In this guest sermon, Rusty Nelson, the current President of the Spokane Chapter of Veterans for Peace, will discuss how the popularity of militarism has changed American perceptions of war and violence.  He writes, “Veterans for Peace is one resource for individuals and communities resisting the juggernaut of war, the erosion of liberties, and the degradation of the planet.”  Rusty finds his connections with VFP continue to resonate with his Christian pacifism to provide fresh insights and paths to understanding and action.

Rusty Nelson was a war baby, born in Georgia while his father, a Presbyterian pastor, served as a navy chaplain in the Pacific.  Raised in the Bible Belt, Rusty went to Vietnam after getting a degree and ROTC commission at Presbyterian College in South Carolina.  He met his wife, Nancy Nelson, while traveling through Croatia in 1971.  They moved to Spokane in 1981 and joined the Spokane Mennonite Fellowship, now Shalom church.  For more than 20 years, he and Nancy were the co-directors of the Peace and Justice League of Spokane.  Through peace marches, war protests, civil disobedience, educational workshops, justice advocacy, and public speaking, Rusty and Nancy helped coordinate the peace movement in the Inland Northwest.  After his retirement from PJALS 15 years ago, most of Rusty’s activism is now through Veterans for Peace.