Role of St Ethelburga’s

I am most grateful for this invitation to contribute to the series
on Faith and Identity and to assure St Ethelburga’s
and all associated with it that its role as a platform for discussions
of this nature is becoming widely accepted. Born out of the devastation
caused by the bombing in 1993 the vision you share allows such
as myself to draw aside from the activities of reconciliation to
ponder at some depth on the lessons we are learning. A few weeks
ago my colleague, Archbishop Sean Brady, contributed to this series
and as I have said in public since, his words of integrity and
vision were appreciated far beyond St Ethelburga’s.

In this lecture I want to examine the broad field of reconciliation
in conflict situations and basing my words on personal experience
to attempt some conclusions which I hope may be of interest to
you.

For the past 41 years I have exercised ordained ministry in the
Anglican Church in Ireland, the Church of Ireland, and for 29 of
those years as a bishop and Archbishop I have served my Church
through periods of prolonged violence and now the search in Northern
Ireland for a lasting peace. I have been privileged to see the
heights and nobility individual people of faith have reached in
their daily experiences of life – but I have also seen the
depths of hatred and division which terrorism and sectarianism
can produce in any society. On a wider scale my involvement in
international affairs through the work of the Anglican Communion
has given me some insight into the complexities of disagreements
and problems between diverse cultures across the world. On both
levels I have seen at first hand the pain and suffering of alienation,
rejection and human need.

It is on such a basis that I place my remarks this evening for
there are common denominators to the human condition which question,
challenge and inform the person of faith in today’s world
of suffering. While my approach and my conclusions come from my
Christian and Anglican commitment I feel the reconciler of any
faith tradition should be able to recognise and act upon basic
principles. Text-book agendas have never in my experience been
able to match the impact of personal experience.

The power of memory

First, I suggest we need to appreciate the power of memory in
any situation of conflict.

Northern Ireland is today a place of widespread and divisive
memory. This exists not just on a community basis but in the hearts
and minds of individuals. “Living in the past” is
a frequent description attributed to others and all too rarely
to ourselves.

On the individual level there are many in my homeland today who
carry with them deep, angry and negative memories of the past.
During the thirty years of widespread violence few family circles
in Northern Ireland escaped the loss or serious injury to a loved
one or to someone they knew. Both Protestant and Roman Catholic
homes and parishes suffered. Photographs on a mantle-place or plaques
on a church wall bear testimony to human loss and misery. Men,
women and little children were affected. Memories of those sacrifices
run deep. I cannot adequately express my admiration for those who
have turned such memories into positive and wonderful means of
facing the future with faith and courage. Examples of those who
have turned such memories into examples of reconciled faith shame
the perpetrators of death and destruction and provide such hope
for the future. However there are many whose memories of the past
remain ones of anger and resentment and dictate their attitudes
to the present and the future. No one has the right to condemn
out of right such attitudes towards the pain of the past. Memories
are a very personal matter. But there can be no doubt the power
of negative memory is a keen and significant ingredient in Northern
Ireland life today.

When we turn to communities the same principles appear. The Protestant
or loyalist community harbours resentment at the attacks it suffered
from what it perceives to be Roman Catholic or Republican sources
and in particular the attacks of Republican paramilitarism, the
Provisional IRA. Roman Catholics recall the actions of loyalist
paramilitaries who have in turn wrought immense suffering on the
Roman Catholic population. Allied to these events are other ingredients
to division. Sectarian attitudes inherited for generations on both
sides of the divide, the misuse of political power and the denial
of that power for years to others, the failure of either side to
fully understand the political or religious identity of the other,
and the suspicions of the real intentions of each other’s
political or religious aspirations for the future. Trust, basic
trust, has been the most obvious victim of those years of the Troubles.
Today we see how deep the loss of trust has been. Today we see
the power of memories of real or imagined hurt to be obstacles
to community and individual progress.

How we deal on an individual or community basis with memory is,
I am convinced, a key to the future well-being or otherwise of
that whole community.

For the Christian, the Gospel imperative surely remains the recognition
that the past, the present and the future, remain in the reconciling
reality of a triune Godhead. Human experience stands beside the
eternal nature of that presence. It is encompassed and embraced
by it. The eternal nature of that Presence is the ultimate reality
of human experience. But it also involves the person of faith in
understanding and reaching out in active reconciliation to the
healing of memory.

There are many ways a community can deal with memory. I have
seen how people of faith in the Middle East have striven to heal
individual hurt in Gaza and Israel. I have seen the humanitarian
efforts to heal memories in Uganda. I have seen the heroic coming
to terms with the past in South Africa. I have also seen the hesitant
yet growing in confidence efforts of many in Northern Ireland to
face up to the past. I have to conclude several things from those
experiences:

• reconciliation of the past cannot be hurried


• reconciliation of the past involves great courage and sacrifice


• reconciliation of the past demands at times self-sacrifice
  and leadership
• reconciliation of the past is essential if any step forward
  is to be realistic and lasting


• reconciliation of the past involves forgiveness

In South Africa and in several South American nations efforts
such as Truth and Reconciliation Commissions have been attempted
as a practical means of achieving some of these aims. It is clear
to me that there cannot be a generalised agenda for such Commissions.
Conditions in any country will be highly individualistic. We cannot
expect one model to adapt completely to any individual condition.
This process involves general acceptance of a need and a determination
to make it succeed. The timing is vital. Issues such as immunity
from prosecution, acceptance of the disclosure of details of the
past which could easily open fresh wounds and protection from community
reaction to confessions of the past are all essential to this process .
Is a community ready to take one or all of those steps?

The real victims of past tragedy are those who want to know what
happened and why. They want to know what happened to the ‘disappeared’, they
want to find some degree of justice whatever that means. They want
to know. But they also want people to hear their story, to be listened
to. Too many feel no one cares any more to listen. It is how others
listen that determines reconciliation and healing. “Known
only to God” is an emotive but a real factor in Northern
Ireland today. No process of a Commission which is a substitute
to ‘solving past crimes’ by itself is a
realistic manner of dealing with the memories of the past. We cannot
confuse the solution of past crimes with widespread reconciliation.
There are many unsolved crimes in Northern Ireland’s past.
But reconciliation is something different. To ‘draw
a line in the sand’, to close the door on the past
will be an achievement of immense human endeavour. It will also
be an achievement demanding sensitivity and prior acceptance of
risk of a high order.

Reconciliation is strength

Second, we must recognise that reconciliation is not a word of
weakness – it is an experience of human strength and I would
add a Christian imperative.

My understanding of the Gospel imperative in this regard is summed
up in the command ‘to live peacefully as far as possible
with all .’ The ‘hard Gospel’ demands
the depths of love we saw at Calvary where the prayer for forgiveness
was completely identified with the Sacrifice of Christ. Sacrifice
and forgiveness were interwoven. One element was submerged in the
other.

Reconciliation between individuals and communities demands a
sacrificial nature to forgiveness.

I can recall this evening unbelievable acts of forgiveness by
individuals in the past which called for admiration and condemnation
by others in almost equal quantities. The father of a young nurse
killed in the Enniskillen bombing who prayed for the terrorists.
The mother whose little child died because she was in the wrong
place at the wrong time, who prayed that others would not have
to face the same situation. We have seen immensely moving examples
of sacrificial forgiveness and attitudes which have questioned
and challenged our own perceptions. But equally many have responded
to individual tragedy with understandable resentment and anger
and little evidence of forgiveness. As I have said we cannot condemn
such reaction out of hand – we have to try to understand.

This ‘trying to understand’ has been in
my experience a key part and perhaps the most important mechanism
of the reconciliation process.

Speaking here a few weeks ago Archbishop Brady appealed for people
in Northern Ireland to go ‘a further step.’ I
would add to that call these words : people need to try harder
to understand how and why others believe what they do. It is a
Christian imperative to reach out to others but it is equally a
Gospel demand that we see through other eyes as well as our own.

Roman Catholics and Nationalists in Northern Ireland need to
understand the uncertainty and apprehension of their Protestant
neighbours so far as the future is concerned. Perceptions become
realities in Northern Ireland in an instant. The perceptions of
many in the Protestant community is that their ethos, their political
aspiration and their stability as a community is being eroded by
over-attention on the part of government to demands from Republicanism.
There is a perception that demand after demand is being granted
with little or no evidence that the position of traditional unionism
is being protected. That perception surfaces from time to time
but it is vivid and real. Given the sensitivities of the Peace
Process the danger is that if such a perception exists it can become
the reality. The fact is that Sinn Fein commands a majority political
position within the northern nationalist community. To Protestant
eyes this fact calls for a clear and honest understanding of their
perception. It also substantiates their longing to see a complete
end to paramilitary threat or pressure from within the Republican
community.

Paramilitary influence controls life in many working-class Protestant
and Roman Catholic areas. Allied to attacks of a sectarian nature
on individuals because of their religious or political identity
protection rackets, drug distribution and intimidation through
such as punishment beatings continue. Loyalist gangs continue to
attack Roman Catholics. Protestants fear Republican gangs. So much
so that many ask ‘Peace Process – what peace process?’ It
is also true that alienation from democratic political processes
is a growing element. Politicians of all traditions need to take
this seriously.

Also, what happens once we reach a general point of end
to paramilitary activity? How will so-called normal life operate? For
many paramilitarism is a way of life – a fact of life. How
will society accommodate those who have found status and social
activity because of paramilitarism? What replaces the criminal
activities of these groupings? Has society alternatives to offer
once it all ends?

Equally to see the situation through other eyes demands that
political Protestantism understands the reason for years of perceptions
by nationalists that they had no real input to their experiences
of government. Protestants today are experiencing the inevitable
emotions of the changes brought about by alterations to the balance
of political power. As with reconciliation itself readjustment
takes time. But Roman Catholic alienation for years was a reality
Protestants must accept. Today the political peace process has
brought new recognition, new power and new opportunities for those
who felt that alienation. It calls for sensitivity by them.

In truth a major step forward calls for even more than understanding
of each other’s fears. It calls for forgiveness and the open
understanding we have all contributed to the fears of others.

I have used the term ‘political peace process’ deliberately.
There are various strands to the Irish peace process. Political
development is just one part. But no political development such
as power-sharing can by itself deliver reconciliation or stability.
It can help – but unless there is confidence on the ground,
unless there is trust between ordinary people and unless communities
really want stable accommodation political progress alone cannot
deliver real peace. The current stalemate in the political process
is leaving a dangerous vacuum which permits apprehension and instability
to flourish. It must reach a conclusion sooner rather than later
for the good of both communities.

The effort to understand the feelings of others does not demand
total acceptance to the views of others, but it does demand understanding
which is the key to long-term reconciliation.

As an Anglican I have long believed in ‘unity in diversity’. Diversity
of outlook is an accepted norm of human experience. It can be a
strength. It can equally be a weakness. It is all in how it is
understood and practiced.

Archbishop Brady rightly appealed for a recognition by Protestants
and unionists of Roman Catholic and nationalist aspirations. Roman
Catholics must seek to understand the apprehensions of the Protestant
and unionist community.

I have been described as the ‘divine optimist’ in
my work in Northern Ireland and further afield. I believe in the
good sense and decency of the ordinary person. I believe also that
the peace process in Northern Ireland will depend on its success
not just on political progress but on the attitude of decent Protestants
and Roman Catholics – and there are thousands of them. Together
they can build a good future for their children. Apart, they will
guarantee years of distrust and alienation.

Role of the Church

Finally, I want to suggest that in this violent world the Church
has a role to play which it does not always appreciate.

Recently the Archbishop of Canterbury acknowledged that but for
the work of the Churches the tragic consequences of the years of
The Troubles in Northern Ireland would have been much worse. Such
a conclusion is for someone outside the immediacies of the situation
to make. As one who has lived through those years I cannot but
be encouraged by such an opinion.

The truth is that the local Church of all traditions has been
at the forefront of the suffering and division. History will record
the individual courage and faithful ministry of clergy and devoted
people. We have developed in those years what I call ‘instantaneous
pastoral theology’ whereby we have reacted to situations
without the benefit of text-books and in a basic Christian way
of answering basic human need. Only now have we the luxury of standing
back to question or analyse our work in real detail. We made mistakes,
we were at times too identified with ‘the needs of our
people’, we were ambiguous at times about long-term
positions – but we were there.

I am convinced that in all situations of division and suffering
individual acts of courage or vision have much greater impact than
formal statements or positions by institutions. Therefore I commend
without reservation the work of individual clergy and dedicated
Church laity.

Equally on an international basis understanding how others think
and act as they do is a major stepping stone to reconciliation. How
much are the fears of Palestinians taken on board by Israel? How
much are the genuine uncertainties of Israelis understood by Palestinians?
How much did Britain and the United States take on board the complexities
of the diverse religious traditions in Iraq when they planned a
post-war strategy for that country?

Seeing through each other’s eyes is a demanding and sacrificial
process. Without it there will be grave restrictions to the freedom
of movement towards stability and peace in any conflict.

So, I submit these general principles for your consideration.

As a Christian Church Leader I turn back time and again to the
imagery of the Calvary experience. Forgiveness is sacrificial.
But forgiveness in which there is the great ingredient of sacrifice
is a powerful and in the end a history-moving objective.