history of conflicts

“... Because we are human, we bring our wounds, our yearnings, our deeply held beliefs and commitments, and these often clash with what others need and want.”

We can transform conflict and be resilient by diving into the layers. My pastor and I found common ground on working on a fair compensation plan for her from the church which brought our pastoral identities together. We sat together as I introduced her to neighborhood folks so the power dynamic could shift towards her in those ways. In these ways, healing could start.

Diving into the layers, context, and history of conflicts

Debra was the first to speak. “Guess what? The Church, the Bible, our sacred traditions, the hymns that we sing, our statements of faith or creed, essentially everything that makes up our congregational life, were all shaped and formed through conflict.” Dennis nodded as he thought about his own church. “I agree, the Church didn’t come about because everyone agreed on everything. Instead, it evolved through hot negotiation, power moves, schisms, and arguments about the most profound things: like the nature of God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, sin, freedom, atonement, and also the most mundane things like which hymnal to use, how to set up the pews, whether children should be quiet or run free in church. In fact, the Church is made of many churches that often oppose each other’s theological and social doctrines and practices.” Theodora looked around the table. “Well, I think the church is a relational body. It is where people’s stories, cultures, and identities move and flow and interconnect. People’s perspectives challenge and push against each other and are often activated by personal and historical experiences, almost always driven by power dynamics. Because we are human, we bring our wounds, our yearnings, our deeply held beliefs and commitments, and these often clash with what others need and want.”

Angela tapped on her Bible. “The Church has thrived over centuries. Congregations continue to meet across the globe, growing, learning new hymns, and embracing new theologies. Conflict can be a creative force for what matters most."

Debra smiled as she added. “And because along the way we have learned about and claimed the deep spiritual gifts of grace, forgiveness, confession, repentance, redemption, hope, celebration. "But I would like to introduce the concept and practice of Restorative Justice here. Where relationships have been torn apart by conflict and injustice, we need to know how to repair and heal them. Take a look at this page."