CPTnet  
3 November 2008
CHICAGO/TORONTO: CPT recruiting Peacemaker Corps members in Colombia and Europe for trainings in 2009

Christian Peacemaker Teams is recruiting Peacemaker Corps applicants for trainings to take place in the United Kingdom and Colombia in 2009.  The UK training could include people from all over Europe.  The Colombia training could include Colombians who have participated in CPT delegations as well as other Colombian nationals who have spent time with the Barrancabermeja-based team on which both North American and Colombian CPTers have served since 2003.  For both trainings—the first that CPT will conduct outside North America—CPT needs ten applicants by January 2009.

Members of the full-time corps commit to a three-year term of active peacemaking in situations of conflict and crisis around the world.  Reserve Corps members are available to serve for periods of two to twelve weeks a year for three years.  Corps members engage in public witness, nonviolent direct action, negotiation, conflict transformation, human rights reporting, accompaniment, and regular periods of worship and prayer.

The trainings incorporate a kaleidoscope of role-plays, small group exercises, presentations, and the acquisition of practical technical skills.  Days are long and full.  Every training includes one or two public witness events.  While CPT staff members provide overall coordination of the training, a variety of trainers with significant experience in active peacemaking are brought in to facilitate the different training modules.
"The training in Colombia would be another opportunity for more people to follow the calling for justice and peace in our country so affected by the violence," said Sandra Milena Rincón, project support coordinator the Colombia project.  "They can join to thousand of communities, organizations and individuals that are already getting in the way."

"It's exciting to feel the momentum building, and see this dream of a European training transform into a reality," says Dora-Marie Goulet, a London-based organizer.  "And it's reassuring to know that God is working through the process, so that whether the training goes forwards or not, the ultimate work of building the kingdom is still being brought about."

Application instructions for the Colombia and UK trainings are available at http://www.cpt.org/participate/peacemaker/apply.