by Ellen Francis
The purpose of this delegation, sponsored by the Fellowship of Reconciliation, is to seek alternatives to the current political standoff between the United States and Iranian governments and to affirm friendship and solidarity between the people of the United States and the people of Iran. This will be the sixth Iran Peace Delegation to be sponsored by FOR.
These delegations allow a diverse and representative group of Western peace activists to see firsthand the realities of life in today’s Iran, to experience the rich and ancient history of Persian culture and art, and to meet with members of Iranian civil society. Also, they provide a chance for ordinary Iranians to encounter citizens of the United States.
Participants will visit Tehran (the contemporary capital), Qom (the world center of Shi’ite theology), Isfahan (the legendary capital of medieval Persia), and Shiraz (the jewel of classical Islamic culture as well as the seat of Iran’s ancient pre-Islamic civilization).
The deadline for applications will be November 15, 2007. Due to the limited number of places on the delegation, FOR is obliged to select only the most qualified candidates. A detailed itinerary is available at epfnational.org.
For more information or to join the EPF Iran Action Group, please contact Sr. Ellen Francis at 845-562-0592 or sisters@osh.org. You may read reports of the previous FOR Iran delegations and find the application form on the FOR website: www.forusa.org or contact Leila Zand at iran@ forusa.org or 845-358-4601.
Sr. Ellen Francis, OSH will be a leader of this delegation. She lived in Iran for 7 years in the 1960s and 70s, and speaks Farsi. She has been a co-leader and staff person on three recent delegations to Iran and has been actively working against the threat of a U.S. military attack on Iran. She is a sister of the Order of St. Helena and a priest of the Diocese of NY, and an EPF member.
