On Hiroshima Day, 6 August, Scotland Justice and Peace tweeted a reminder of the Scottish bishops' statement of 1982.  ICN

 “use all diplomatic means, even those that may not have been used so far, to bring an end to this terrible tragedy,” since “war in itself is an error and a horror.”  Vatican News.

“Presidents Biden and Putin should come to an agreement that both U.S. and Russian nuclear sharing must end.”  Truth Out.

Justice and Peace Scotland are hosting a 'Weekend of Action' on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 23, 24 and 25 June.  Find out more here.  ICN

The world's nuclear powers, and China in particular, increased investment in their arsenals for a third consecutive year in 2022 amid swelling geopolitical tensions.  France24

The Zaporizhzhia power plant was taken under Russia control last March, becoming one of the first major areas to be captured by Vladimir Putin's forces - but staff say they are intimidated by Russian troops to keep quiet about what's happening behind closed doors.  Sky News.

Pope Francis' Prayer Intention for June:  "For the abolition of torture - We pray that the international community may commit in a concrete way to ensuring the abolition of torture and guarantee support to victims and their families."

The previous high was £6.9bn in 2015, a time when Syria had collapsed into civil war.  “The latest export licence figures for 2022 show that the UK arms industry is working overtime to arm some of the world’s most authoritarian regimes,”  The Guardian.  

The Bishops' Conference of Scotland have announced the appointment of Anne Marie Clements as the new Catholic Social Teaching Engagement Officer for the National Justice and Peace Commission.

Archbishop Paul Gallagher, acknowledged the lack of progress in the Vatican’s attempts at mediation but said they would continue.  “Even if there seem to be no openings for negotiations at the moment, we must never lose hope, believing that this war will end"  The Tablet.  

"Behind the wars, there is the arms industry, this is diabolical," Pope Francis says.  ICN

An exercise testing the emergency response to a nuclear bomb convoy crashing, exploding and spreading a cloud of radioactive contamination was plagued by errors and confusion, according to official reports.  Sunday Post. 

Justice & Peace Scotland joined Glasgow Catholic Worker and Pax Christi Scotland at the Faslane Ash Wednesday service of repentence for nuclear weapons kept here in Scotland and all across the world.  A short excerpt from the service here

Justice & Peace Scotland are recruiting for a new full time position - Catholic Social Teaching Engagement Officer.  Click the link for further details.  

Peace witnesses will be held in Edinburgh & Glasgow on Friday 24th February 2023 to mark the 1st anniversary of the Invasion of Ukraine.  More details here.

The Laudato Si’ Movement and the Care of Creation Office have organised an online Scottish screening of the film The Letter: A Message For Our Earth for Thursday 2nd February at 7.00pm.

“We can imagine with what suffering he (God) must witness wars and acts of violence perpetrated by those who call themselves Christians.”  Vatican News.

Bishops, including Archbishop Nolan, from across Europe and North America who make up the Holy Land Coordination Group  have released this statement following their recent visit to Jordan to support the Christian population there. image Mazur/cbcew.org.uk.

Archbishop Nolan, President of Justice & Peace Scotland, delivers his yearly message to be read at all services in Scotland across the weekend of 7th/8th January 2023, the Feast of the Epiphany.  

The suggested prayers, below, were edited from contributions of several of our National Commissioners. You are encouraged to use some of them at the Sacred Liturgy in your worshipping community.

Archbishop Nolan releases this message to be read at all Catholic Churches on 7th & 8th January 2023.

Justice & Peace supporters will be at the North Gate at Faslane Nuclear Base in Scotland on Saturday, 29th October, at 1pm to pray for peace and an end to nuclear weapons.  ICN.

The Justice & Peace Europe International Workshop took place from 7-9 October in Assisi and Rondine.  More than sixty participants from 21 countries were present. Here is the final declaration: 

In 2015, Pope Francis wrote Laudato Si’ (The Letter); an encyclical letter about the environmental crisis to every single person in the world. A few years later, four voices that have gone unheard in global conversations have been invited to an unprecedented dialogue with the Pope. Trailer - film release 4th Oct.

At a time in which nuclear rhetoric and the threat of nuclear war is on the rise, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Parolin has stressed the Holy See's firm stance against nuclear tests and expressed its support for the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.  ICN

1982: Since I have been asked to do so, and not because I have any exclusive wisdom, experience or success in this field, I would like to share a few thoughts on the work of trying to mobilise public opinion for disarmament.  Peace News.

Already aware of the immorality of nuclear weapons, Bruce joined Christian CND in 1960. In 1975, he carried out an exorcism of a Polaris nuclear submarine at the base in Faslane, in Scotland, with the words ‘From the willingness to murder, Good Lord, deliver us.’

In the last month, attacks against civilians and other related violence have resulted in 232 civilian casualties including 57 children. The last week of July witnessed the highest increase of child casualties in one week since early 2020.  CAAT

The war in Yemen is made possible by UK arms sales of £22bn since March 2015. The Campaign Against The Arms Trade are handing this letter into the new Prime Minister on 6th September - please take a minute to sign the letter today.

On the memorial of St John Vianney, patron saint of parish priests, Fr Eugenio Montesi SX talks of his life and vocation in this Missio Scotland podcast recalling how the motto of the Xaverians - to make the world a single family - inspired him to a life of service.

"You have a catalogue of things that should never be happening in any nuclear facility," BBC News
 

All talks from NJPN Conference 2022, 'Hope is a verb with its sleeves rolled up' can be seen on Youtube here  

At this particular moment in history where the world seems to be at a crossroads, the courageous vision of this legal instrument, strongly inspired by ethical and moral arguments, appears ever more timely....

Turn my sadness into compassion. Turn my tiredness into advocacy.  America Magazine.  

As the war in Ukraine wages on, the Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States, British Archbishop Paul Gallagher, is planning to visit Kyiv next week, where he is expected to hold top level meetings.  CRUX.

The Earth Day 2022 Theme is Invest In Our Planet. This is the moment to change it all — the business climate, the political climate, and how we take action on climate. Now is the time for the unstoppable courage to preserve and protect our health, our families, our livelihoods.  Earthday.org.

The Pontifical Academy for Sciences issues a declaration calling for an end to the war in Ukraine and urging nations to avoid the proliferation of nuclear weapons.  Vatican News.

Justice & Peace Scotland, in conjunction with Sancta Familia Media have produced a video featuring four of our Scottish Bishops with many young people and laity representing every diocese in Scotland to reaffirm our opposition to nuclear weapons and to mark the 40th anniversary the Scottish Bishops 1982 landmark statement on nuclear weapons.

Irrefutably, fossil fuels have become a weapon of mass destruction, both for war in Ukraine and in the climate crisis. Still, we must continue believing that we can overcome not only a war in Ukraine and conflicts in other regions of the world but also our dependency on oil, gas and coal, now and forever.  Earthbeat.

 “In March 1982 the Scottish Bishops published a pastoral letter on Peace and Disarmament.  In this letter they challenged not just the use of nuclear weapons, something the church has always condemned, but they challenged also the very notion of deterrence and the morality of deterrence". ICN.

Pope Francis speaks with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill by videoconference on Wednesday, March 16.  Crux

Please join us if you can at the South Gate at Faslane on Ash Wednesday, 2nd March 2022 at (3pm) as we  witness to the Peace of Christ at the home of Trident.

Veteren #Peace campaigner Bruce Kent delivers a letter to the Russian embassy in London urging the Russian Gov to de-escalate.  ICN.

"As I overcome my initial shock at being appointed Archbishop my thoughts now turn to the challenges that lies ahead....from now on I belong to Glasgow. And I assure the people of Glasgow of my commitment and dedication to them.  ICN.

Pope Francis has named justice and peace champion Bishop William Nolan to lead the Archdiocese of Glasgow.  The Tablet.

The people in the camp don't have anything left. They escaped their houses and didn't take anything. Most of them ran at night, because the fighting suddenly started in their villages.  Humanitarian, Image (Nabil Alawzari/TNH)

Pope Francis at his Jan. 23 Sunday Angelus said he is deeply concerned by growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine and called for a day of prayer for peace Jan. 26

So far in January (2022), there were 839 airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition, compared with 1,074 for the whole of December,” UN News.

Watch here, Bishop Nolan's video message on Justice & Peace Sunday, Day of Prayer For Peace Sunday 2nd January 2022.

My Dear Brothers & Sisters... have a look at this video version of Bishop Nolan's written letter for Day of Prayer For Peace 2022.

Here is the list of newly updated Intercessary Prayers For 'Day Of Prayer For Peace' which accompany Bishop Nolan's letter.  We ask that the letter and prayers are read at all Masses on Sunday 2nd January 2022.

Letter to the Catholics of Scotland on 'Day Of Prayer For Peace', 2nd January 2022 from Bishop Nolan, President of Justice & Peace Scotland.  Read the full text here.

Dialogue between generations, education and work:  tools for building lasting peace.

“Yemen is the most difficult place in the world to be a child. And, incredulously, it is getting worse.”    UN

In October this year, Liverpool plans to host many international arms companies who will be showcasing their electronic killing capacity. Despite the cities protest the event looks likely to go ahead.

Catholic Bishops and organisations have voiced their opposition to the arms trade, as the UK prepares to host one of the world’s largest arms fairs next week. 

On Tuesday, the Defence and Security Equipment International 2021 arms fair (DSEI), will open at the Excel centre in London Docklands, amidst massive protests and opposition from political leaders and local communities in London. It will run from 14-17 September.

Mayor says London is home to people who have fled weapons like those on sale at DSEI.  the Independent.

Congregation Leader Sister Susan Francois. ‘The time is now to act, to put our values into action on behalf of Earth and all creation.’  Brightnow.

An investigation by Campaign Against the Arms Trade and the Independent has exposed the role that UK-made military equipment has played in the bombing campaign.  ICN.

GLASGOW City Council has won praise for passing a resolution supporting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).  The National.  

A syndicate of port workers in the Italian city of Livorno in Tuscany on Friday protested a weapons and explosives shipment after discovering it was destined for the Israeli port of Ashdod.  The New Arab. 

The UK has increased its nuclear warheads by 44%, while cutting aid to the world’s poorest by 30%. #DefundTheMilitary. Where do you think the UK’s military budget should be spent instead? CAAT Campaign.

Add your name to take a stand against the war in Yemen and increase the pressure on the UK government to end the arms sales prolonging this deadly conflict.  CAAT

“blessing to see Dorothy honored as her journey progresses towards canonization and that a ferry bearing her name will transport workers, to whose dignity she dedicated the Catholic Worker Movement.”

Join an online Vigil for Syria, marking ten years of the Syrian conflict, as a public expression of solidarity with the Syrian people and Syrian refugees here in Scotland and in other countries. You are also invited to light and candle and post a picture to social media with the hashtag  #ScotlandWithSyria 

The UK's biggest arms company, BAE Systems, has made £15 billion in revenue from services and sales to Saudi Arabia since 2015.  This is a time to work for peace, not profit.  ICN.

On this World Day Of Action For Yemen, 25th Jan 21, we are pleased to be able to share this recording of our event  'Crisis In Yemen' - looking at the involvement of the UK arms trade in the bombardment of our brothers & sisters in Yemen.

Organisations from across the world are coming together to call an international day of action against the Saudi-led War on Yemen on January 25th 2021.

The book, Let Us Dream, which will be published by Simon & Schuster on Dec. 1, is the product of a series of exchanges between the pope and Austen Ivereigh, his English-language biographer. It is an extended reflection on the change Pope Francis sees as necessary in building a post-Covid world. It is in this context that he addresses several hot-button issues.

Campaign Against Arms Trade has urged the government to rethink its priorities following the announcement that it will be increasing the military budget by an extra £16 billion over the next four years.  ICN.

Anti-arms trade campaigners have hit out at Liz Truss for the "immoral" decision to process over 500 applications for arms sales to Saudi Arabia since July.

We are very thankful that Pope Francis and our Bishops are unequivocal in their stance on nuclear weapons stating clearly that possession as well as the threat of use of nuclear arms is immoral.  We also give thanks that on the 6th August (the anniversary of the nuclear bombing at Hiroshima) Ireland, Nigeria, Niue ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and yesterday on 9th August (the 75th anniversary of the nuclear bombing of Nagasaki) the Caribbean nation of St Kitts and Nevis also ratified the treaty!

44 nations have now signed the treaty - 50 nations are needed to sign up to bring the treaty into force....we are so close.

The Vatican's Commission for Covid-19 highlights the importance of re-thinking healthcare systems and channeling financial efforts into aid rather than weapons, especially as the world tackles coronavirus.

The British government is providing more than a dozen repressive regimes around the world with wiretaps, spyware and other telecommunications interception equipment they could use to spy on dissidents, public records show.  The Independent.

THE UK Government and arms firms based in Scotland have been condemned over deals with Egypt after a new report revealed the ruling regime tortures children by waterboarding and electrocution.  The National.

Our friends at CND have launched a new action for you to contact your MP and highlight these inconsistencies, calling for Trident to be scrapped and the money to be diverted to fighting real threats. ICN.

Pope Francis joins the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres in calling for a global ceasefire as the world faces the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic.  Vatican News.

The government has quietly drawn up proposals to lend other countries £1bn of public money so that they can buy British-made bombs and surveillance technology.  Guardian.

In an appeal issued on Monday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged warring parties across the world to lay down their weapons in support of the bigger battle against  COVID-19: the common enemy that is now threatening all of humankind.   

As part of our current campaign on the UK Arms Trade we have produced this resource sheet which looks at, among other things, Scottish arms companies and the money they receive from Scottish Enterprise. 

Concerns raised after FoI request reveals arms firms’ employees in influential government posts.  Guardian.  

The Osprey 30 is used in military helicopters, calling into question claims by the Scottish Government that it only awards grants to arms firms to make non-military products.  Daily Record.

Air crews with the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen are facing Saudi legal proceedings for alleged war crimes linked to a US arms firm with a base in Scotland.  The Ferret

Drone Wars says UK and US has developed ‘easy narrative’ for targeted assassinations.  The Guardian. 

"Immoral and illegal": The shock new figures come as the Saudi military has been invited to a huge arms fair in London next month - despite a court ruling sales for use in the conflict to be unlawful.  The Mirror.  

Today, Wednesday 20th June, the Court of Appeal has ruled UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia for use in Yemen to be UNLAWFUL.  Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT).

Bishop William Nolan praised peace campaigners as a ‘thorn in the side of UK government, the establishment and the military’ as he took part in a protest outside the UK’s nuclear weapons base. Scottish Catholic Observer.
 

Church and Peace, The Ecumenical Peace Church Network have released the following statement condemning the European Parliament decision to sanction 13 billion euros on military research, including in nuclear weapons.

As foreign ministers of the 29 member nations of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation), gathered in Washington D.C. on 3-4 April to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of this largest military alliance in the world, nonviolent peace activists across the U.S. and from around the world also gathered in Washington to proclaim: "No to NATO - Yes to Peace" ICN

The Ministry of Defence has been criticised over its failure to dispose of 20 obsolete nuclear submarines.  BBC News.

Pope Francis highlighted "the humanitarian crisis in Yemen", where "the population is exhausted by the long conflict and many children suffer from hunger, but it is not possible to access food stores."  Independent Catholic News.

The First Pax Christi Scotland Event will take place from 23rd-25th November 2018 at Conforti Institute in Coatbridge.  Everyone is invited to register for this free event.  Day places are available.  Contact: anna@confortiinstitute.org