I’m so happy to be going live with the Active Peace website and I invite you to check it out.

It only recently dawned on me that my work in the world is now about nothing less than ending all war forever. By that I mean all the different kinds of wars we fight: against ourselves with negative self talk and shame, against those we love the most, against the people we come into contact with in our day-to-day lives, against people of different races and in countries, and against the Earth.

Walking the path of active peace is the antidote to the life-denying beliefs and systems that give rise to violence on all levels.

It was only a few months ago that I was asked on a radio show how restorative justice could be used to replace militarism. I had recently sent the folks at the Metta Center for Nonviolence a copy of my book manuscript, and when they invited me to do their show I assumed that the book and my journey from “us versus them” style activism into peacemaking would be the main topics.

Michael Nagler, founder of The Metta Center and author of The Search for a Nonviolent Future, began with a rundown of nonviolence in the news (the way he begins every show). He was talking about war in a big picture context when the show’s co-host, Stephanie van Hook, announced she’d like to have me respond to the question of, “How restorative justice could be used to replace militarism?”

I admit that I wasn’t prepared for that question, and I did my best to steer the conversation into more familiar territory, such as applying the principles and practices of restorative justice to something like the British Petroleum oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. But even as I was talking about that, and realizing that it too was a huge issue, I knew it was time for me to think bigger about the work I’ve spent the past ten years developing.

The principles and practices of restorative justice can light the way forward to a more peaceful, sane, and life-affirming society, especially when combined with the foundations of active peace—mindfulness, nature-based practices, interpersonal skills, and restorative activism. These are the essential building blocks for changing the worldview—the beliefs—that give rise to life-denying systems and patterns of violence.

I’ll have lots more to say about peacemaking in future posts.

Let me know what you think of the website—what resonates with you, what doesn’t. My hope is that the website and blog can be vehicles for personal and social transformation; for nothing less than ending all war forever (as crazy as that may sound).

With love,

Scott