Center Harbor Congregational Church

Peace Pole

Our peace pole here at Center Harbor Congregational Church, UCC is one of over 200,000 “planted” in 180 countries around the world. A prayer for world peace carries a message of great hope and healing; it transcends barriers of nationality, race and religion to unite us all in a call for the common good of all life on earth.

May our peace pole be a constant reminder for us to visualize peace, pray for peace, and work toward world peace. We cannot bring about world peace, but we can start in our own hearts and in the heart of each of our families and in our community. Alone, none of us can make world peace happen, but collectively we can make a difference.

May we resolve at this time and in this place, that our peace pole will not be merely a fixture in the church yard, or another pretty place in Center Harbor, but rather, it will represent an attitude that we will all strive for.

Oscar Romero, 20^th-century archbishop in El Salvador (who was assassinated for his efforts on behalf of his people) wrote this about the nature of peace:

Peace is not the product of terror or fear.

Peace is not the silence of cemeteries.

Peace is not the result of violent repression.

Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all.

Peace is a dynamism.

Peace is generosity.

It is a right and a duty.

Dedicated to Rob Leighley

This Peace Pole was dedicated on August 26, 2007 in the honor of the life of Rob Leighley, a church member. The funding was given by his friends from Long Island, NY. We pray that Rob and all the other angels will strengthen us to make peace more of a reality.

The languages on the Peace Pole:

English—make no mistake what our pole proclaims!

Shona—the language of Zimbabwe; in honor of our church’s UKAMA partner church in Mount Selinda.

Arabic—the language of our two Palestinian children in Jerusalem, adopted by our Church School children.

Spanish—representative of the Romance languages; the Leighley family has an “adopted” exchange student, Consuelo Rivera, from Colombia.

Hebrew and Greek—the biblical languages of our spiritual forbearers.

Russian—representative of the Cyrillic languages; the language of a former enemy with whom we are learning to live in peace.

Chinese—representative of the Asian languages; may we continue to live in peace with this world powerhouse.

Note that there is room for four more language plaques when we have a reason to include them.

Thank you for visiting this Peace Pole.

As you leave, touch the pole with your personal prayer for peace, and take from the pole a new resolve to pass on a peaceful act during this week. You are invited to visit this pole often for prayer and meditation.