Peace Alliance Conference to Lobby Congress

Here are a few pics from last week at the Peace Alliance Conference in Washington DC. I spent the entire weekend with over a hundred other Peace Delegates  from around the country learning how to lobby Congress. It was an amazing experience with many details to grasp. Then, on Monday I was let loose to visit with my New York Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and Senator Shumer's Sr. staffers.  In one of the photos you can see that I am supported by the Peace Alliance Board of Directors, who took me under their wings as the "newbie".  There is a lot to learn. But this lobbying for Peace is addictive....!  

Let's make our voices heard by contacting our local and state Members of Congress. 

"Democracy only works when we work it!”

 photos by: Bartosz Rost

Believed to be the First Church of Christianity. 4th Century. Cave Church of St Peter, Hatay, Turkey.

It is believed by some that the founding of the church in Antioch can be traced to the Bible's Acts of the Apostles (11:25-27) where it is related that Barnabas travelled to Tarsus to bring Paul the Apostle there. They worked for one year with the nascent Christian community, and there the converts were called Christians for the first time in history. Christian tradition considers Peter, the first Apostle, as the founder of the church of Antioch, and the first priest of the Christian population that was established there; the Church of St. Peter is regarded by tradition as on the spot where he first preached the Gospel in Antioch.

The oldest surviving parts of the church building date from at least the 4th or 5th century. These include some pieces of floor mosaics, and traces offrescoes on the right side of the altar 

Crusaders of the First Crusade who captured Antakya in 1098 lengthened the church by a few metres and connected it with two arches to the facade, which they constructed. This facade was rebuilt in 1863 by the Capuchin Friars who restored the church on the orders of Pope Pius IX. French Emperor Napoleon III also contributed to the restoration. The remains on the left hand side of the church entrance belong to colonnades that formerly stood in front of the church facade.

On top of the stone altar located in the middle of the church is a stonework platform that was placed there in memory of the Saint Peter's Platform Holiday which was celebrated every 21 February in Antakya. The marble statue of Saint Peter on top of the altar was placed there in 1932. 

Hatay, Turkey, November 2007……..I entered and was Alone. Staring into a starkness, I felt the void of the Pomp and Circumstances of our modern religious buildings and institutions. Instead, the air felt heavy with a timeless Spirit that hung over the huge empty cave cut into the mountainside of Mount Starius. In the darkness, thin Rays of Light streamed through the Crusader built Facade and danced along the moss covered walls, illuminating the stone alter that stood at the back of the cave. My heart opened, and in that moment the message of Peaceful Co-Existence was chiseled into the mission of the Peace Caravan Project: To Illuminate the Beauty of our Differences, sharing in the Oneness of our Humanity.

Destruction of Temple Baal Shamin Palmyra, Syria

Temple Baal Shamin Palmyra, Syria

On November 27, 2008 - I woke up early to walk alone amongst the ancient ruins of Palmyra. My mind's eye filled with a vision of Queen Zenobia as I approached the Temple of Baal Shamin whose columns blazed red with the rising sun.
 Seven years later on August 19, 2015 Khaled al-Asaad, the 81-year-old antiquities scholar was beheaded by Islamic State militants. He had named his daughter after Zenobia, the queen that ruled from the city 1,700 years ago. Al Assad had sacrificed his life so as not to reveal the location of hidden treasures of Palmyra. 

But that did not stop ISIS militants from bombing the Temple of Baal Shamin. On August 23 the world learned the news that large explosives were placed inside the temple destroying the interior structure collapsing the surrounding columns. 

Temple of Bel  Palmyra, Syria 

A few weeks later on August 30, a massive explosion reduced the Temple of Bel's main building and a row of columns to rubble. According to the Syrian Department of Antiquities most of the site remains intact."The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) considered the Temple of Bel - the great sanctuary of the Palmyrene gods - one of the most important religious buildings of the 1st Century AD in the East."

Reports reveal that the Museum Authorities removed hundreds of statues and objects before ISIS took Palmyra. 

 Sunrise at Palmyra, Syria 

SCAA PHOTO SHOW - Marla Mossman | Marshall Vanderhoof | Peter Fay

SCAA PHOTO SHOW

Marla Mossman | Marshall Vanderhoof | Peter Fay

VIP Opening: Film Screening, Talk)Exhibition: Saturday, June 27 / 2pm – 5:00 pm

Film Screening: KAWOMERA: Plant Pray Partner for Peace

with the Director, Marla Mossman

Sergott Contemporary Art Alliance

6764 La Valle Piateada 

Rancho Sante Fe, CA 92067

Artist Anna Stump and Patricia Frischer Founder/Coordinator SDVAN

Peace Caravan Presentation Karpeles Museum Santa Barbara

Spreading the Words of Peace in Beautiful Santa Barbara with the screening of the Peace Caravan produced film KAWOMERA: Plant Pray Partner for Peace at the Karpeles Manuscript Museum on June 20th.

New York Photo Show April 2015

So grateful for the generous in-kind donation and invitation for the Peace Caravan Project to exhibit at the New York Photo Show. It was an amazing weekend meeting the passionate collectors and dealers who attended. A sincere thank you to Steve Yagar, Peter Roos and all the people involved for your hard work and dedication to photography.