ICUJP's Organizational and Institutional Endorsements Visit these links and discover the ICUJP community Religious Communities Must Stop Blessing War and Violence
In 1986, Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith founded the Agape International Spiritual Center, a trans-denominational spiritual community whose doors are open to all seekers in search of authentic spirituality, personal transformation and selfless service to humankind.
In his own words, "My aspiration is that every individual who is touched by the vibration of Agape is inspired to cultivate a heart of love as wide as the world."
The beginnings of All Saints Church can be traced back to a small gathering of parishioners in a family home in 1882. The church eventually purchased a site among orange groves at the corner of Garfield Avenue and Colorado Boulevard in 1885, where a small wooden frame church was built. That same year, J.D.H. Brown became the first rector.
All Saints' rise to prominence in the 20th century began under the leadership of Leslie Learned, who served as rector from 1908 until 1936. The present church structure was dedicated in 1925. Under John Frank Scott (1936-1957) and John Harris Burt (1956-1967) All Saints became known not only for its creative liturgy and inspired music, but also its role as a beacon of social justice.
Worship at All Saints Church combines the beauty and tradition of Episcopal liturgy with bold engagements of the issues facing us in our contemporary world. We believe that the spirit of God resides in every human being and that we are called to inclusively seek out that which unites us while at the same time celebrating the glorious diversity of God's creations.
The American Friends Service Committee carries out service, development, social justice, and peace programs throughout the world. Founded by Quakers in 1917 to provide conscientious objectors with an opportunity to aid civilian war victims, AFSC's work attracts the support and partnership of people of many races, religions, and cultures.
AFSC's work is based on the Quaker belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice. The organization's mission and achievements won worldwide recognition in 1947 when it accepted the Nobel Peace Prize with the British Friends Service Council on behalf of all Quakers.
The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America gathers, equips and mobilizes Baptists to build a culture of peace rooted in justice. We labour with a wonderful array of peacemakers to change the world.
We are called by God to the Gospel of Peace. This calling is rooted in our faith in Jesus Christ, who is our Peace, in whom God is reconciling the world and through whom God calls us to the ministry of peacemaking. Peace is not only our goal, but our means. The foundation of peace is justice. The force of peace is love.
Brave New Films are controversial and create vital debate. We play offense by staking out certain strategic issues and then we frame them to win: the reasons for the war, propaganda disguised as news, and now corporate welfare kings, with more to come in the years ahead. Many others do a good job of reacting to immediate crises. And we will weigh in on those as we did with the Arnold video and television spot, but the critical function is strategic and long-term -- setting the agenda by telling stories so people can organize to rebuild our country.
Buddhist Peace Fellowship's open-hearted engagement with the world is expressed through expanding programs in the United States and Asia. Through BPF, Buddhists of many different traditions are developing individual and group responses to socially conditioned suffering.
Call To Action (CTA) began in 1976 at a national meeting convened by the United States Catholic Bishops Conference as part of the efforts to have all of the faithful more actively engaged in fulfilling the spirit and directions of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). Rooted in the Gospel of Love, Call To Action’s mission is to free our Church to become a force for peace and justice in our world. Call To Action works to hold our Church and ourselves accountable to this mission. We are committed to being an organization that is radically inclusive. CTA commits to institutional structures, practices and policies that reflect our anti-racist, multicultural identity.
Please go to www.cta-usa.org to learn more about our history and current initiatives or to sign up for membership. To speak with a local member of the CTA national board, contact Tom Honoré at 310-559-7577. Tom’s e-mail address is thonore@sbcglobal.net.
We are an interfaith association of over 400 religious leaders throughout Los Angeles County who come together to respond to the crisis of the working poor.
The Crisis of the Working Poor
According to a recent study by the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, over 30% of Los Angeles workers have incomes so low that they cannot provide their families with basic necessities without government assistance. Over 60% do not have employer-provided health insurance. When these workers receive government assistance, their employers are effectively subsidized by our taxes - and the majority work for companies with over 500 employees. During the 1980's and 1990's, the United States underwent the largest "wealth transfer' in our history; the assets of the top 1% of our country rose 17% and the assets of the bottom 40% dropped 80%. In the words of the prophet Amos, the corporate and public policies of our nation have created a situation in which the wealthy "tread upon the poor" and "sell the needy for a pair of sandals."
Common Peace is a Los Angeles based 501(c)(3) nonprofit. We teach “nonviolence” as a way of life that works for individuals, families and communities. Our aim is to establish “nonviolence” as the global standard for resolving conflict.
CAIR's vision is to be a leading advocate for justice and mutual understanding.
CAIR's mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
FOR seeks to replace violence, war, racism, and economic injustice with nonviolence, peace, and justice. We are an interfaith organization committed to active nonviolence as a transforming way of life and as a means of radical change. We educate, train, build coalitions, and engage in nonviolent and compassionate actions locally, nationally, and globally.
We, the members of the Immaculate Heart Community, rooted in Jesus Christ and united with the people of God, commit ourselves to build relations in society which foster access of all persons to truth, dignity, and full human development, and to strategically change practices and situations which impede such access.
In our choice of work and living style, and in our use of time, talent, and money, we hold ourselves accountable to God and one another for effecting this goal and supporting one another in this effort.
Immanuel Presbyterian Church is a diverse community seeking to experience and demonstrate the love of Christ by serving God and bearing witness to hope.
Vision
To be a growing, learning, multi-cultural community of spiritual seekers guided by God’s Word, prayer and our reformed traditions. We share our gifts in order to live out the liberating news of Jesus Christ by:
· Welcoming all people into an experience of mystery and healing through God’s Spirit.
· Serving the varied needs of the people of Los Angeles and the world.
· Struggling for justice, while building bridges of peace.
The mission of the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California (ISCSC) is to promote communications, understanding, cooperation, and coordination among the Muslim communities in Southern California at all levels. The main goal of the organization is to act as a catalyst for the emergence of an integrated Muslim community in Southern California and to help in the practice and propagation of Islam in the United States of America.
The formation of the ISCSC is in accordance with Allah's command for Muslim unity as revealed in the Holy Qur'an: 'Hold fast to the rope of Allah all together and be not divided among yourselves,' (Qur'an 3:103) and Allah's command for Shura, 'Their affairs are conducted by Shura' (Qur'an 42:39).
Established in 1991, Jovenes, Inc. is an innovative and comprehensive community-based service center committed to preventing the exploitation of at-risk youth living on the streets of Los Angeles. Jovenes offers a high level of innovative and comprehensive services, while making maximum use of community resources to alleviate the problems of these at-risk youth. The communities within which this program takes place consist primarily, but not exclusively, of Pico-Union/Westlake, Echo Park, South Central, East Los Angeles, Long Beach and Hollywood. These areas of Los Angeles are frequented by large numbers of marginalized, minority, and disenfranchised youth. Among youth, gang violence, homelessness, and negative high-risk behavior plague these communities. [see map]. The ethnic breakdown of our client-base consists of 70% Latino, 20% Euro-American, 9% African-American, and 1% Asian. The average age is between 16-27 years old. The participants are from low- income families who earn under $20,000 annually.
The Muslim Public Affairs Council is a public service agency working for the civil rights of American Muslims, for the integration of Islam into American pluralism, and for a positive, constructive relationship between American Muslims and their representatives. Since 1988, MPAC has worked diligently to promote a vibrant American Muslim community and enrich American society through exemplifying the Islamic values of Mercy, Justice, Peace, Human Dignity, Freedom, and Equality for all. Over the years, MPAC has built a reputation as a consistent and reliable resource for government and media, and is trusted by American Muslims as an authentic, experienced voice.
From outreach programs to interned Japanese Americans during World War II, to the battle for fair housing in the 1960's, to leadership in the development of inter-faith understanding in the 1990's, Neighborhood Church has a long tradition of service to the larger community.
Originally called Palisadians for a Sane Nuclear Policy, our group resulted from people who were strongly opposed to our country's present course of revitalizing nuclear weapons, and our imminent policy of actually planning to use them! The name was changed to Palisadians for Peace in 2002 as the issue of the Iraq war loomed.
We tend to think that the lives of all people of the world are valuable, every man, woman and child in every country, of whatever age, race or orientation. It became clear at our 2004 retreat that we are concerned about diverse aspects of peace, from the insanity of nuclear arsenals on our planet to human rights issues and unequal distribution of wealth.
Pax Christi USA strives to create a world that reflects the Peace of Christ by exploring, articulating, and witnessing to the call of Christian nonviolence. This work begins in personal life and extends to communities of reflection and action to transform structures of society. Pax Christi USA rejects war, preparations for war, and every form of violence and domination. It advocates primacy of conscience, economic and social justice, and respect for creation.
PSR-LA envisions a world in which the physicians’ adage to "prevent what we cannot cure" is reflected in public policies that foresee and forestall damage to human health and the environment.
Physicians for Social Responsibility-Los Angeles (PSR-LA) is working to bring together health professionals and the diverse communities of Southern California to reduce threats to public health related to war, environmental toxins, and gun violence.
Progressive Christians Uniting (formerly Mobilization for the Human Family) began in 1996 as a southern California ecumenical organization of progressive Christians in mainline Protestant churches who were committed to a renewal of the social witness of the Christian church, especially along the lines of building an inclusive church, calling for economic justice in a prophetic voice, and working for dignity for all of God’s children. PCU has aimed to reflect on and advocate theological positions and public policies conducive to the common good as an expression of the basic Christian gospel of love of all the children of God.
The Progressive Muslim Union of North America (PMU) is a grassroots organization that aims to provide a forum, voice, and organizing mechanism to North American Muslims who wish to pursue a progressive intellectual, social and political agenda.
The Regas Institute
Santa Monica Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends
South Coast Interfaith Council
It is the Mission of the South Coast Interfaith Council to promote mutual understanding, respect, appreciation and cooperation among people of faith in the Greater South Bay-Harbor-Long Beach-West Orange County area through extending hospitality, offering educational opportunities, providing moral leadership, sharing in service and working for justice.
The Southern California Ecumenical Council is a regional body representing churches, denominations, related ministries and other ecclesial communities who cooperate to promote responsible and creative expressions of our Christian unity and witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Through ecumenical networks and interreligious partnerships the Southern California Ecumenical Council works to foster religious understanding, to advocate for social justice and to advance the well-being of all people.
Since 1971, the SCLC Magazine has been the official national publication of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. The SCLC Magazine is published quarterly and serves as a vital educational and informational link between SCLC's national headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia and its many chapters and affiliates throughout the United States.
The Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles has provided a religious presence to Los Angeles County Hospital since 1876, with the Daughters of Charity and the clergy from Sacred Heart parish. In 1889 the Archdiocese began to provide chaplains to Los Angeles General Hospital. The original, 100-bed county hospital was built in 1878 and became affiliated with the USC School of Medicine in 1885. Priests from the three nearby parishes -- Sacred Heart Church (1889- ), Santa Teresita (1923?- ), St. Brigeta (1940?- ) -- all provided Catholic chaplain priests for the patients' needs. In 1930, the cornerstone for the current hospital building was laid and the hospital was completed in 1933. (The TV soap opera "General Hospital" featured the building in its opening scenes.)
In 1954, St. Camillus was founded and since that time has has provided Catholic chaplains to LAC+USC Medical Center. In 1985 and under the vision of Pastor Fr. Don Kribs, the parish boundaries were reworked and it became St. Camillus Center for Pastoral Care. Now, the chaplains' full-time focus were the Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center & Hospital, and USC University Hospital.
Today, St. Camillus Center for Pastoral Care still provides 24-hour ministry to these populations.
St. Michael and All Angels is a welcoming and evolving community of conscience engaged in the renewal of our faith by embracing diversity and encouraging growth through prayer, scholarship, social action, and artistic endeavor.
Kol Tikvah - Contemporary Jewish Life.... Traditional Jewish Values. Kol Tikvah is a congregation where each person is able to experience Judaism at their own level of participation. There is a spirit of concern and togetherness at each Shabbat service, where we work toward bringing people together by accepting strangers as well as embracing friends. We create a "haimish" atmosphere where traditional practices co-exist with modern day Reform Judaism. We are a congregation of outreach working to resolve some of the difficult issues of our modern world.
To help make shalom and salaam -- peace with justice -- a reality.
To express a sense of urgency and obedience to God through prayer, study, and action.
To serve as leaders by helping to establish alternatives to human injustice, violence, and fear in the community through the local churches.
To unite with others in interfaith coalitions to work for social, economic, racial, and ecological justice and peace.
To facilitate communications concerning peace with justice activities in local churches, districts, Board of Church & Society, and California-Pacific Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church.
