40th Annual UIW Peace Day and the October Season of Justice, Peace, and Creation

See the whole schedule for October here 2026 October Season of Justice, Peace and Creation Schedule with the 40th Anniversary Peace Day | Past Peace Day Schedules

Participate and act co-creating justice, peace, and care for creation. See the locations with various sessions. 

The Hidden History of Enslaved People in San Antonio and Our State, an exhibit called “Texas: Land of the Free”

Oct. 12 to Nov. 6,  Student Engagement Center.

As part of the observance of the 250th Anniversary of the Constitution of the US, UIW explores facets of history, calling us to create a better future. This exhibition was organized by the  San Antonio African American Community Archive and Museum (SAAACAM)  For service credit, do an activity, see From Slave-owner to “Saints”: Learn of Those Who Lived in the Brackenridge Villa | Home | University of the Incarnate Word

From Slave-owner to “Saints”: Learn of Those Who Lived in the Brackenridge Villa

Visit the Brackenridge Villa and learn of those who lived there such as Eleanor Brackenridge, the Texas “Mother of Women’s Suffrage,” the Incarnate Word Sisters, and an exiled Mexican Bishop. Professor Tim Draves will share on James R. Sweet, who built the right side of the house in the mid 1850’s. The year before he had sold an enslaved 13-year-old, Sarah, and bought enslaved 23-year-old George. He was both the mayor and a slave-trader. In 1862 He went to fight with the Confederacy. When defeated, he as about 500 other,  fled to Mexico. Register for a 10:30 am or 12 pm or 1:30 pm visit because space is limited From Slave-owner to “Saints”: Learn of Those Who Lived in the Brackenridge Villa | Home | University of the Incarnate Word Contact: Sr. Martha Ann Kirk  kirk@uiwtx.edu

Compassionate Communities in 1776 Inviting Us to Be Compassionate: UIW Celebrates the 250th Anniversary of the Constitution.

In connection with the programs mentioned above, see the growing LibGuide created with the assistance of Erin Cassity of the UIW Maybee Library with resources associated with events throughout this 2026 – 2027 academic year.

Remember that in 1776, our original people in the missionary-led towns of Mission Nuestra Señora Concepción de Acuña, Mission San José y San Miguel de Aguayo, Mission San Juan Capistrano, and Mission San Francisco de la Espada lived the ideal of Acts 2:44-45, sharing their goods. They compassionately took care of each other.  Remember how the indigenous people donated cows and one silver piece for each person to help the 13 Colonies get freedom from the British Empire. Learn of the creative non-violence supporting US independence. UIW is working for the prestigious Compassionate University designation.  Participate in UIW’s compassionate projects for the 250th Anniversary:  

250 service hours for the 250th Anniversary!  Your group or class can compassionately co-create the future of the U.S.A. Build on the history of our compassionate San Antonio Mission communities in the 1700’s. They shared their goods so no one was left hungry.  When you win this Compassion Game, all of us win. Reflect on the country we wish to have. Get started serving in San Antonio, a Compassionate City. Register here the 250th Anniversary.

Oral History: Collecting Stories to Build Community. Each person’s story is part of the story of the U.S.A. The Constitution of the USA, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and Catholic Social Teaching all affirm that each person matters.  Share your story and collect the stories of others. Register here for more information.   

6th Annual Blessing at the Blue Hole, the Headwaters at Incarnate Word

 Oct. 13, 9:00 am
Join members of the American Indians in Texas at the Spanish Colonial Missions (AITSCM) for the 6th Annual celebration of Indigenous Peoples' Day at Incarnate Word. A ceremonial blessing at the Blue Hole in remembrance of Indigenous People. For more information, contact the Ettling Center at (210) 283-6423 or Dr. Ricardo Gonzalez at rigonza4@uiwtx.edu

 Environmental Volunteer Expo

Oct. 17, 10 -2 pm,  Urban Ecology Center, Phil Hardberger Park, 8400 N.W. Military Dr., San Antonio, TX

This is a free, family-friendly event that showcases local environmental organizations looking to recruit motivated volunteers wanting to make a real impact in San Antonio.  UIW unites with many city organizations in care of God’s creation.  Register and get details  Environmental Volunteer Expo | Home | University of the Incarnate Word

Join in Solidarity with Young Fighters Changing into Young Peacebuilders 

Oct. 20,  8 am,  1:30 pm, 5:30 pm, register to get locations and details  https://uiw.givepulse.com/event/941280-Join-in-Solidarity-with-Young-Fighters-Changing-into-Young-Peacebuilders

We are “breaking the chains of violence in the world together” says Dr. Yosuke Nagai.  He is the Executive Director of Accept International  and the Founder of the Global Taskforce for Youth Combatants (GTY). Since 2011, he has led the design and implementation of deradicalization, reintegration, and rehabilitation programs for disengaged members of non-state armed groups in Somalia, Yemen, Kenya, Indonesia, and Colombia. He has also actively promoted dialogue and reconciliation initiatives in highly sensitive contexts. Hear stories of the young leaders of violence, now leaders in building reconciliation. Nagai is currently a Visiting Fellow at Pembroke College, University of Oxford, an Associate Researcher at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST), University of Tokyo, and an Adjunct Lecturer at Kyoto University. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Charter for Compassion. Sister Martha Ann Kirk is preparing young leaders from our city to be part of the Charter for Compassion Delegation participating in the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Rome at the beginning of December. 

8 to 9 am   UIW Maybee Library Special Collections Room, 4301 Broadway, SA 78209. An introduction to Accept International and their important work from Dr. Nagai. An introduction to The International Institute for Peacebuilding in Active Conflict (IIPAC)  from the founder Mehri Hilton, a Rotarian in Ukraine, and J.C. Clapsaddle, formerly a Rotarian in San Antonio.   A conversation on learning from each other.  Light Breakfast. Register here and indicate the 8 am session.  

1:30 to 2:45 pm  Welcome to San Antonio by Former Mayor Ron Nirenberg, who was the chair of the USCM’s Mayors and Business Leaders Center for Compassionate and Equitable Cities. He launched CompassionateUSA.  Followed by Dr. Nagai. Cheever Legacy Event Center,  University of the Incarnate Word Founders Hall, 4119 Broadway, SA 78209 (enter on Hildebrand for convenient guest parking) Register here  and indicate the 1:30 pm session.

5:30 pm. Conversations with youth in the Charter for Compassion Delegation who will participate in World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Rome in December and with some of the San Antonio Peace Laureates annually announced by the Peace Center.  Refreshments. 6 pm  Dr. Nagai. UIW Student Engagement Center 2031-2032, 4301 Broadway, SA 78209. Register here and indicate the 5:30 pm. session.

Writing Is the Fuel for Hope

Oct. 21, 12 noon, Dubuis Lawn

Writing Is the Fuel for Hope: Join the students from Dr. Josh Robbins' Writing As Resistance class for a poetry reading, harnessing the power of language in performance to effect change, inspire, and call our community into action and empathy. Students will read their work and attendees will have space to share their own words of resistance. 

Nuclear War, the Forgotten Conversation  

Oct. 27,  4:30 to 5:45 pm, Admin 365

A panel with Paul Andrews, Bishop Trevor Alexander, UIW Chaplain and Religious Studies professor, and Dr. Paul Lewis, UIW Philosophy professor. Shared with the Philosophy of Science and Technology course.  Paul Andrews is currently doing research and writing on young people’s fear in light of nuclear proliferation. “The threat of nuclear Armageddon, a constant worry for many who grew up during the tense decades of the Cold War, is becoming a cause for concern for a growing number of young people,” according to the United Nations.

 40th Anniversary Peace Day, October 28, 2026, Wednesday

As Incarnate Word celebrates 40 years of Peace Days, it is a leader organizing youth for the “Charter for Compassion Delegation” going to the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Rome. Some of those young people will be in conversation with Dr. Nagai, Oct. 20, 5:30 pm.

“ ‘Peace as a Way of Life,’ the first Peace Fair, October 4, 1986.  People were invited to celebrate the United Nations International Year of Peace and the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi, who cherished God’s creation and modeled reconciliation. Fifteen workshop sessions and dramatic and musical performances were shared and a center piece of the gathering was the ceremony ‘Choose Life’ marking the formal announcement of the Peace and Justice Studies Graduate Program and the dedication of the Peace Pole monument. The Peace and Justice Graduate program was an interdisciplinary approach to analyzing the complex issues of violence and inequity in the world. Dr. Louis Agnese, the Incarnate Word President, Dr. Amy Freeman Lee, the President of the Board of Trustees, and Sr. Dot Ettling, the Superior General of the IW Sisters spoke. Chikae Ishikawa donated the Peace Pole with an inscription in four languages, “May peace prevail on earth,” to Incarnate Word. The monument connects us with the Society of Prayer for World Peace, a non-denominational organization founded in 1955 by Masahisa Goi in Japan, which had seen the ravages of nuclear bombings bringing on-going disease and death. Encouraged by the society, over 200,000 peace pole monuments have been placed in 180 countries. Dr. Agnese’s letter of gratitude to Mr. Ishikawa said, ‘the Peace Pole [the current pole is in front of the Brackenridge Villa] . . . is a very meaningful new symbol on campus, a reminder of the College’s mission of service in a world of peace, and the need for prayer and constant efforts to make peace a reality in our own lives, and the lives of others.’ Many bishops, rabbis, and other religious leaders sent letters of congratulations to Incarnate Word for having such a monument that publicly invites people to prayer, reconciliation, and active peacemaking.”             From https://www.uiw.edu/PeaceDay/_docs/peaceday-barnes-kirk.pdf 

All Peace Day presentations are in the Student Engagement Center 2040 – 2041 at the University of the Incarnate Word, 4301 Broadway, San Antonio, TX 78209,  and are hybrid except the 12 noon to 1:15 pm which is on the SEC porch and in the Community Garden.  

If you would like to attend virtually, use this link Microsoft Teams meeting

Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/2695794922074026?p=J2MMUrUo5zKBNYZ7ec

Learning and sharing peace, justice, and care for creation serves the world.  Register for service credit and if you cannot attend physically and for the virtual link.

Nuclear War, the Forgotten Conversation 

Oct. 28, 9 – 10:15 am, SEC 2040 -2041

 A panel with Paul Andrews, Bishop Trevor Alexander, UIW Chaplain and Religious Studies professor, and Dr. Paul Lewis, UIW Philosophy professor. Shared with the Religious Studies “Word in the World” Class.  Paul Andrews is currently doing research and writing on young people’s fear in light of nuclear proliferation. “The threat of nuclear Armageddon, a constant worry for many who grew up during the tense decades of the Cold War, is becoming a cause for concern for a growing number of young people,” according to the United Nations.

Listening to the Voices of the Cuban People

10:30 to 11:45 am SEC 2040 -2041

Jovanni Reyes, MA in International Relations from Troy University and a leader in About Face, Veterans Against War,  visited Cuba April 26 to May 8 to deliver much-needed medicine, given that the American blockade has tightened with the intention of starving the Cuban population into submission. Additionally, not a single drop of oil has been allowed to enter the country since January 2026 causing great suffering. Note a UN statement on the human rights violations that the oil blockade has caused.  

Daily Food, Part of the Problem or Part of the Solution

12 Noon – 1:10 pm, SEC Porch and the Community Garden

Free lunch on the SEC Porch and free dessert in the Community Garden between the Dreeben Education Building and Clement Residence Hall. The UIW Nutrition Department and the Student Dietetic Association led by Heather Frazier, PhD, RDN, LD, will share delicious food and fig sweets (by the fig tree in the garden) as they educate us on food that is healthy for the planet and healthy for us.  Our daily food can be a celebration of creation and of the Creator or  further waste the resources of our Common Home, the Earth.

If you would like to attend the afternoon and the evening virtually

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/2695794922074026?p=J2MMUrUo5zKBNYZ7ec

The Holocaust  1933-1945 by Dr. Roger C. Barnes

1:30 – 2:45 pm  SEC 2040 -2041

This presentation about the Holocaust describes the Nazi persecution of Jews and others during the reign of Adolf Hitler and the Third Reich.  There is a concluding emphasis on the six extermination camps that were in Poland. Dr. Barnes is professor emeritus of sociology at UIW.  His trips to Holocaust sites have taken him to Germany, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Austria, and Ukraine. He frequently writes columns for the San Antonio Express-News.

“TLC--Talk, Listen, Connect” Compassion Transformation Institute

3 pm – 4:45 pm.  SEC 2040 -2041

What if the most powerful tool for healing division, loneliness, and polarization was something profoundly simple? Talk. Listen. Connect.  The Charter for Compassion in pilot training with nearly 100 participants from around the world, found that in small groups and brief conversations, strangers found common ground. People shared what they loved. Others listened—deeply. And in those moments, community began to form.  The science is clear:  1. Strong social relationships reduce mortality risk more effectively than smoking cessation, alcohol moderation, diet, exercise, or blood pressure treatment. 2. The 80+ year Harvard Study of Adult Development confirms that strong relationships are the single greatest predictor of long-term happiness and well-being. 3. Human evolution is not simply “survival of the fittest,” but survival of the most connected.  TLC reclaims this truth. Kindness, compassion, and connection are not soft ideals.  They are biologically wired strengths.  Learn more of the institute here.  The process will be led by Sister Martha Ann Kirk, Th.D., Coordinator of the Compassionate Colleges and Universities Initiative of the Charter for Compassion.

INSPIRES Index, a Measure and a Motivator 

5 - 6 pm SEC 2040 -2041

Through the ages religions have been some of the greatest contributors to peace, but also some of the greatest contributors to conflicts.  The Interfaith, Spiritual, Religious, and Secular Campus Climate Index, or INSPIRES Index is an assessment tool that measures, evaluates, and represents a campus’ efforts towards and commitment to establishing a welcoming climate for students of multiple worldviews. The Index was created using data gathered through the Interfaith Diversity Experiences and Attitudes Longitudinal Survey (IDEALS).  UIW has been an INSPIRES Campus Partner reflecting, assessing, and committing ourselves to ongoing improvement.  Come join in conversation in regard to the seven areas: Academic Engagement, Religious Accommodations , Space for Support and Expression, Institutional Structures, Institutional Behavior, Efforts to Reduce Negative Engagement, and Extracurricular Engagement.  How are we and how can we improve?   

Earth's Greatest Enemy, a film by Abby Martin  

7 pm SEC 2040 -2041

Join About Face South Texas for a screening and discussion of Abby Martin’s documentary, Earth’s Greatest Enemy. The film examines the environmental impact of the U.S. military, connecting pollution and contamination near San Antonio’s former Kelly Air Force Base with the broader consequences of military operations around the world. Bring friends for a conversation about militarism, environmental harm, and the communities affected. See the trailer.  Co-sponsored by Esperanza Peace and Justice Center, the Southwest Workers Union, and Oppressed Revolutionaries for Worker Power.   Contact: Jovanni Reyes <jovanni@aboutfaceveterans.org>

Gratitude to our exhibitors

 See these exhibits and more in the UIW Student Engagement Center Concourse:

 About Face, Veterans Against War  South Texas with Veteran Tony Allevato, Veteran Chaplain Renee Sinicki, and Veteran Jovanni Reyes
 Bexar County--Moms Demand Action 

Pax Christi and Laudato Si, Catholic voices for peace and for sustainability

Charter for Compassion and Artistic Bridges