Peace and Reconciliation

Newsletter December 2005

The two programs offered this year to those committed to peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland differ in design, yet both delivered these outcomes:

• A new boldness and courage to keep on in the face of obstacles and intimidation
• Unique distinctions and tools that dramatically multiply the participants' power and effectiveness
• Connection to a network of others like themselves that they continue to call on and use

Intensive I, which was held in September, is called that for good reason. It promises and delivers a breakthrough in the difference the 40 grassroots activists who took part are able to make - and these are individuals who are only invited to the program because they are already recognized as making an extraordinary difference in their communities.

Intensive I is designed around a direct encounter with the issues of identity and the past which stand in the way of reconciliation. It asks participants to confront the trap of living into a future that will, in many ways, be determined by and repeat the past - a future that allows us to hang on to our positions but in return costs us any new possibilities.

The result of this encounter and the subsequent work on self-imposed limitations is a transformation or shift - not just in the view of the world at hand, but a shift in the ability to deal with that world with much more power.

In addition to the participants from across Northern Ireland, this year we included four participants from our work in Mississippi. Liz Jones and William Ndishabandi, both Episcopal priests; Stephen Cook, a Methodist minister; and Leila Wynn, an Episcopal lay woman - all from Greenville, Mississippi - participated as a final part of a two-year commitment to empower leadership in the churches in the Greenville area. Our Sponsors also continued their enthusiastic support beyond making the generous donations that make these programs possible. Four Sponsors took the time to participate in Intensive I, and seven sponsors participated in Intensive II. Their connection to our participants and our work continues to be an important source of inspiration for everyone involved.

Intensive II, which took place in November, is advanced work for those who have already participated in Intensive I and want further training and development in the distinctions and tools the Mastery Foundation offers.

This year, Intensive II was held in Belfast. It was our first course in the largest city of Northern Ireland, and the welcome was warm and generous. BT (the modern name for British Telecom), as part of their corporate outreach to the community, donated not just the meeting space we used but the lunchtime meals and all the break refreshments.

We were also welcomed with a reception at Belfast City Hall hosted by the Lord Mayor, Councillor Wallace Browne. More than 50 guests ventured out in the midst of a gale for the event honoring the work of the Mastery Foundation and the grassroots leaders we serve in Belfast and Northern Ireland.

This year Intensive II was designed around the theme of "Having a Conversation After Someone Says No," since success in cross-community work often depends on enlisting the support of those who are reluctant, indifferent, or even hostile to being part of a new conversation. For three days the 40 participants worked in small groups to develop their ability to distinguish an authentic "no" and to take part in the kinds of difficult conversations that keep people stuck in place because no one is really listening to anyone else.

One person who participated in both Intensives said afterward, "Reconciliation is a way of being, not simply an ethic or cultural attitude. So it was life-giving to realize that I am not alone in my desire to make a difference. There is a whole Mastery network out there - all of us from different faiths, different countries, different races, different professions - committed to making a difference and to building society differently."