Bates seeks nominations for Stringfellow peace and justice award

The Chaplain’s Office is seeking nominations for the two recipients of the 2002 William Stringfellow Award of Peace and Justice in memory of William Stringfellow ’49. All letters of nomination are due Monday, March 4, and can be addressed to The Office of the College Chaplain, 161 Wood Street, Lewiston, Maine, 04240.

In honor of the witness and legacy of Stringfellow – a lawyer and lay theologian prominent in the American peace movement – the chaplain’s office annually recognizes the achievement of both a Bates College student and a Maine citizen whose lives and work have been dedicated to the promotion of peace and justice. Like Stringfellow himself, award winners are distinguished by their courageous and sustained commitment to redressing the systemic, root causes of violence and social injustice and by their dedication to engaging and opposing “the powers and principalities” of this world.

All nominees should have demonstrated commitment to the work of social justice at a systemic level. Nomination letters should include a brief biographical summary of the person nominated as well as a list of the specific ways in which the nominee has demonstrated a commitment to the advancement of justice and peace. Each letter should present complete contact information, including addresses, phone and fax numbers and e-mail addresses, for both the nominators and the nominees.

“Stringfellow ‘s life and work are of inestimable significance to the movements for justice and peace throughout the world,” said Bates Chaplain Kerry Maloney. His several books and countless addresses have together formed a significant chapter in the unofficial canon of the American peace movement, informing and guiding such activist leaders as Daniel and Philip Berrigan, Thomas Gumbleton and Dorothy Day. According to Maloney, Stringfellow was “a man who ‘did’ the Word of God, enacting its prophetic charge through his commitment to those who are marginalized.”

The award ceremony, scheduled for Friday, May 3, will feature the Rev. Daniel Berrigan, a close friend of Stringfellow’s.