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James W. Douglass

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For the Canadian politician, seeJames W. Douglas.
James W. Douglass
Born1937 (age 86–87)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materSanta Clara University
Occupations
  • Author
  • activist
  • Christian theologian
Notable workJFK and the Unspeakable(2008)
SpouseShelley Douglass
AwardsPacem in Terris Award(1997)

James W. "Jim" Douglass(born 1937) is an American author, activist, and Christian theologian.[1]He is a graduate ofSanta Clara University.He and his wife, Shelley Douglass, founded the Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action inPoulsbo, Washington,and Mary’s House, aCatholic Workerhouse inBirmingham, Alabama. In 1997 the Douglasses received thePacem in Terris Award.

Theology of nonviolence

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Douglass is an author onnonviolenceandCatholictheology, with many books and essays to his credit. Four of his monographs, published from 1968 to 1991, were reprinted in 2006 by theology publisherWipf & Stock.

Douglass's 2008 book,JFK and the Unspeakable,discusses theJohn F. Kennedy assassinationas a conspiracy ordered by unknown parties and carried out by theCIAwith help from theMafiaand elements in theFBIto put an end to Kennedy's effort to end theCold Warafter theCuban Missile Crisis.

JFK and the Unspeakablewas first published byOrbis BooksinMaryknoll, New York(2008), and reprinted bySimon & Schuster'sTouchstone Books(2010).

Activism

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Douglass was a professor of religion at theUniversity of Hawaiiwho first engaged incivil disobedienceto protest against theVietnam War.

In 1975 Jim and Shelley Douglass founded Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action to protest against the construction of aTrident missilenuclear submarine base on theKitsap Peninsulain the U.S. state ofWashington.The Douglasses, joined by other activists seeking to prevent the installation of Trident missiles, formed a smallintentional community,the Pacific Life Community, near the submarine base. Their goal was

to "seek the truth of a nonviolent way of life," both personally and politically. Personally we tried to confront our racism, sexism, consumerism — all the isms that allowed us to violate others. Politically, we chose to experiment with nonviolent actions resisting Trident, a system that seemed to epitomize all the violence of our society.[2]

This nonviolent protest later extended to protesting against theWhite Trainwhich carried nuclear missile parts toBangor Trident Base.

The Douglasses later moved to theEnsleyneighborhood of Birmingham, Alabama, to establish Mary's House, a "house of hospitality"for homeless or indigent people in need of long-term health care.

Douglass has traveled to the Middle East on several peace missions. In 2003 he joined aChristian Peacemaker TeaminIraqand stayed with civilians during theU.S.-led invasion.

Douglass is a member, and co-founder of, Religious Leaders for 9/11 Truth,[3]an organization thatquestions the "official story" about the 9/11 attacks.

Works

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  • The Non-Violent Cross: A Theology of Revolution and Peace.Eugene, Oregon:Wipf & Stock(1969). p. 320.ISBN978-1597526081.
  • "The Human Revolution: A Search for Wholeness". In O'Gorman, Ned (ed.).Prophetic Voices: Ideas and Words on Revolution.New York:Random House.OCLC9865.
  • Resistance and Contemplation: The Way of Liberation.Eugene, Oregon:Wipf & Stock(1972). p. 196.ISBN978-1597526098.
  • Lightning East to West: Jesus, Gandhi, and the Nuclear Age.Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock (1983). p. 112.ISBN978-1597526104.
  • Dear Gandhi: Now What? Letters from Ground Zero,with Shelley Douglass and Bill Livermore. Philadelphia: New Society Publishers (1988).ISBN978-0865711259.OCLC18105469.
  • The Nonviolent Coming of God.Eugene, Oregon:Wipf & Stock(1992). p. 254.ISBN978-1597526111.
  • Selections from the Writings of Shelley and Jim Douglass,with Shelley Douglass and Mary Evelyn Jegen. Erie, Pennsylvania: Pax Christi USA (1991).OCLC34667609.
  • A Question of Being: The Integration of Resistance and Contemplation in James Douglass's Theology of Nonviolence,with Karen Holsinger Sherman. Eugene, Oregon:Wipf & Stock(2007). p. 128. ISBN 978-1-55635-144-0.
  • JFK and the Unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters.Maryknoll, New York:Orbis Books(2008). pp. 544.ISBN978-1570757556.
  • Gandhi and the Unspeakable: His Final Experiment with Truth.Maryknoll, New York:Orbis Books(2012). p. 158.ISBN978-1570759635.

References

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  1. ^"Author James Douglass to mark 50th anniversary of JFK assassination".mercyhurst.edu.Mercyhurst University. October 17, 2013. Archived fromthe originalon June 28, 2014.RetrievedJune 27,2014.
  2. ^"About Ground Zero"Archived2011-10-02 at theWayback Machine,Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action
  3. ^"Religious Leaders for 9/11 Truth"
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