You can hear Tom's own voice by looking at his Blogspot here. http://www.waitinginthelight.blogspot.com/ The last entry was made on November 8, 2005, and it is about the devastation of Fallujah by the U.S. attack there.
My own reflections on Tom's death include the two vigils in Toronto which I attended this week. On Thursday before we had word of Tom's death, the CPT Steering Committe, which was holding spring meeting at the CPT offices in Toronto Thursday through Saturday, processed from the offices to the Peace Park in downtown Toronto, where a Thursday vigil has been held at 5:30 pm every week since November 26. There were about 35 people there, to hear breif words, pray and hold 2x 4 foot pictures of the missing four and 6 Iraqis who are detained without charge or known dead. Then on Saturday evening at 5:30 there was a special vigil commemorating Tom's life and death. A burning candle and roses lay at the center of the circle, photographers from newspapers and TV took pictures, and fellow-CPTers spoke of Tom's witness to the circle of about 70 people. The Sunday Toronto Star carried a large picture and story of the vigil and Tom, on page 3.
About 10 of the CPT Steering Committee members stayed in Toronto after the meeting to speak in area churches (our usual practice). I went to the Anglican Church of The Redeemer, in a section of Toronto where up-scale shops, universities, corporate headequarters and the poor meet on very busy streets and sidewalks. As I approached the church, walking, I saw the names of Tom, Norman, Jim and Harmeet on the church sign. When I met in a between-services gatherin of some 30 people, I learned that the names of the missing four have been dispayond on the church sign since they were abducted last November. And I learned that this church sign, passed by thousands of people on foot and in cars every day, has a reputation in Toronto of carring meaningful and provocative truths. Tom's witness has impacted this church, it's members and the Toronto community in a truly remarkable way. They are exploring the power of gospel nonviolence.
So I encourage you to visit Tom's blogspot (above) and also to look at the CPT website http://www.cpt.org for words of Tom's continuing witness. Word so far is that Tom's body will be returned by the U.S. military to Dover Air Force base, a procedure objected to by the Iraq CPT team and North American offices, but you know, the U.S. military presumes to run the world. The family has invited CPT to have people present with them to receive the body at Dover, and sometime later there will be a memorial service in Virginia.
Every Church A Peace Church is one of eight sponoring organizations of CPT. I represent ECAPC on the CPT steering committee.-- John Stoner
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