En religiøst betinget kategorisk afvisning af vold optrådte tidligt hos nogle [[hindu]]er, [[buddhist]]er og visse kristne sekter, bl.a. [[kvæker]]ne.<ref>[https://denstoredanske.lex.dk/ikke-vold Møller, Bjørn: artiklen "ikke-vold" i Den Store Danske på lex.dk. Hentet 9. september 2023.]</ref> Under [[Reformationen]] var dennes radikale fløj, som bestod af [[døberbevægelse]]r, optaget af fredstanken.<ref name=Lodberg/> Til de såkaldte "historiske fredskirker" hørte udover kvækerne også [[mennonitter]]ne og den amerikanske [[brødremenighed]].<ref name="Concise">Concise Encyclopedia of Amish, Brethren, Hutterites, and Mennonites p6 Donald B. Kraybill – 2010  "In 1935, BRETHREN, Mennonites, and Quakers met in North Newton, Kansas, for a conference on peace. The term HISTORIC PEACE CHURCHES was developed at this conference in order to distinguish between the groups' biblically based peaceful ..."</ref><ref>The Brethren encyclopedia 1983 p608 "The American Civil War brought the peace churches together in combined appeals to government, both in the North and in the South ... This conference used the term historic peace churches as more acceptable to Mennonites than the term pacifist churches because the latter connoted theological liberalism. Called without prior agenda, the three-day meeting concluded with "</ref><ref>Mark Matthews ''Smoke jumping on the Western fire line: conscientious objectors'' p36   – 2006 "CHAPTER TWO The Historic Peace Churches – The three historic peace churches that united to lobby for reforming the treatment of conscientious objectors during World War II shared many religious beliefs, but they also differed in many  "</ref><ref>Speicher, Sara and Durnbaugh, Donald F. (2003), Ecumenical Dictionary: [http://www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/who/dictionary-article8.html ''Historic Peace Churches'']</ref><ref>G. Kurt Piehler, Sidney Pash ''The United States and the Second World War: New Perspectives on'' 2010 p265 "The Selective Service, in collaboration with the historic peace churches, created Civilian Public Service to provide ... In October 1940, to coordinate administration of the CPS camps, the historic peace churches established the NSBRO.  "</ref>
Blandt andet [[Bjergprædikenen]] og [[Frans af Assisi]] har udgjort vigtige inspirationskilder for kristne fredsbevægelser.<ref name=Lodberg>[https://denstoredanske.lex.dk/kristne_fredsbevægelser Lodberg, Peter: artiklen "kristne fredsbevægelser" i Den Store Danske på lex.dk. Hentet 9. september 2023.]</ref>
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