Peacemaking

We were heading towards Pacheco Pass with the Gypsy Kings singing their ballads on the CD player. It was one of those cherished moments when time seemed suspended in perfection. I turned down the music and said to Steve, “You know, I think this was one of the most profound weeks of my life. I really felt like we were among the heavy weights of the peacemaking world!”

In preparation for our time in Uganda, Steve and I had the opportunity to spend an amazing and inspiring week attending the Basic Institute in Conflict Management at the Center for Peacemaking and Conflict Studies in Fresno. The Center is part of the Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary at Fresno Pacific University. Ron Claassen and Dalton Reimer, the professors who offered the training have an obvious commitment and decades of experience in peacemaking. The two of them have made the rubber hit the road in ways that academicians rarely do. Dalton has developed Peace Institutes in areas of conflict around the globe, and Ron has implemented conflict mediation in some of the most emotional and difficult circumstances.

Have you ever had the pleasure of hearing a story that is so well told that it transports you in time and place? Images come alive and the story, though told only in words, seems to be experienced with all your senses. Such were the stories that Dalton told each morning for the first hour of our studies. The stories were from Genesis. I fell in love with the Book of Genesis; it came alive for me in a way it never has before. Each story revealed an account of conflict, and a different human response to that conflict. Cain’s response to the conflict with his brother, Abel, was to take Abel’s life. Jacob’s initial response to conflict was to flee in order to avoid the conflict that would arise when his brother, Esau, realized his inheritance had been usurped by Jacob. Many years later when Jacob returned to his home country he sent out emissaries, gifts and praise to Esau in hopes to appease him- the conciliatory approach to conflict. Joseph’s style of resolving conflict with his brothers, who had sold him into slavery, was total reconciliation- he offered forgiveness. But even beyond that he offered protection for them when they were in harms way. Taking a life, avoiding conflict, conciliation, and reconciliation. These represent the gamut of choices humans have to respond to conflict. As Peacemakers we try to help people and communities acknowledge their conflicts, and work towards the reconciliation end of the spectrum.

Ron had example after example that brought life to the mediation techniques he was teaching. Most inspiring to me was the work he is doing in the area of restorative justice. Ron secured funding from the California Endowment to implement a system of Restorative Justice for certain offenses by minors in Fresno County. Restorative Justice brings the offender and the victim together, if each is amenable. The victim has the opportunity to fully express to the offender exactly the extent of impact the crime had on their life. The offender acknowledges that he is responsible for the crime, apologizes, and proposes solutions to restore the damage (s)he has done. The result is that “injustice is recognized, the equity is restored (restitution and grace), and the future is clarified so that participants are safer, more respectful, and more empowered and cooperative with each other and society” (Restorative Justice – Fundamental Principles; Ron Claassen 1995 http://peace.fresno.edu/rjprinc.html).

While we learned a great deal about mediation and Peacemaking during the week, we certainly have a long ways to go on this learning curve. Thankfully there are MCC staff in Uganda who have extensive training in peacemaking skills and experience in using them. As a result of this training, Steve and I will be in a better position to support the MCC staff in the work they do to help repair the broken relationships and fractured communities in post-war Uganda.