Mennonite Weekly Review

Whenever people ask where the pastor of Austin Mennonite Church was during his six-week absence this summer, I tell them I was deployed to Iraq — not as a warrior but as a servant of goodwill.

I was there with Christian Peacemaker Teams, whose Iraq team works to accompany people displaced from their border village homes at the intersection of Iraq, Turkey and Iran.

The villagers were removed by a persistent, unpredictable bombing campaign launched by Turkey, based upon surveillance reports provided by the United States. They were also driven away by random shell­ings of artillery, rockets, mortars and helicopter gunships from Iran.

These families left their mountainous and prosperous ancestral homeland for the relative safety and ensuing discomfort of a primitive refugee tent camp in the barren, dry plains of northern Iraq.

Of more than 130 families originally residing in this refu­gee camp, fewer than 20 remain. The others have sought out more sustainable dwelling places where they can resume their way of life as farmers and shepherds.

Some have assimilated into nearby villages. Some have chosen to go back to their village homes and risk the danger from border attacks rather than abandon the life they have inherited and grown to cherish. Their families have tended this land and blessed it with their labor for thousands of years.

These people are the courageous nonviolent resisters of our time. With no defense or protection, they embrace their human right to return home. They stand in the way of steel and flame without even the capacity to look their oppressors in the eye.

The situation along the border of Iraq with Turkey and Iran is complicated by the presence of foreign interest groups maneuvering for advantage and control. Sectarian objectives prevent any resolution to the conflict, which is fueled by a desire to dominate the region and profit from the resources hidden beneath the mountains. The consequence is disruption of communities and displacement of neighborhoods. CPT stands with these vulnerable people.

Deployments to Iraq occur routinely in the U.S. military response to struggles in the Middle East. Let every Mennonite congregation prepare to deploy a servant of goodwill as well. If no one is able to make the journey, let the congregation send to CPT funds that will support another peacemaker to deploy.

Peacemakers in Iraq rely upon a boldly optimistic belief that by showing an alternative to violence, a way to resolution will be discovered.

Garland Robertson is an Air Force veteran and pastor of Austin (Texas) Mennonite Church.