the role of religious leaders in peace building

A preference for spirituality rather than religion has been seen, for example, in the United States where, as Moghadam notes, citizens are likely to subscribe to a more personal, individualized form of faith.[22] Yet, in addition to this increase in spiritual concerns, the United States remains very religious in the conventional sense. On the one hand, religious peacebuilding is simply peacebuilding done by religious actors. On its website, the commission states that it will focus on the link between immediate post-conflict efforts on the one hand and long-term recovery and development efforts on the other.[62]. National and international RNGOs are more susceptible to the attention span and priorities of international donors,[102] yet even they can be partially or completely funded by national and international religious networks. A recent extensive study on religious leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina conducted by Odak (2020) suggests four processes that facilitate a move from United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Role of Religious Leaders in Achieving Sustainable Development. Kukah, Global Peace task religious leaders on nation building The report offers an overview of the relationship between It is often cited as an example of an explicitly religious organization that is adept at using non-religious discourse, or second-order language, in creating a space where religious affiliation is not a factor in partnering with secular actors. Religious traditions are vehicles for this in their existing networks, through which peacebuilders can share best practices,[147] and in religious education, which takes daily form in preaching and school teaching. Despite numerous success stories, religious peacebuilding is still asserting its validity amidst religious violence and in a largely secular culture of academia and policymaking. religious leaders on both sides of the dispute can be mobilized to facilitate peace; protracted struggles between two major religious traditions transcend national [137] However, the corollary of this might be that religious actors share views with local actors and thus make good partners for them. WebLuc Reychler Introduction: Towards a Religion of World Politics? [108], Finally, the last category in this typology of religious peacebuilding is connection to context. Elizabeth Cousens writes, Perhaps the greatest challenge for the international community in trying to assist war-torn societies is to be ruthlessly modest about its ambitions. She specifically mentions the goals of economic liberalization and democratization, stating that the volatile processes they entail make it imperative that international actors consider carefully the form and timing of such efforts. Referring to the importance of prevention and to Galtungs emphasis on structural change, Pugh points out that peacebuilding can occur at any time,[76] and this is how Lederach, Cousens, Kumar and others understand the concept. [70] In Peacebuilding as Politics, Cousens and Chetan Kumar argue that international peacebuilding should focus on those factors that allow stable political processes to emerge and flourish.[71], Considering limited material and political resources for peacebuilding efforts, Cousens and Kumar stress the need for the international community to set priorities. Role of Religious Leaders in Achieving Sustainable Development. Sustainable peace requires not only political will from all sides, but also the collective efforts of the civil society and religious leaders.To this end JPF partner LAIN technical support group conducted a three-day Peace and Religious Leaders awareness workshop in Pekon Township, Shan State in February, as part of their efforts to support the peacebuilding initiatives in Kayah State which seek to resolve internal conflicts within the state and contribute towards lasting peace. John Joseph Hayab, called for the collaboration of religious leaders with CSOs and other stakeholders towards enhancing the sustenance of peace in Nigeria. I will share the peace knowledge I gained from this dialogue with Gorkha Hindus youth so that they are aware of the ongoing peace process, the importance of negotiation and the actual meaning of peace which is different from living in peace he added. [37] In many parts of the world, conceptions of personhood view the self as socially embedded in traditions at least influenced by religion. People who feel marginalized by peacebuilding that is sometimes hard secular or scientific materialist can perhaps better relate to processes that include religious or spiritual dimensions. The state and the institutions of state become, for many, the center of worship in wartime. Religion profoundly influences society and culture. As explained previously, the identity of religious actors is integral to the character of religious peacebuilding. To the extent that spirituality is accepted and deemed important, communities and conflict parties may perceive religious peacebuilding as legitimate because it addresses spiritual elements of conflict. While peacebuilding as defined by Galtung tends to focus on redressing specific causes of violence, Cousens and Kumar explain the importance of focusing principally on a societys political capacity to manage tensions arising from these causes.[72] They suggest focusing on what I. William Zartman and others characterize as the reinstitution of political life.[73]. A Clingendael Institute/Salam Institute study accredited a large part of the success of a meeting between Muslim and Christian leaders in Sudan to the inclusion of prayer and readings from the Koran and the Bible. Taken to the extreme, this can lead to fatalism and paralysis. There is much work to be done before there is an adequate academic understanding of what a religious approach to peacebuilding might entail. As such, these academic disciplines and their practical applications have incorporated elements of secularization theory[10] and marginalized the influence of religion in their analysis of world affairs. Web[1] Scott Appleby explains that the ambivalence of religion lies in the interpretation of the sacred, in imperfect human perception: At any given moment any two religious actors, Fr. One of the participants, Rev. Changes in the context of international relations and conflict resolution have been matched by changes internal to many religious traditions. Part of the institutional and social landscape, this peacebuilding is shaped by prevailing political and social conditions and external actors, but not wholly dependent on them. [21], In addition to this differentiation between believing and belonging, Moghadam and others note the rise of spirituality, as opposed to organized religion. While those who self-identify as spiritual are sometimes anti-religious, spiritualism includes many behaviors, beliefs, and values similar to those of religion, and thus its popularity contradicts the aspect of secularization theory that triumphs scientific materialism. [105] Before his 1980 assassination, Romero said, I have frequently been threatened with death. [1], Scott Appleby explains that the ambivalence of religion lies in the interpretation of the sacred, in imperfect human perception: At any given moment any two religious actors, each possessed of unimpeachable devotion and integrity, might reach diametrically opposed conclusions about the will of God and the path to follow. In other words, religion can underwrite both conflict and peace on its own terms. It is because of this that religious actors can play a positive role in conflicts with and without religious dimensions, not when they moderate their religion or marginalize their deeply held, vividly symbolized, and often highly particular beliefs, but rather when they remain religious actors.[52], Peacebuilding is an enterprise that is more often described than defined. [3] As Appleby notes, Religious leaders and their followers make choices as to the meaning of the sacred and the content of their faith. This deserves emphasis here because they are often presented as such, distorting or stalling debate that genuinely engages questions surrounding religions role in violent conflict. The Role of Religion in Conflict and Peacebuilding Conflict, Conflict Resolution and Peace-Building [128], Second, some individuals and groups will be hesitant or averse to working with actors of a different religion or categorically opposed to the intersection of religion and peacebuilding. Grown from Aristotelian thought, it argues for the importance of community in forming, continuing, and rejecting morality and tradition.[39]. They provide crucial leadership in protecting victims and civilians, on peace education, advocacy, local conflict resolution, community building, and healing and reconciliation. Full article: The rhetoric of love in religious peacebuilding Peacebuilding For instance, religious leaders who condemn violence often seek to distance their religion from co-religionists who have committed acts of terror or provoked violent conflict. [6] While this is an understandable impulse, labeling a religious actor or a religious movement unauthentic is ultimately misleading and unhelpful. At first glance, this can seem counterintuitive. For this typology, it may be more useful to consider, instead of the strength of motivation, the ways in which motivation is transmitted and renewed. in Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, Op-Ed on 22 June 2023. In addition, the fraternal and structural ties of religious networks raise the probability of interaction, which can increase mutuality and consistency of priorities and expectations. This Week in DPPA: 17 - 23 June 2023 However, one could also refer to the hunger strikes of Mahatma Gandhi or the self-immolation of Buddhist monks in protest of the Vietnam War. [8] These can be harnessed for engaging the vast majority of the worlds religious peopleswho are not, by the way, violent extremistsin prevention and de-escalation of conflict. Webdifferent aspects of religion were implicated either in the violence or in the building of peace, or both. Religion Readers may duplicate articles and quote from the journal without permission, provided no changes are made in the text and full credit is given to the author. We advocate for effective and principled humanitarian action by all, for all. Understanding and Supporting the Roles that Religious Leaders Religious Leadership in the 21st century: the Role of Religious In all humility we will do what we can, and in all humility we will entrust the rest to the Lord.[91], Tools. There are existing and developing spiritual practices and theological and ethical resources for hermeneutics of peace. Narendra Modi will make history on Thursday. This Week in DPPA is a brief roundup of political and peacebuilding events and developments at UNHQ and around the world. [64] In a recent work, entitled A Handbook of International Peacebuilding, Lederach lauds the expansion of conflict resolution (since the 1970s) to include alternative dispute resolution, mediation, conciliation, violence prevention, early warning systems, community reconciliation, nonviolent peacekeeping, trauma healing, second-track diplomacy, [and] problem-solving workshops. He concludes the description by saying that he has mentioned only a few of the many arenas of todays range of peacebuilding activities, yet it is significant that his handbook focuses on largely community-oriented processes.[65]. [63] Given this scope, it seems logical that peacebuilding will be defined in subtly, if not largely, different ways by its different actors. How a once-banned Modi is making history in Washington Whatever becomes of the secularization debate, the privatization of religion has had as yet its strongest influence only in the West, which represents less than one-sixth of the worlds population. The call came up in a In addition, religious traditions claim moral authority. Religion and Peacebuilding in Sub-Saharan Africa | SpringerLink UNICEF promotes social cohesion, integration & peacebuilding through engaging religious leaders in a meaningful 3-day dialogue in Erbil. 26 Jun 2023 09:30:18 UNICEF promotes social cohesion, integration & peacebuilding through engaging religious leaders in a meaningful 3-day dialogue in Erbil. Therefore, I will continue to organize peace talks and encourage peaceful discussions and dialogue among youth in order to promote friendship and mutual understanding among different communities as a grassroots level peacebuilding initiative. Cousens and Kumar advocate peacebuilding that is more limited in scope and less rigid in outcome. [2] It is an intervening variable that sometimes escalates, sometimes de-escalates conflict behavior. Yet, it also means that within each of these religions there is room for the normative tasks of conflict resolution. The Role of Leaders in Peace Building - ResearchGate [11] The roots of this tendency can be traced to the development of the modern western understanding of religion, which is markedly different from pre-modern and some non-Western understandings. [134] According to Appleby, World Vision devotes resources and programs to the topic of evangelism and leadership and trains Protestant church members to work in relief operations. Journal of Religion, Conflict, and Peace. Saw Min Lwin, from the Kayah Phu Baptist Association in Demoso Township in Kayah State, shared his view on the role of that religious leaders in Myanmar can play in the peace process. He writes: Because we in modern society have walked away from institutions that stand outside the state to find moral guidance and spiritual direction, we turn to the state in times of war. However, to the extent that local manifestations of religion accept and teach the peaceful doctrines of their traditions, they can contribute to the development of indigenous peacebuilding or what Appleby calls the saturation mode of peacebuilding. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effects of socio-demographic factors on ethnic tolerance (ET) and religious tolerance (RT) as well as the participation of the local community in peacebuilding in post-ethnic violent conflicts in a multi-cultural society. Web(Ulam) to build an inclusive and peaceful society. They are often in Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah and a group, Global Peace Foundation have decried the situation where Nigerians lived with mental challenges and called on government to provide support systems that would bring succour in such cases. [87] Generalizing, the anthropology of religion states that humans cannot have all of the answers and that human action is often insufficient. Durable solutions to the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar, End of Mission Statement: Thomas Andrews, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar (Jakarta, Indonesia - 21 June 2023) [EN/ID], Counting Myanmars Dead: Reported Civilian Casualties since the 2021 Military Coup, Public interest infrastructure: Digital alternatives in our data-driven world and journalism's role getting there. Subscribe to our channel for the latest updates on Russias war in Ukraine. Movotlin is an open source application that has been developed using modern android development tools and features such as viewing movies by different genres, the ability to create a wish list, the ability to search for movies by name and genre, view It has information such as year of production, director, writer, actors, etc. The Role of Religion in Peace Building Lederachs pyramid of peacebuilding actors includes three levelstop, middle-level and grassroots leadersyet, he is known for emphasizing middle-out and bottom-up approaches. Yet the end of a process of engaging with such understandings, especially in contexts of peacebuilding, may be much broader than the borders of any one tradition.[46]. Herein lies the greatest potential of religious peacebuilding: the capacity to transcend the boundary of peacebuilding as a field of external expertise. [96] Scholars such as Lederach and Walter Brueggemann write that the moral imagination and the prophetic imagination are essential to peacebuilding. Yet, impact is still determined not only by the degree of religious presence, but also by the degree of experienced peacebuilding capacity. He urged religious leaders who he believe have a role to play in bringing healing and infusing hope into victims of trauma to rise up to the occasion and use their God-given platforms to provide care, preach social cohesion and contribute to nation building. During this time, I worked as a freelancer on projects to improve my android development skills. Galtung associates peacebuilding with positive peace, meaning the cessation of structural and cultural violence or the creation of a self-sustaining peace.[69] Yet, in its task of consolidating the gains of peacemaking and peacekeeping, for instance as part of UN missions, peacebuilding must be concerned as well with the negative task of preventing relapse into conflict. According to Michael Hirsch, the Bush administration dismissed veteran State Department Arabists during the crucial months of 2002 and 2003, and instead consulted scholars like Bernard Lewis, author of What Went Wrong? LAIN will conduct a peace process awareness workshop for the State-level armed forces in Kayah State and the workshop is expected to receive about 30 participants. [97] Religious peacebuilding might also emphasize the importance of prayer, silence, or meditation. [47] Even when this need is not manifest violently, recognition of it can cause fear of loss of identity and so be an impediment to peacebuilding. [36] Within this current of change, some religious leaders and groups have an increased interest and capacity in conflict resolution. Peacebuilding with the benefit of access to religious communities and institutions is significant, according to the particular relationship of a religious tradition with its host society. [120] This was the case when U.S. churches opposed the start of the war in Iraq. The United Nations has limited peacebuilding to post-conflict situations. Thanks to @KfW_FZ_int, the dialogue has amplified the role of religious leaders toward #sustainable behavior change at the community level. In terms of length of engagement, religious peacebuilding is markedly different from the efforts of many secular NGOs and of the international community, as described by Cousens and Kumar. Nonetheless, when they find it necessary and are able to oppose a nation-state heading to war, religious peacebuilding can offer people the power of an alternative, often combined with the comfort of affiliation with a long-standing authority. The Vice Chair of the Kayah State Interfaith Group, U Kyaw Myint Oo, highlighted the importance of including all voices in the peace process. The call came up in a programme organised by the Nigerian KAICIID Fellows in collaboration with Global Peace Foundation Nigeria, Cardinal Onaiyekan Foundation for Peace, The Interfaith Mediation Centre and O-Trauma Victims Initiative. The Global Peace Foundation Nigeria has called on religious leaders to take care of traumatized people and build social cohesion. It also illustrates a significant distinction between religiosity among domestic populations and religious literacy in international affairs.
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