...through a glass, darkly...
...through a glass, darkly...…from the ROM Peace Project.
Greetings again from ROM in beautiful Fuzine, Croatia. I have gained real respect for journalists who file stories and make deadlines. I had great plans for posting to this blog on a more regular basis. Now I recognize that journalists have a real advantage. They are usually observers who participate in the events that they cover coincidentally and not by design. I should have known that, as a leader, speaker, and participant I would have very little time to also play amateur journalist.
Now for the hard part - describing what has occurred here at ROM in the last few days. Week One was about developing friendships across ethnic and nationalist boundaries. In the words of William Isaacs (“Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together”) we worked on developing a relational container strong enough to hold the differences that usually surface during the second week.
On Monday of this week, Tihomir Kukolja, director of ROM, challenged everyone when he spoke of the horrors of the wars of the 1990’s in the Balkans and asked the question, “What is wrong with us here in the Balkans Café?” He reminded everyone of the history of wars and civil wars experienced by every generation for hundreds of years. He spoke of the abusive concept of identity in the region in which one’s identity includes always knowing which ethnic group are one’s enemies. He spoke of the “macho concept of history” in which myths are created about how one’s own ethnic or nationalist group is the rightful owner of certain territory and lost wars are turned into victories. He described the confusion of religion and ethnic identity in which the concept of one’s religion is entirely political and “faith” is a tool for manipulation. He spoke of the manipulation of the media by the government, nationalist, and/or ideological groups. He addressed the current state of denial and blame shifting with regard to the atrocities committed by all sides. Tihomir closed by reminding these young adults (ages 19-30) that while they are not responsible for the terrible decisions of the past, they are accountable for the future that will be in their hands.
Mounzer Fatfat, Ph.D., an advisor to the U.S. State Department in Iraq, described how he as a Muslim came also to be a follower of Jesus. He spoke of his own discovery that the principles and person of Jesus can be common ground on which Christians, Jews and Muslims can stand. He also told of how he came to forgive a lifelong friend and business associate for lying to him and cheating him in their business.
I had the opportunity to speak to the group about how to come together in community and think together with one mind. We also spoke of breaking the cycle of victimization and aggression through forgiveness. I reminded everyone that granting forgiveness does not mean saying that the offender has done no wrong. Forgiveness is an act of judgment that calls attention to the wrong done while forgoing the claims of justice. Forgiveness liberates one from the perverse communion of mutual hatred and reciprocal violence.
Last night we capped off our exploration of forgiveness by watching together the powerful film, “End of the Spear.” For those of you who have not seen the film, it is the story of the how the families of missionaries killed by a tribe in the Amazon basin went on to live with that tribe and reach them with the good news of the peace of Jesus and ended the cycle of revenge killings that had almost wiped out their population. All of us were very moved by this true story of the granting of forgiveness to the killers by the families of those killed.
For the past few days, all of us have been struggling through the complex emotions of wounded memories and recognition of complicity in a world in which exploitation, exclusion and violence are too often the norms. Many here were directly affected by the wars in the region. Many are the victims of abusive family relationships. Many who may not be victims are realizing that “their nation or tribe” is responsible for much of the violence. And we Americans are not exempt.
Every day, in our small groups, our private conversations and our life together here in Hope House, we are using our new skills and tools for dialogue and conflict resolution. And through it all we remind ourselves of the possibility of a better world if enough of us will take to heart the words of Jesus: love your enemies, forgive as you have been forgiven, seek to be a peacemaker, become a servant rather than an exploiter, seek the common good rather than your own self interest.
Greetings again from ROM in beautiful Fuzine, Croatia. I have gained real respect for journalists who file stories and make deadlines. I had great plans for posting to this blog on a more regular basis. Now I recognize that journalists have a real advantage. They are usually observers who participate in the events that they cover coincidentally and not by design. I should have known that, as a leader, speaker, and participant I would have very little time to also play amateur journalist.
Now for the hard part - describing what has occurred here at ROM in the last few days. Week One was about developing friendships across ethnic and nationalist boundaries. In the words of William Isaacs (“Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together”) we worked on developing a relational container strong enough to hold the differences that usually surface during the second week.
On Monday of this week, Tihomir Kukolja, director of ROM, challenged everyone when he spoke of the horrors of the wars of the 1990’s in the Balkans and asked the question, “What is wrong with us here in the Balkans Café?” He reminded everyone of the history of wars and civil wars experienced by every generation for hundreds of years. He spoke of the abusive concept of identity in the region in which one’s identity includes always knowing which ethnic group are one’s enemies. He spoke of the “macho concept of history” in which myths are created about how one’s own ethnic or nationalist group is the rightful owner of certain territory and lost wars are turned into victories. He described the confusion of religion and ethnic identity in which the concept of one’s religion is entirely political and “faith” is a tool for manipulation. He spoke of the manipulation of the media by the government, nationalist, and/or ideological groups. He addressed the current state of denial and blame shifting with regard to the atrocities committed by all sides. Tihomir closed by reminding these young adults (ages 19-30) that while they are not responsible for the terrible decisions of the past, they are accountable for the future that will be in their hands.
Mounzer Fatfat, Ph.D., an advisor to the U.S. State Department in Iraq, described how he as a Muslim came also to be a follower of Jesus. He spoke of his own discovery that the principles and person of Jesus can be common ground on which Christians, Jews and Muslims can stand. He also told of how he came to forgive a lifelong friend and business associate for lying to him and cheating him in their business.
I had the opportunity to speak to the group about how to come together in community and think together with one mind. We also spoke of breaking the cycle of victimization and aggression through forgiveness. I reminded everyone that granting forgiveness does not mean saying that the offender has done no wrong. Forgiveness is an act of judgment that calls attention to the wrong done while forgoing the claims of justice. Forgiveness liberates one from the perverse communion of mutual hatred and reciprocal violence.
Last night we capped off our exploration of forgiveness by watching together the powerful film, “End of the Spear.” For those of you who have not seen the film, it is the story of the how the families of missionaries killed by a tribe in the Amazon basin went on to live with that tribe and reach them with the good news of the peace of Jesus and ended the cycle of revenge killings that had almost wiped out their population. All of us were very moved by this true story of the granting of forgiveness to the killers by the families of those killed.
For the past few days, all of us have been struggling through the complex emotions of wounded memories and recognition of complicity in a world in which exploitation, exclusion and violence are too often the norms. Many here were directly affected by the wars in the region. Many are the victims of abusive family relationships. Many who may not be victims are realizing that “their nation or tribe” is responsible for much of the violence. And we Americans are not exempt.
Every day, in our small groups, our private conversations and our life together here in Hope House, we are using our new skills and tools for dialogue and conflict resolution. And through it all we remind ourselves of the possibility of a better world if enough of us will take to heart the words of Jesus: love your enemies, forgive as you have been forgiven, seek to be a peacemaker, become a servant rather than an exploiter, seek the common good rather than your own self interest.
posted by Randall E. Butler at 10:13 AM
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