Oof. That’s what I have to say: Oof. I don’t like to think of myself as a person who “others” my neighbors. I like to think of myself as a person who is open and inclusive—as a person who really lives into that story from Acts 8 where the Ethiopian eunuch asks Philip what… Continue reading Conflict Avoidance as Othering
Self-Reflection Prompt for JOH Blog: A thread throughout Module 4 was the link between power and the Christian faith. How did the faith that you inherited impact your relationship with and proximity to power? How did that relationship impact your approach toward our interfaith relatives? What might it look like for you to leverage, divest, or redistribute power as… Continue reading The Dominant Group Always Dominates.
During my undergrad education, I studied abroad in Israel-Palestine. A couple years later, I returned to live and work there for a year. I was working with an organization in Jerusalem which created space for Israelis and Palestinians to learn about reconciliation and form friendships with the person from the “other side.” While there were… Continue reading “who is your reconciliation work really for?”
I think my understanding of reconciliation has been shaped through three main lenses: academic, practical, and spiritual. Academically, I studied theories of reconciliation while doing my Master’s in Conflict Analysis & Resolution. John Paul Lederach was of course a biggee here. I recall reading about his describing reconciliation as the place where Justice, Peace, Truth,… Continue reading How do I understand reconciliation…
When asked who most shaped my understanding of reconciliation my answer is: the Revd Canon Paul Oestreicher. I was privileged to meet him when he was invited to Munich to speak about Coventry Cathedral’s Community of the Cross of Nails to members of the Deutsch-Britische Gesellschaft, which my father headed at the time. Then (and… Continue reading Cross of Nails
I grew up in a family of five—I (Linda) am the oldest, followed by my two younger brothers (Matthew and Paul). What began as a happy childhood was sideswiped by drugs as my brothers entered adolescence and started exploring the world of illegal substances. Our happy little family was never the same. As we turned… Continue reading Paul Janney
The first time I was taught that peacemaking is the primary work of Jesus-followers was from Elias Chacour, who came to my church in Cairo, Egypt. I was a young teen or pre-teen, and it was the first time I’d ever heard from someone who lived within a system of such bad blood, fraught history… Continue reading Growing up in Cairo/The right to take a shower
Since beginning this Journey of Hope pilgrimage, the need to slow down has been a consistent theme as I face my own pressing question—“Who must I become as a leader in order to accompany my church in her pilgrimage from the comfort of power and control to the vulnerability of community?” While that seemed counterintuitive… Continue reading Escalating Conflict…Creatively
