Global Peace Convention
November 28-30, 2011
Seoul, Korea
Theme: “Peace-Building in East Asia and the Reunification of the Korean Peninsula”
We all agree that women have increasingly important roles to play today in our communities and nations. In fact, many today talk about this as the age of women. I believe that you would also agree that women bring unique qualities, aptitudes and talents to whatever roles we play. It has been said that women hold up one half of heaven, without our support, heaven would crumble, and the dream of peace never be realized.
We live today in a world of rapid and often confusing transformation, yet, there are some things that do not change. No matter how far we might travel, most of us have a special place in our hearts for our hometowns, and even more so for our homes. When I say home, what comes to your mind? Perhaps some thoughts of warmth, comfort and nurturing, all within the embrace of family. Home after all is where the heart is.
Our first task, I believe, is to encourage and empower women in their unique roles in the family. Mothers nurture and educate the next generation, and invest the heart that binds the family together. Ideally they instill in their children the seeds of hope and peace. To me, empowering women means providing information, understanding and tools that enables them to make positive advances in their daily lives. I want to connect efforts and share the successes that we achieve locally to our growing global network.
After all, every man emerged from a womb, and every adventurer strode out of his lover’s arms to make his mark on the world. Women, as mothers, wives, sisters and daughters, have a natural gift to create an environment and experience of home and family. With those gifts they must take a lead in translating the vision of One Family Under God into a living reality, one family at a time.
That is why we are launching Global Peace Women. We believe that we can make an indispensable contribution to realize the dream of One Family Under God, by engaging and empowering women of all backgrounds and stations in life in this great endeavor.
But experience shows that our work should not just be about engaging women from comfortable backgrounds in good homes, but reaching out to women in the poorest circumstances and giving them the little they need to elevate themselves and their families.
Motivated by the vision of One Family Under God, I believe that Global Peace Women can become a significant contributor in communities and nations around the world. Our troubled world surely needs our commitment, our effort and most importantly, our love. I hope you can join with me in this noble effort.