Candle light vigil

[Joe Power-Drutis]

Plowshares News January 18, 2012

We have no idea how Bix’s meeting with his captors went at 10:30
yesterday morning; however, an energized group from Seattle to Tacoma
and beyond gathered outside the SeaTac Detention Center in support of
Bix and Steve.

We were a bit of a motley group with close ties to our beloved felons.
We came to stand in the cold morning air and blowing snow to send
forth messages of love and care to these two men from their community
that spans the nation. Our gathering gave us the opportunity to
connect with new friends and strengthen and broaden that community of
peace makers.

If Susan Crane is right, and she usually is, then we weren’t there
very long before Bix and Steve knew of our presence and felt our care
for them.

For decades, Steve and Bix have spoken out about the dangers we face
in putting our faith and resources into nuclear weapons and bloated
military budgets. Their appeals to humanity and common sense have
gone largely ignored by the media, elected officials, church
leadership, and many others. I believe that these two leaders have
chosen the only path left that makes sense to them. By risking arrest,
they expect and accept the same fate as the poor and marginalized who
are incarcerated in prisons and jails across the country.

I leave you with a note I received recently from Fr. John Fuchs,
Jesuit Superior in Tacoma:

“Both Bix and Steve are true monks now. The word “monk,” as you know,
is from the Greek word “monos,” which means alone or solitary. And St.
Ignatius intended for Jesuits to be monks, not in a monastery but in
the world. And so Steve and Bix are!”

John Fuchs, S.J.
"Spiritual Warden."