Paris, France—UPF marked the 40th anniversary of the United Nations’ International Day of Peace with a three-day “Peace Road” event that visited various sites in the French region of Brittany.
The event, held from September 18 to 20, 2021, also celebrated the 40th anniversary of the speech in which UPF founder Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon described his vision for the International Peace Highway project.
On the first day, an estimated 22 participants drove to the town of Saint-Dolay, the site of a wooden monastery inhabited by the Celtic Orthodox community. Inspired by UPF-France Vice President Patrick Jouan’s explanation of the “Peace Road” Initiative, the monastery’s director, Monseigneur Marc, gave a talk about Christ’s central message of altruistic love in peacebuilding and about the ultimate goal of spirituality: to return to God.
Proposing a prayer together, Monseigneur Marc the guided the participants into the church of the monastery, where they recited Jesus’ prayer “Our Father” (The Lord’s Prayer).
Several more participants joined the group as they arrived in the town of Lauzach to visit a memorial to the Korean War. In addition to a monument with the names of local soldiers who had died in the war, there was a garden of bamboo trees and a trail with panels explaining historical facts about the conflict.
A colonel gave some more historical explanations, two Catholic priests from Congo and Togo prayed, and the participants recited together the prayer of St. Francis (“Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace”).
The three-day “Peace Road” trip included dining on seafood and the enjoyment of the seashore’s sunshine and pure air.
On the third day, the number of “Peace Road” participants had grown to about 70. Stopping in another small town, Ploudaniel, they took part in an International Day of Peace program at a school whose director, Ambassador for Peace Xavier Guiavarc’h, has spoken at two UPF events. The program included the discussion of some elements of character education and shared values.
The school director spoke to his students about the importance of including peace in educational curricula. It is important to reflect about peace and how to achieve it, he said.
After explaining the meaning of the United Nations’ International Day of Peace, Patrick Jouan of UPF-France spoke about the purpose of the UPF “Peace Road” Initiative and its connection to the International Peace Highway project.
Hugo Veracx, the regional president of UPF for Western Europe, and David Perry, the national leader of Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU), an organization that is affiliated with UPF, offered the students advice on leading a life of goodness and peace that will enable them to become good parents and leaders in the future.