Draft:On Earth Peace

On Earth Peace (OEP) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization developing leaders and initiatives for justice and peace using the discipline of Kingian Nonviolence. OEP is a recognized agency of the Church of the Brethren.

On Earth Peace envisions a world in Beloved Community, liberated from oppression, violence, and war.

History
On Earth Peace's founder M.R. Zigler worked for his entire life for the Church of the Brethren denomination and international community, including coordinating post-World War Two reconstruction efforts for the church. On Earth Peace was founded in 1974 when Zigler brought together a group of people who wanted to renew and strengthen the historic peace witness of the Church of the Brethren. It was founded in New Windsor, Maryland.

In 1974, near the end of the Vietnam War, On Earth Peace’s early work focused on preparing young people to resist any future draft as conscientious objectors to war. In the 1980s, Peace Academies were held in New Windsor, MD, to continue to develop leaders for peace in each generation and in each profession. During this period, Peace Assemblies gathered adults together to consider the Christian response to current issues of violence and war. In those early years, professional groups of doctors, lawyers, educators, mental health workers, and others self-organized to articulate a voice from their perspective on current issues of peace.

In the 1990s, On Earth Peace became an agency of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference and became the home of the Ministry of Reconciliation (MoR), providing conflict transformation services to the church. Part of OEP for more than two decades, the MoR equipped congregations, districts, and the denomination as a whole to build healthy communication and address conflict constructively.

In the 2000s, On Earth Peace renewed its peace witness program in response to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, including in counter-recruitment and through congregational organizing as part of Decade to Overcome Violence. During this decade, OEP began to see the ways institutional racism was limiting the ministry. In the late 2000s, OEP began to learn, teach, and support communities and leaders using the Kingian Nonviolence approach.

In 2010-present, On Earth Peace recognized how systemic oppression leads to violence and war and committed to actively work and call for justice within the organization, the Church of the Brethren denomination, and local and national communities. Issue-based work includes pursuing racial justice, gun violence prevention, women's and gender justice, environmental justice, and LGBTQ+ inclusion in church spaces, and calling for a ceasefire and end to the occupation of Palestine. OEP deepened its Kingian Nonviolence training programs, offering introductions and advanced courses in Kingian Nonviolence, including Level 1 and Level 2 certification programs.

Values, Vision, and Mission
Values:


 * Jesus-Centered Spirituality - We follow Jesus into the work of justice and peace. We share in spiritual practices and develop faith resources to help undergird our programs.
 * Positive Peace - We learn, teach, and practice dynamic forms of peacemaking which sees conflict as an important tool to meet needs, address injustice, correct imbalances of power, and seek healing and reconciliation.
 * Anti-Racism/Anti-Oppression - We commit to name and undo barriers to participation in our programs based on identity, and to work for full inclusion and equity for all who wish to join in our work. We commit to the long-term transformation of On Earth Peace, the church, and society.
 * Intergenerational Leadership - We nurture peacemakers and leaders, and honor the wisdom, skill, and experience of all generations.
 * Beloved Community - We commit to raising the levels of relationships until justice and peace prevail, and all people attain their full human potential.

Vision: A world in Beloved Community, liberated from oppression, violence, and war.

Mission: We develop and walk with leaders and communities who work for justice and peace.

Kingian Nonviolence Training and Organizing
Kingian Nonviolence Conflict Reconciliation is an approach to conflict and community leadership that offers values and methods useful for anyone who wants to use conflict constructively in their personal life, in group settings, or in community issues and building a reconciled world. Kingian Nonviolence is rooted in the philosophy and leadership of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the leadership of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. The curriculum was codified by Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr., and David Jehnsen, both of whom served on Dr. King’s staff in the 1960s, and who sought to make lessons and tools from the Kingian legacy and the Civil Rights Movement period available for people to address today’s conflicts, concerns and conditions.

On Earth Peace has been involved in Kingian Nonviolence training and organizing since 2009. It offers a range of trainings and consultations -- in person and online -- including 2-hour introductions to Kingian Nonviolence, half-day programs, and the standard "Two-Day Core" or 16-hour core workshop. OEP offers periodic training of trainers courses and other advanced courses for people seeking skills as organizers or a deeper engagement with the legacy.

In 2023, On Earth Peace began a pilot project of developing affinity groups to offer local communities a way to develop stay connected with OEP and receive ongoing support for nonviolence initiatives they develop on issues they are facing.

Internships and Fellowships
OEP averages 15 paid internships per year for young adults and students in the US and internationally. Interns receive training in Kingian Nonviolence and anti-racism/anti-oppression along with job-specific skills and mentoring. Interns fill one-year positions as organizers, fundraisers, communicators, and in other roles as needed.

Internships are intended for young adults aged 18-24, current college and graduate students regardless of age, and recent graduates who begin an internship within one year of graduating. Fellowships are second-year internships focused on institutionalizing lessons and experiences from the first internship year. In recent years, On Earth Peace interns have hailed from across the United States including Puerto Rico; Malta; Palestine; Nigeria; England; Zimbabwe; Spain, and China.

Youth programs
OEP offers Community Engagement Grants for youth groups of up to $500 in grant funding to support a youth-initiated project for peace and justice in their community. Organizing through a Kingian Nonviolence framework, grant winners will closely work with On Earth Peace staff to develop skills and implement their project.

Community Engagement Grant recipients complete three trainings through On Earth Peace. The trainings focus on community organizing through a Kingian Nonviolence framework and other topics designed specifically to support the proposed project.

OEP connects with children through their caregivers by providing webinars and creating resources for children and families. During the pandemic, the OEP community produced more than a hundred Read Aloud videos featuring peace and justice books.

Leadership
On Earth Peace is run by a three-person co-executive team along with an average of 15 paid interns and fellows. The staff members are supported by the Board of Directors and the Anti-Racism Transformation Team.

Affiliations
On Earth Peace's work is rooted in its faith. Since 1998, OEP has been an agency of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference. It is affiliated with the Church of the Brethren which is one of the Historic Peace Churches.

In 2020, OEP joined the Supportive Communities Network (SCN), the first denominational agency to do so. SCN is a project of the Brethren Mennonite Council of LGBT Interests, affirming and working for publicly the full participation of LGBTQ+ people in the life of the church.

Finances
IRS 990 Forms are available in On Earth Peace's GuideStar listing.