Peacemaking

“We believe that both solemn prayer and nonviolent action can bring about change in the world, and that the presence of our congregation of believers can make a difference in our community.” – from Northside’s Statement of Belief and Purpose, 2001.

Whether it be the extended and warm Passing of the Peace during Sunday worship, our "TORTURE IS WRONG" banner that flew for months in front of the church and on Plymouth Road, or our Session (governing board) supporting a city council resolution to “keep Ann Arbor safe and free” from the so-called Patriot Act ... our commitment to following our Prince of Peace is made evident in both sanctuary and society.

Our pastor, the Rev. Charles Booker-Hirsch, personally experienced the cost of the discipleship of peacemaking amidst a dominant culture whose ethos is based on violence. In the Fall of 2002, Chuck spent 90 days in a minimum security federal penitentiary for participating with 100 others in an annual nonviolent civil resistance action to close the U.S. Army School of the Americas -- renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation -- at Ft. Benning, GA. Northside fully supported Chuck and his family during this time and the action that he took, and continues to take action to close this school of terrorist training "hidden in plain sight" on our country's own soil.