute to those who lost their lives in war, shall henceforth be dedicated also as a day for Nation-wide prayer for permanent peace.
Let’s be honest, praying for permanent peace is only a starting place.
If our prayer is for permanent peace, that may seem a little ambitious because there are so many factors that override our desire for permanent peace. We might feel a little better for having tried to “do something” by praying, but otherwise not much may happen if we do not act.
That is why Friends believe prayer to be both listening to the Spirit, seeking the Spirit’s guidance, and then acting on what the Spirit puts on our hearts.
As Friends, we teach that peace begins within us, what we call internal peace (a seed ready to grow), the Spirit then guides us in a way to grow and develop that peace further in family and community. It’s not necessarily granted immediately, but hopefully we will get the opportunity to see its fruition, if we are willing to act upon it.
Also, for many, saying we are praying for peace is simply a way of getting around not acting. It is almost like we are asking God to have someone else speak or stand up for peace. Folks, I want to emphasize this again - prayer is more about listening and acting on what we hear than it is about asking the Divine for something. That is why we as Friends embrace “Holy Listening” and then we seek to respond “as the way opens.”
One of the things that the historic peace churches have emphasized around this important subject is not solely focusing on or memorializing those who sacrificed their lives through war and violent means but also acknowledging and honoring the non-violent people who sought peaceful resolutions and outcomes without engaging in war or utilizing violence or weapons.
There have been many people (including many Friends) who have worked and fought a different kind of battle in this country to enable us - Americans, immigrants, Quakers – to live lives free of slavery, free of political imprisonment, more free of assault and discrimination for being female, or gay, or black, or immigrant, or anything else – more able to claim an equal voice and a place at the table – to live our lives as the Divine intended.
These are people who listened to the Spirit and acted on what they heard the Spirit guiding them to do. Perhaps on Memorial Day we could also celebrate their lives and their difficult battles where peace and positive outcomes can be made without violence, weapons, and war. Just maybe that is how we as Friends could contribute to the celebration of Memorial Day in a more Quaker way.
So, this morning, to contribute to our Memorial Day celebration, I would like to take a moment to remember the life of Friend Emily Green Balch, who I believe exemplifies just this kind of remembrance.
Emily Greene Balch made her mark on many areas, one of the greatest was the struggle for permanent peace.
Emily was the only American to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946. She became involved in the peace movement in 1914 just as World War I was brewing. In addition, she was a central leader in the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom.
Emily was born in 1861 to a prominent family in Boston. Her father was a secretary for the famous Senator Charles Sumner. She graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1889 and later was a graduate student in Paris where she did academic work on the poor in Paris. Emily did settlement work in her hometown of Boston before deciding on an academic career. She studied at Harvard, the University of Chicago, and the University of Berlin. She started teaching at Wellesley College where she focused on economics, consumption, and the economic role of women.
In 1913, she was appointed to serve as an economics professor at Wellesley. Later that year, she was promoted associate professor in the political economy and political and social science department. She served on several state commissions and was a leader in the Women’s Trade Union League.
Emily was a longtime pacifist and was a participant in Henry Ford’s International Committee on Mediation – a notable peace initiative undertaken in 1915 during World War I. When the United States entered World War I, she became a political activist opposing conscription and supporting the civil liberties of conscientious objectors.
She collaborated with Jane Adams in the Women’s Peace party and numerous other groups. Wellesley College terminated her contract in 1919. She then served as an editor of the magazine The Nation, a well-known magazine of political commentary.
Emily converted from Unitarianism and became a Quaker in 1921. She stated,
“Religion seems to me one of the most interesting things in life, one of the most puzzling, richest and thrilling fields of human thought and speculation… religious experience and thought need also a light a day and sunshine and a companionable sharing with others of which it seems to me there is generally too little… The Quaker worship at its best seems to me to give opportunities for this sort of sharing without profanation.”
Her major achievements were just beginning, as she became an American leader of the international peace movement. In 1919, Emily played a central role in the International Congress of Women. It changed its name to the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom and was based in Geneva.
She was hired by the League as its first international Secretary-Treasurer, administering the organization’s activities. She helped set up summer schools on peace education and created new branches in over 50 countries. She cooperated with the newly established League of Nations regarding drug control, aviation, refugees, and disarmament. In World War II, she favored Allied victory and did not criticize the war effort, but she did support the rights of conscientious objectors. Emily was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her work in the Women’s International League of Peace and Freedom.
I highly recommend you go and read about Emily’s work and dedication to peace without having to go to war or pick up a weapon. Her work has had a huge impact, it changed lives, and it brought us more life instead of death.
To conclude this overview of this exceptional Friend, I will leave you with this final quote by Emily,
The question whether the long effort to put an end to war can succeed without another major convulsion challenges not only our minds but our sense of responsibility.
Today or tomorrow as you reflect on our country and world, and you remember and memorialize the lives that have been lost to war in the United States, also, remember the realities.
The United States Military has recorded approximately 1.19 million fatalities since 1775 – which 651,031 were in direct combat. 650,000+ people is like wiping out the entire city of Detroit, Boston, Denver, Seattle, or Memphis.
Since 1980, 80% of military deaths have been due to accidents, illness, and the largest growing number, suicide.
And then consider how much the United States spends on Military Defense. On the Department of Defense webpage, it boldly states that they have $2.23 Trillion in budgetary resources available to them – that is 15.2% of the overall US Federal Budget (or the number one priority). In 2024 alone it is reported that we spent $997 billion on defense, accounting for nearly 40% of global military spending.
I believe these facts herald a call for more warriors for peace. We need more Emily Greene Balch’s in our world. You and I may not be able to do all that she did, but as Friends we have a responsibility to work for and speak up for peace starting in our own families and then into our communities. The possibilities are infinite, and they must start somewhere. It seems only appropriate for it to start among Friends!
I wonder what the world would be like if we had more people who instead of picking up a weapons or turning to violence to solve an issue, first took a look inside themselves and embraced the peace that the Divine has placed there?
And what if they then networked with their community to promote peace in their families, workplaces, schools, and not just locally, but globally as well?
I sense if our priority was peace and our true desire, then we might begin to see the change we want to see in this world.
As Emily Greene Balch stated, may we not only challenge our minds this Memorial Day Weekend, but also with the Divine’s help and guidance, embrace our responsibility to make a difference for the sake of all humankind.
Now, as we enter a time of waiting worship, please take a moment to center down, calm your hearts, and focus your attention on listening to the Spirit. Sit with your thoughts about war and peace and ask the Spirit to speak to your condition.
For those needing some queries to help guide your thoughts, here are several for you to consider:
1. What do I believe about violence and war as it relates to peace?
2. How might I water the “seed” of peace within me? Who might help me with this?
3. What is my responsibility for making a difference in my world?