Peacemaking in a troubled world
Linda Murgatroyd reflects on fear, tolerance and Adam Curle
At this time, when tensions within and between many countries and communities in the Western world have been rising, we need to remain grounded in that ‘Spirit which… delights to do no evil’, to quote James Nayler, and should not allow ourselves to become contaminated by hatred and fear.
Some of us may query the value of gestures such as the recent ‘women’s marches’ around the world, protesting against Donald Trump’s attitudes and policy statements, but they were a wonderful display of creative initiative, affirming values of tolerance, mutual respect, friendship, community solidarity and good humour, as attested by the plethora of imaginative, homemade placards and colourful costumes (including many pink woolly hats).
The atmosphere of the London demonstration was festive and good-humoured, despite the worrying events and challenges that provoked the rally. All over the place people were smiling, encountering not only strangers in the crowd but also meeting neighbours, colleagues, old friends and family members – many by chance and some by appointment. It revived people’s energies, bridged generational and community gaps, encouraging us to further action to counter the politics of fear and division, resist damaging reforms, and be hopeful for the future.
Rallies alone are not going to change things, but such activities are important for the participants as well as making public statements. The late Adam Curle, a peacemaker and educator, who worked with people of different cultures and on many continents, would have approved. Adam was the founding professor at the School of Peace Studies at Bradford University, and his work drew on a wide range of social science disciplines as well as his personal research, life experience and faith.
A Quaker for many years, in later life he added a deepening Buddhist practice. Spending time envisaging the perspectives of others preceded his engagements in mediation. His life and teaching was devoted to building peaceful relationships and he saw this as requiring inner work as well as outward engagement. He saw all our lives as interrelated, and loved the Hindu idea of ‘Indra’s net’, in which there is a bead (representing a life) at each intersection, and each bead reflects the others.
He recognised that the nature of conflicts has changed in recent years, and that mediation between national leaders alone was not sufficient. Instead, it has become increasingly important to develop the peacebuilding capacity of local communities around the globe. In the current context of worsening relationships around the world, each of us may need to hone our skills and consider what we can do. Adam Curle’s advice to his daughters and granddaughters, written a decade or so ago, was included in an unpublished memoir and is quoted in a new book on him by Tom Woodhouse and John Paul Lederach. His words seem particularly apt for today:
The fate of the world doesn’t depend on you. It would be wrong and arrogant to think it did, and to do so might make you ill: I know this from my own experience. On the other hand it would be equally wrong to think that you can contribute nothing to the peace and happiness of the world. The great relationships – between nations, communities, cultures, and religions – are built on a foundation of millions of small relations between people, between you and me, for example.
Anything we can do to bring harmony, to comfort, to give hope, to encourage another person contributes to the world’s reservoir of love. No one can or need to do anything else. But one day you may see, and then take the opportunity to do, something more. But whatever you do, nothing could be better than to be, to nourish your good heart and open it to others.
Further information: Adam Curle: Radical Peacemaker by Tom Woodhouse and John Paul Lederach is published by Hawthorn Press at £30. ISBN: 9781907359798.
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