An Unsung Iran Peace Initiative Grapples with Failure

By Jayson Casper. Published by Christianity Today on April 17, 2026.

For 20 years, Mennonites fostered dialogue between North America and the Islamic republic. Their conversations couldn’t stop the bombs.

Early in the morning on February 28, Ed Martin awoke in his home in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, rolled over in bed to check his phone, and let out a slow sigh. The United States and Israel had attacked Iran. With a sense of resignation, the 78-year-old went to the computer in his bedroom office to learn more. Following weeks of negotiation and military buildup, in the first 24 hours the allied nations dropped at least 1,200 bombs on hundreds of targets across the country.

Martin worried about his friends in Iran.

“I felt awful,” he said. “But I wasn’t surprised.”

Early in the morning on February 28, Ed Martin awoke in his home in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, rolled over in bed to check his phone, and let out a slow sigh. The United States and Israel had attacked Iran. With a sense of resignation, the 78-year-old went to the computer in his bedroom office to learn more. Following weeks of negotiation and military buildup, in the first 24 hours the allied nations dropped at least 1,200 bombs on hundreds of targets across the country.

Martin worried about his friends in Iran.

“I felt awful,” he said. “But I wasn’t surprised.”

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