Archive for 2019

Lost Harvest, Seeds of Hope

December 20, 2019

By Lana Robinson Today included a visit to the Canadian Embassy in Tel Aviv, a kibbutz, to meet with an Israeli peace activist, and a meeting with The Coalition of Women for Peace. Today marks the International Day for the…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

A terrible beauty

December 20, 2019

By Paul Hansen After a week of profound experiences of occupation of a people, check points, human degradation, a formal liturgical moment was needed. I had come to name my experience of the first week in Palestine: A Terrible Beauty….

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East, Spirited Reflections

Learning from historical trauma at Yad Vashem

December 19, 2019

By Lori Ransom For most of the past 15 years, my work has focused on healing and reconciliation from the historical trauma suffered by Indigenous children in Canadian residential schools. This has led to a deep interest in how communities…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

No way to treat a child

December 18, 2019

By Helen Smith Yesterday when we visited Yad Vashem, the most difficult part for me was the sights and sounds of the children – in the ghettos and camps. Today began with a trip to Mehwar, a women’s shelter. The…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

Recognizing contributions and transitions among Regional Representatives

December 18, 2019

Earlier this fall at the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Network Development meeting in Ottawa, Betty Anne Platt stepped down as Regional Representative, a role she has shared with Elaine Gareau for the past four years. The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence (GLSL) region,…

Post filed in: Regional News

Report from COP25

December 18, 2019

Delegates representing almost 200 nations returned to their countries of origin empty handed on key mandates despite participating in the longest ever UN climate change conference, which wrapped up in Madrid on December 15. The United Nations Framework Convention on…

Post filed in: Ecological Justice

Court ruling of women defenders of nature and peoples against mining

December 18, 2019

Towards the start of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based violence, Natalia Atz Sunuc wrote about her experience at the X Assembly of the Latin American Network of Women Defenders of Social and Environmental Rights, which took place in…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Latin America

Peace and goodwill to all peoples: KAIROS Christmas video

December 18, 2019

In days leading up to Christmas, I walked through the streets of Bethlehem with Palestinians for whom it is home. In this place of present day occupation, where people struggle to live in dignity and peace, you can’t help but…

Post filed in: Executive Director, Spirited Reflections

Spirited Reflection: What happened to “O Little Town of Bethlehem”?

December 17, 2019

Micah 5:2 gives us the wording for our hymn – “Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah, but from you will come for me one who will be ruler of Israel, whose origins are from of old,…

Post filed in: Spirited Reflections

One Day: Three stories of resilience and self-determination

December 17, 2019

By Susan Johnson Story #1 from Qalqilya Our day started on the bus, again, but we travelled with Ramzi Zananari from International Christian Community, a founder of the Department of Services to Palestinian Refugees (DSPR). As we drove, Ramzi described…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

You are the light of the world…let your light shine before others…

December 13, 2019

(Matt. 5:14,16) By Andreas Thiel What sort of courageous people did we encounter today? Not an inappropriate question to pose, considering that each day in the West Bank brings us face to face with individuals and groups that yield fresh…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East, Spirited Reflections

International Human Rights Day observed under the shadow of death threats by KAIROS partners in the Philippines

December 13, 2019

On December 10, 2019 our partners from the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) and Karapatan, both co-conveners of the Ecumenical Voice for Human Rights and Peace in the Philippines, led and participated in protests that commemorated the…

Post filed in: Asia-Pacific

A conspiracy with the God of Hope

December 13, 2019

By Jennifer Henry I have rarely seen anything as beautiful as the group of women and children who gathered to meet the KAIROS delegation in Thabra in the West Bank. About thirty women and young children, all so incredibly welcoming…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

Not your Grandmother’s pilgrimage

December 12, 2019

By Rosalyn Elm Packed into a tight airplane seat, excitement was building as we woke from our slumber, touching down in Tel Aviv. It was uneventful as we breezed through security and customs, and were greeted by our driver, Nassar….

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

Spirited Reflection: Celebrating advent, peace and International Human Rights

December 11, 2019

“O Come, o come, Emmanuel – fill the world with heaven’s peace.” These words come from the well-known advent hymn based on the ancient liturgical “O Antiphons.” The scriptures Isaiah 11:1-9, Matthew 3:1-17 support this Advent Peace theme. The reading…

Post filed in: Spirited Reflections

“Come and see…and act” KAIROS solidarity delegation visits Palestine and Israel

December 11, 2019

The KAIROS Church Leaders Delegation to Palestine and Israel took place between Nov 17-28, 2019, bringing together 8 delegates – Indigenous persons, settlers, and newcomers – representing 7 members of KAIROS and the Executive Director of KAIROS (link to bios)….

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Middle East

Only four days left to make a 2019 donation!

December 10, 2019

A significant one – today and long into the future! You will help build peace and bring justice to regions of conflict, including the West Bank, by supporting the women who gather regularly with Lucy Talgieh, Women’s Project Coordinator for…

Post filed in: Executive Director

KAIROS Times: December 2019

December 6, 2019

Hot off the press! The December 2019 KAIROS Times Newsletter.

Post filed in: KAIROS Times E-Newsletter

KAIROS remembers the women killed in Montreal 30 years ago

December 6, 2019

Thirty years ago today, 14 students were killed because they were women. The women, all engineering students at École Polytechnique in Montreal, were separated from their male peers and shot by their killer who vented his rage against feminists in…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage

Giving Tuesday – it’s not too late to give!

December 3, 2019

“I was born in war, grew up in war, married in war, became a mother in war, and now am a grandmother in war. When will we experience peace in South Sudan?” These were the words of Agnes Wasuk Petia…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage

Inspiration, synergy and relationships: KAIROS fall gatherings

December 2, 2019

Walking Softly! was the title of the NW Ontario and Manitoba Fall Regional Gathering in Winnipeg. There were a host of Indigenous speakers discussing the impacts that colonial policies have had and still have on Indigenous land, food security, and…

Post filed in: Regional News

16 Days of Activism to end Gender-Based violence

November 29, 2019

We will be marking 16 Days of Activism by drawing attention to the inextricable links between violence against women and violence against the land, highlighting eight of the Calls for Justice in “Reclaiming Power and Place.” Each day these messages…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage

Acerca de la X asamblea de la red latinoamericana de mujeres defensoras de derechos sociales y ambientales

November 29, 2019

(translation in English below) Guatemala fue sede de la X Asamblea de la Red Latinoamericana de Mujeres Defensoras de Derechos Sociales y Ambientales (13 al 17 de noviembre de 2019) de en la que participaron mujeres y organizaciones de mujeres…

Post filed in: Ecological Justice, Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Latin America

Spirited Reflection: Reflections on La Tienda de la Casa Comûn and the Special Synod on Amazonia

November 28, 2019

Words have power. We daily witness this power, both for good and for harm – for life and for death. Words can also communicate a shift in approach and a new vision such as those presented in Laudato Si’ as…

Post filed in: Spirited Reflections

Women land and water defenders are the real peacebuilders

November 28, 2019

Large-scale resource extraction often perpetuates violence, even in countries with peace accords. Those who mobilize to protect the land and water to build peace are often women. Such is the case in Guatemala and Colombia, where extractive mega-projects with Canadian…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Latin America, Op Eds

On defending the Indigenous women land defenders

November 26, 2019

A conversation with Dr. Sherry Pictou KAIROS has launched an online hub to connect and help further empower women land and water defenders in Canada and worldwide. Called Mother Earth and Resource Extraction– or MERE Hub, the resource was developed…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Latin America

Hoy 12 Tz´i´ en el calendario maya día para pedir justicia para las mujeres y la Madre Tierra

November 25, 2019

(Translation in English provided below) Es propicio para pedir justicia para las mujeres, que cese la violencia en su contra. Hoy 25 de noviembre, día en que se conmemora y se recuerda la lucha de las mujeres, como las hermanas…

Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Indigenous Rights, Latin America