Description
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewAcademic peace study programs frequently ignore religion as a partner in pursuit of conflict resolution. These 24 essays advocate religion as a vital, if partial, participant in any serious pursuit of lasting peace. Religion's absence in peace studies--and peacemaking--is a crippling lack. Contributors to this volume present casebook studies of religious groups involved in recent conflict resolution--successes and failures alike. Brief but nuanced accounts of several religious traditions, with their ambivalent histories of war and peace efforts, are excellent summaries of those traditions, and also show how they have fallen short of their ideals. Some religious groups, only rarely at the table, present the unique witness they have maintained, often in the face of persecution or marginalization because of their relative size or beliefs and practices at odds with dominant religions. The essay on military chaplains stands out, as it discusses going beyond the unarmed morale officer for war-weary troops, to becoming a middle-range actor in affirming that those outside the military unit are not 'other.' The essays demonstrate in diverse ways that religion can be the source of conflict, but also a source of peace building, tolerance, and peaceful coexistence. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above; general readers. * CHOICE *
This volume will be a useful counterpoint for those who associate religious bigotry and scapegoating with the advent of many violent clashes in the world, as well as a valuable pedagogical aid in the philosophical teaching about peace and conflict studies. Religion is only one somewhat inconsistent source in the development of public morality and norms which lead to conflict resolution, but it is undoubtedly an important one and subject to much misunderstanding; battles over faith and belief or between religion and science may be among the most challenging to resolve. The reader will grapple with many such contentious issues, not least the relationship between religion and human rights, the proper place of religion in political life and the most advisable balance between religious and secular institutions. -- Fred Pearson, Wayne State University
This book provides insightful views of the place of religion in peace and conflict studies. Its amazingly wide, yet deep, reports of diverse religions’ approaches to peace and conflict offer specific paths to peacebuilding. The editors have assembled excellent contributors, with great knowledge about and experience with the important topics they examine. Every reader will learn about more and better ways that peace can be advanced at many different levels from this work. -- Louis Kriesberg, Syracuse University
This is an important and exciting book with depth as well as breadth of coverage of the role of religion and religious actors in peace building work. The diverse and rich case studies and the theme of constructively addressing ‘religious illiteracy’ should make it a useful volume for students, researchers, and a wide variety of practitioners. -- Siobhan McEvoy-Levy, Butler University
These insightful essays and informative case studies gathered by Matyok and Flaherty will help readers understand why developing peace literacy is not only something many religious believers consider essential, but also why developing religious literacy is essential for those studying and working toward peace. Peace on Earth: The Role of Religion in Peace and Conflict Studies provides valuable tools to help peace scholars, peace educators, and peace activists alike better understand roles religion and religious actors play today in both conflict and peacemaking. -- Jennifer S. Bryson, Witherspoon Institute
Table of ContentsChapter One: Can People of Faith, and People in Peace and Conflict Studies, Work Together? Thomas Matyók and Maureen Flaherty Part I: Peace and Conflict Studies in a Contextualized Place Chapter Two: Religion, Peace and Violence: Tensions and Promises David Creamer and Christopher Hrynkow Chapter Three: Ahimsa: A World without Violence? Klaus Klostermaier Chapter Four Blessing-Based Love (Agape) As a Heuristic to Understanding Effective Reconciliation Practices: A Reading of I Corinthians 13 In a Peacebuilding Context Vern Neufeld Redekop Part II: Religions and Peace and Conflict Studies Chapter Five: Catholic Peacemaking: A History and Analysis with Special Emphasis on the Work of the Community of Sant ’Egidio John Perry Chapter Six: Evangelical Women and Transformative Peacebuilding Kristen Lundquist, Hien Vu, and Chris Seiple Chapter Seven: Judaism and the Path to Peace Michael Lerner Chapter Eight: Islam and Peace and Conflict Studies Nathan Funk Chapter Nine: The Role of Indigenous African Religion in Peacemaking Hamdesa Tuso Chapter Ten: Aboriginal Peoples’ in Canada and the Role of Religion in Conflict: The Ever Elusive Peace Paul Nicolas Cormier Chapter Eleven: Mennonite International Peacebuilding and Local Ownership Chuck Thiessen Chapter Twelve: Let Us See What Love Can Do: Quaker Contributions to Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation Vernie Davis Chapter Thirteen: Haïtian Vodou: Peace Begins Within Margret Mitchell Armand Chapter Fourteen: Eastern Orthodox Christianity: Provocations and Challenges for a Just Peace in an Era of Conflict and Global Transition Harry Anastasiou Chapter Fifteen: Ancient News from Buddha’s Research Lab: the Role of Buddhism in Peace and Conflict Settings Katharina Bitzker Chapter Sixteen: Hinduism: War, Peace, and Peace and Conflict Studies S. I. Keethaponcalan Chapter Seventeen: Daoist Harmony as a Chinese Worldview Yueh-Ting Lee, Honggang Yang, and Min Wang Chapter Eighteen: Humanity’s Coming of Age: A Bahá’í View of the Process toward World Peace Charles Egerton Chapter Nineteen: Religious Leader Engagement: Military Chaplains Engaging Indigenous Religious Leaders and Their Communities in Operations (Voices from the International Chaplaincy Community) S. K. Moore Part III: The Way Forward: Four Faith Models Chapter Twenty: Striving for Justice and Peace on Earth, Catholic Peace Initiatives Ismael Muvingi Chapter Twenty-One: Peacebuilding Principles and Values in Islam: Beyond the Basic Framework Mohammed Abu-Nimer Chapter Twenty-Two: Peace on Earth: The Anabaptist-Mennonite Perspective Lois Edmund Chapter Twenty-Three: Neve Shalom/Wahat al-Salam: the ‘Oasis of Peace’ Deanna Armbruster Chapter Twenty-Four: Conclusions: Peace on Earth Revisited Hamdesa Tuso, Jessica Senehi, and Sean Byrne
