[act-ma] FW: War and Peace Week - Nov 7- 11 =, please list!

[Jeanne Landers]

Hi 
Can you please list the following event(s) .

Thanks!

Jeanne Landers
Social Justice Cte.
Billerica First Parish 
978-987-9648



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WAR AND PEACE WEEK 
Wed. Nov. 7  -  Sun. Nov. 11  (Veterans Day)
 Billerica First Parish UU Church
7 Concord Road (on the common)


Free Film
screenings each night at 7pm 
Bell ringing and Veterans Day service on Sunday 11/11 at 11 am.
In recognition of Veterans Day and those who have served our country in the
Armed Forces, the Billerica First Parish Social Justice Cte., in collaboration
with local members of Veterans for Peace,
is hosting screenings of five thought provoking films, one each evening,
beginning on Wed. evening, Nov. 7, and culminating on Veterans Day,
Sunday,  Nov. 11. These films evoke the
many faces of war and its consequences and will hopefully inspire us all to
work towards peace.  Each film will be shown at 7:00 p.m.  All are
free and open to the community.



Bruce Macdonald, president of the First Parish Board
of Trustees was a naval officer from 1969 to 1972 and is an active member of
Veterans for Peace.  He says, “The best way for people to support the
troops is to become involved. That means more than putting a yellow ribbon on
your car.  It means learning what these veterans have gone through and
reaching out to them. Viewing these films can help begin that process.” Our
veterans need to be heard and your presence is one way to show appreciation for
all they have endured. Please mark your calendar and come to see these moving
films.
“Why We Fight” - Begins the film series  on Wed. Nov. 7, with an unflinching look at the anatomy
of war making, a nonpartisan inquiry into the forces – political, economic, and
ideological – that drive America to fight. Inspired by President Dwight
Eisenhower’s 1961 Farewell Address in which he warned Americans about the
dangers of the “military-industrial complex,” the film reveals how political
and corporate interests have become alarmingly entangled in the business of
war.  

The
second film in this series will be shown on Thu. Nov. 8

“Sir,
No Sir” - Documents the stories of those in the military who dared to openly
oppose war. – the rebellion of thousands of American soldiers against the
Vietnam war – that has never been told in film. With over 500,000 incidents of
desertion, and entire units refusing to go into battle in unprecedented
numbers, federal prisons were filling up with soldiers jailed for their
opposition to the war and the military. The film brings to life the stories of
the GI movement; its explosion of defiance and how and why it has been erased
from the public memory.
The third film in this series will be
shown on Fri. Nov. 9 

“The Good Soldier”  - An outstanding film that should be mandatory viewing
for every President and member of Congress who is willing to make the decision
to send men and women into war. This film portrays five combat veterans from
different wars ranging from WW II to Vietnam to the Gulf War to Iraq who speak
with brutal honesty of their darkest moments and moral dilemmas and brings up
questions of our government supporting those they would send to die who did not
die but came home.


The
fourth film in this series will be shown on Saturday  Nov. 10

 “The Ground Truth” - Powerful documentary
about the patriotic young Americans  – ordinary men and women who heeded
the call for military service in Iraq   – and the truth of their
 experiences from recruitment and training, through combat, homecoming,
and the struggle to reintegrate with families and communities. Each of these
soldiers becomes a new kind of hero, bearing witness and giving support to
other veterans, and learning to fearlessly wield the most powerful weapon of
all – the truth.


The fifth and final
film in our series will be shown on Sunday,  Nov. 11 at 7:00 pm.  

 “The Welcome,” Our film series concludes
with this award winning documentary  that offers a powerfully personal
view of life for veterans after returning home from war. The experiences of
fear, anger and isolation of post-traumatic stress affects vets and family
members alike. Through this film, we begin to understand that all of us are a
vital piece of the Welcome, as veterans try to find the way back home.
“Everyone should see this” (Ashland Daily Tidings).

 Veterans Day, Sunday  Nov. 11th  is the culmination of War and Peace Week . 

We will ring the church bells 11 times at 11 a.m. as
was done across the world on Nov. 11 in 1918 to celebrate the end of World War
I, 
and in honor of  when this day was declared by congress in 1938  to be a national holiday, “to be
dedicated to the cause of world peace”.



Our worship service at 11:00 a.m., led by Rev Bruce Taylor, will include
reflections by veterans, Bruce Macdonald and John Niles and readings from the
Unitarian Universalist manual for soldiers and their families, Bless Those
Who Serve. People of all faiths and beliefs are invited to attend.
The film series is part of the monthly
community series of free presentations hosted by the Billerica First Parish
Social Justice Committee which are open to the community. Our building  located at 7 Concord Road (on the common) is handicapped accessible and
all are welcome. Light refreshments served. More info- 978-663-2293.
www.uubillerica.org
http://www.facebook.com/events/405922832807704/
 















 		 	   		   		 	   		   		 	   		  
 		 	   		  
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