Claude Anshin Thomas, the author of the best selling book “At Hell's Gate: A Soldier’s Journey from War to Peace,” will speak at the Walpole Public Library on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at 7:30 PM. In this talk Claude recounts his dramatic coming-of-age story and spiritual odyssey from combat soldier to Zen Buddhist monk and advocate of nonviolence. He offers profound insight into ways we can end suffering and violence in our own lives and in our world. His struggle to deal with the trauma of Vietnam and to find personal peace and spiritual insight is a prism through which to view America over the last thirty years – our difficulty in coming to terms with the legacy of Vietnam, our spiritual hunger, and our need to come to terms with our massive power and our use of violence.
“Everyone has their Vietnam,” Claude writes, “everyone has experienced trauma and everyone, if they want, can find healing and peace through looking deeply at the nature of their suffering. War is a collective expression of individual suffering.” The seeds of war and violence are planted early and often, and it is only through our actions and insights personally that we can hope to end war globally. What is startling in these days of the “war on terrorism” is that we rarely hear from the soldiers themselves. As a highly decorated helicopter crew chief who was wounded in battle and received the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart, Claude speaks with an authenticity and an honesty that is extremely compelling to a wide audience. He can speak with direct experience about the realities of war, about what we are sending young men and women to do, and about the effect that making war has on all of us.
Claude Anshin Thomas went to Vietnam at the age of eighteen, where he received numerous medals, including twenty-seven Air Medals, a Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart. Today he is a monk in the Soto Zen tradition and an active speaker and Zen teacher, traveling the world speaking about war and teaching meditation. He also leads peace pilgrimages through war-torn and war-scarred places around the world. Claude is the founder of the Zaltho Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes peace and non-violence. The talk is sponsored by the Walpole Peace and Justice Group and is open to the public.
Monday, October 06, 2008
Saturday, October 04, 2008
Boston Peace March October 11th
Please join members of the Walpole Peace and Justice Group on October 11th in Boston for a peace march and rally to stand up for peace in the Middle East and calling for an end of the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan and to bring our troops home now. The march is on the anniversary of the day Congress approved the “Iraq War Resolution” in 2002 that granted the Bush administration authorization to invade Iraq. The march and rally was organized by a broad regional network of anti-war, human rights, and peace and justice groups. It is calling for:
- Stop the wars and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan
- Money for jobs, education, healthcare and housing - not for war and occupation
- No sanctions or attack on Iran
- Stop the racist scapegoating of Arabs and Muslims
- Stop the assault on human rights and civil liberties
The rally starts at 12:00 noon at the Boston Common at the corner of Beacon Street and Charles Street. After a 2 hour program of speakers and musicians, there will be a march to Copley Square and back to the Boston Common. More information can be found at the Oct11 web site, http://www.oct11boston.org
You are invited to join us to go into Boston via the commuter train from Walpole. We will be taking the 11:01 AM train that will arrive at Back Bay Station at 11:38 AM and South Station at 11:45 AM. The fare is $5.75 each way. Trains leave Boston at 5:20 PM, 7:20 PM, 9:20 PM, and 5 minutes later from Back Bay. Parking should be available at the top of the station. Look for us on the platform.
This march and rally is an opportunity for us to speak out against this disastrous “preemptive war” that was started using false pretenses. This war was totally unjustified and has resulted in the deaths of over 4,150 U.S. solders and up to 1,000,000 Iraq civilians and has destroyed much of Iraq.
Next Speaker Series: Claude Anshin Thomas on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at the Walpole Public Library, 7:30 PM
Claude Anshin Thomas is the author of the best selling book “At Hell's Gate.” In this talk Claude recounts his dramatic coming-of-age story and spiritual odyssey as well as offering his profound insights into suffering and violence, and how we can end them in ourselves and in our world. Claude Anshin Thomas went to Vietnam at the age of eighteen, where he received numerous medals, including twenty-seven Air Medals, a Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart. Today he is a monk in the Soto Zen tradition and an active speaker and Zen teacher, traveling the world speaking about war and teaching meditation. He also leads peace pilgrimages through war-torn and war-scarred places around the world. Claude is the founder of the Zaltho Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes peace and non-violence.
- Stop the wars and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan
- Money for jobs, education, healthcare and housing - not for war and occupation
- No sanctions or attack on Iran
- Stop the racist scapegoating of Arabs and Muslims
- Stop the assault on human rights and civil liberties
The rally starts at 12:00 noon at the Boston Common at the corner of Beacon Street and Charles Street. After a 2 hour program of speakers and musicians, there will be a march to Copley Square and back to the Boston Common. More information can be found at the Oct11 web site, http://www.oct11boston.org
You are invited to join us to go into Boston via the commuter train from Walpole. We will be taking the 11:01 AM train that will arrive at Back Bay Station at 11:38 AM and South Station at 11:45 AM. The fare is $5.75 each way. Trains leave Boston at 5:20 PM, 7:20 PM, 9:20 PM, and 5 minutes later from Back Bay. Parking should be available at the top of the station. Look for us on the platform.
This march and rally is an opportunity for us to speak out against this disastrous “preemptive war” that was started using false pretenses. This war was totally unjustified and has resulted in the deaths of over 4,150 U.S. solders and up to 1,000,000 Iraq civilians and has destroyed much of Iraq.
Next Speaker Series: Claude Anshin Thomas on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 at the Walpole Public Library, 7:30 PM
Claude Anshin Thomas is the author of the best selling book “At Hell's Gate.” In this talk Claude recounts his dramatic coming-of-age story and spiritual odyssey as well as offering his profound insights into suffering and violence, and how we can end them in ourselves and in our world. Claude Anshin Thomas went to Vietnam at the age of eighteen, where he received numerous medals, including twenty-seven Air Medals, a Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart. Today he is a monk in the Soto Zen tradition and an active speaker and Zen teacher, traveling the world speaking about war and teaching meditation. He also leads peace pilgrimages through war-torn and war-scarred places around the world. Claude is the founder of the Zaltho Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes peace and non-violence.
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