We cannot begin to grow in nonviolence except through prayer, fasting and solitude. Every program of nonviolence, whether of Gandhi, Martin Luther King or St. Francis of Assisi, has emphasized that the beginning of nonviolence and the continuing center of nonviolence is prayer, fasting and the gift of self. Then out of that comes expression of nonviolence. Nonviolence is not a tactic or series of actions, it is a form of prayer that becomes a realization of the kingdom.

James W. Douglas

From Peacemaking: Day by Day, Vol I. Pax Christi, 1985.