This month John Dear shares a story of resistance and following the inner voice to do what is right. Franz Jagerstatter stood up to the incoming Nazi forces and refused to join the army, leading to his arrest and death. Franz, who may become a saint, has changed what it means to stand for Jesus by giving his life to stand against modern warfare, genocide, and fascism.

John goes on to recall his visit to Austria where he spent time with Franziska, Jagerstatter's wife. Both Franz and Franziska embodied saints, as John has often seen to be true, with seriousness and with buoyant laughter. In Franz’s steps, John encourages all of us not only to hope, but to join as a community to move our cultures towards peace and justice. Though these stories took place in Nazi Germany, the lessons are applicable to our current situation as we learn to engage in noncooperation with a corrupt state to create a more just and nonviolent society.

The Peace Podcast is available on our website here. There you can also find the previous episodes where John discusses Thomas Merton, Jesus’s campaign of nonviolence, Psalms of Peace, Martin Luther King, Gandhi, and more. The podcast is also available on iTunes where you can subscribe and listen as soon as it’s released. Don’t forget to share this podcast with others to continue to build a mainstream culture of nonviolence.