Friends in a Cold Climate: Nijmegen

This dataset contains interviews with Ben Schennink. Ben has been working for the Studiecentrum voor Vredesvraagstukken of the Catholic University (KU) Nijmegen, presently named CICAM. Ben Schennink also played a scientific supporting role within the Catholic peacemovement Pax Christi and the IKV, the Interkerkelijk Vredesberaad. This interview deviates from the other interviews and datasets within the project since it does not directly elaborates on the group of towns that formed the town-twinning circle that originated from Esslingen am Neckar in the fifties and sixties, which is the subject of the project. The interviews with Ben go well beyond the subject of West-European town-twinning after the post-war years and deal with subjects as Third World development, the nuclear armaments race and resistance against it, the fall of the Iron Curtainand the breaking up of former Yugoslavia. As such, his testimony refers to the third wave of town-twinning, were Friends in a Cold Climate is mainly concerned with the second wave. However, the interviews with Ben Schennink also shine a light on the role of the churches in the processes of reconcilliation and rapprochement that took place after WWII. The significance of this is explained by prof. Mathieu Seegers in his book: “The Origins of European Integration: The Pre-History of Today’s European Union 1937-1951” in which he acknowledges that “Many of the ideas for European integrations had been sustained by ecclesiastical networks”, “Such networks played a key role in the process of selecting and combining idea’s for the future of post-war Europe”. Ben was born right in the middle of the Second World War, in Zevenaar, living on a farm with his parents and grandparents. Around the Battle of Arnhem in 1944, when he had just started walking, his family's farm, located about 5-600 meters from the main road to Arnhem and the railway from Germany to Arnhem, became a shelter. The farm had two large cellars filled with evacuated neighbors, as well as German soldiers setting up defenses and workers from Achterhoek digging trenches. The war stories and stress, along with the positive experiences of his parents and grandparents, shaped his past and sparked his interest in war and conflict from an early age. His father's keen interest in international politics further influenced him, leading him to follow global events closely during his teenage and high school years, maintaining a strong interest in international politics and related matters. Ben was very interested in Israel. Initially from the idea: ‘What is life on a kibbutz? What does that mean?’ So, it was about communal living and survival. This inspired him to pursue the topic of "war" and how to deal with it. The Study Center for Peace Issues had just been established, and he was approached. He came into contact with Pax Christi and later became active at the Study Center for Peace Issues, since he was studying sociology and research methods. In 1967, the Peace Week had just started, and the Study Center was asked to research the early Peace Weeks. He was asked, as a student assistant, to begin this work. He continued in the research trajectory of peace research and mobilization activities, including Peace Weeks and local action groups. He also connected with the Polemological Institute in Groningen. They collaborated on numerous projects between Nijmegen and Groningen for many years. Ben attended the first general assembly of Pax Christi, which took place in Roosendaal in the fall of 1968, shortly after the Russian invasion of Prague. The Prague crisis in 1968 was used by government officials to advocate for increased defense spending. Pax Christi opposed this, stating that the crisis should be used to promote dialogue. Ben became active in Pax Christi's International Affairs Committee, dealing with issues like the situation in Israel, détente, and armament. Another significant factor at the time, though less relevant to him personally, was the IKV, which had been founded in 1966. The issue of conscientious objection was prominent, and Pax Christi and the IKV were advocating for better support for conscientious objectors and a new Conscientious Objection Act. This was part of the broader discussions, involving the government, between Pax Christi and peace operations. When the discussion about nuclear weapons in the Netherlands emerged in the late 1950s, the question of whether to place nuclear weapons in the country led to significant debates within the Reformed Church. The theme of "war and peace" became a crucial topic in the lead-up to the Second Vatican Council, and Pope John XXIII's 1962-63 encyclical "Pacem in Terris" emphasized that not only Catholics but all people of good will should work together for peace.本数据集收录了对本·申宁克（Ben Schennink）的访谈内容。本曾任职于奈梅亨天主教大学（KU Nijmegen）和平问题研究中心（Studiecentrum voor Vredesvraagstukken），该中心现更名为CICAM。此外，本·申宁克还在天主教和平运动“基督和平会（Pax Christi）”以及教会间和平理事会（Interkerkelijk Vredesberaad，简称IKV）中承担科学支持工作。 本次访谈与项目内其他访谈及数据集存在显著差异，其并未直接围绕本项目的核心主题——即20世纪50至60年代起源于内卡河畔埃斯林根的城市友好城市结对（town-twinning）圈展开论述。本的访谈内容远超战后西欧城市友好城市结对的主题范畴，涵盖第三世界发展、核军备竞赛及其反对运动、铁幕陨落以及前南斯拉夫解体等议题。就此而言，他的证词涉及第三波城市友好城市结对运动，而《冷和平中的友人（Friends in a Cold Climate）》主要聚焦于第二波城市友好城市结对运动。不过，本的访谈也揭示了教会在二战后和解与睦邻进程中发挥的作用。马蒂厄·西格斯（Mathieu Seegers）教授在其著作《欧洲一体化的起源：1937-1951年今日欧盟的史前史》中对此的重要性作出阐释，他指出：“诸多欧洲一体化理念均依托教会网络得以存续”，“此类网络在筛选与整合战后欧洲未来构想的进程中发挥了关键作用”。 本出生于二战中期的泽芬纳尔（Zevenaar），在农场与父母、祖父母一同生活。1944年阿纳姆战役期间，年仅蹒跚学步的他所在的家庭农场距离通往阿纳姆的主干道以及德国通往阿纳姆的铁路仅约500至600米，该农场随即成为避难所。农场的两间大型地窖中挤满了疏散而来的邻居，同时驻扎着搭建防御工事的德军士兵，以及来自阿赫特霍克地区挖掘战壕的劳工。战争亲历故事与紧张氛围，加之父母与祖父母的积极经历，塑造了他的过往，并在童年时期便激发了他对战争与冲突的兴趣。父亲对国际政治的浓厚兴趣进一步影响了他，使其在青少年及中学阶段便持续密切关注全球事件，并始终对国际政治及相关议题保持强烈兴趣。 本对以色列抱有浓厚兴趣，最初源于“基布兹（kibbutz）上的生活是怎样的？这意味着什么？”的疑问，即聚焦于集体生活与生存议题。这启发他投身“战争及其应对之道”的研究。彼时和平问题研究中心刚刚成立，他受邀加入。此后，他接触到基督和平会，并因修习社会学与研究方法学，开始活跃于和平问题研究中心。1967年，和平周活动刚刚启动，该中心受邀对早期和平周活动开展研究，他以学生助理的身份接手此项工作。随后，他持续投身和平研究与动员活动的研究轨迹，包括和平周及地方行动团体。他还与格罗宁根战争学研究所（Polemological Institute）建立联系，多年来双方在奈梅亨与格罗宁根之间开展了众多合作项目。本出席了1968年秋季在罗森达尔举行的基督和平会首次全体大会，此次大会恰逢苏联入侵布拉格之后不久。1968年的布拉格危机被政府官员用作鼓吹增加国防开支的借口，而基督和平会对此表示反对，主张应利用此次危机推动对话。本活跃于基督和平会国际事务委员会，处理以色列局势、缓和与军备等议题。当时另一项重要因素（尽管与他个人关联度较低）是1966年成立的教会间和平理事会（IKV）。出于良心拒服兵役的议题备受关注，基督和平会与IKV呼吁为拒服兵役者提供更好的支持，并推动出台新的《良心拒服兵役法》。这也是基督和平会与和平行动相关方（包括政府）展开广泛讨论的一部分。 20世纪50年代末，荷兰国内围绕核武器部署的讨论渐起，是否在本土部署核武器的问题在归正会内部引发了激烈辩论。“战争与和平”主题在第二届梵蒂冈大公会议筹备期间成为核心议题，教皇约翰二十三世1962至1963年发布的通谕《和平于世（Pacem in Terris）》强调，不仅天主教徒，所有心怀善意的人们都应携手为和平而努力。