Era of War Pinches a Place Devoted to Peace

March 5, 2007

Author: Brian MacQuarrie

Source: The Boston Globe

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2007/03/05/era_of_war_pinches_a_place_devoted_to_peace/?p1=email_to_a_friend

SHERBORN -- The Peace Abbey, born of a pacifist's dream 19 years ago, has brought the inner hum of meditation and the occasionally harsh spotlight of international attention to this small, affluent town.

It is a place where a conspicuous bronze statue of Gandhi and a memorial to a runaway cow have prompted double-takes from motorists and passersby. It is also a multifaith retreat that Mother Teresa has visited, as have Muhammad Ali, the poet Maya Angelou, nuns of the Dalai Lama , and thousands of people seeking spiritual refreshment.

But now, the abbey has been put on the selling block for $5.5 million. Its director, Lewis Randa, cites a plummeting drop in donations that he links to the abbey's visible protests against the Iraq war.

See also: Interfaith, Civic