From the Ground Up Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding

In recent years, religion- and culture-based approaches to conflict resolution have been implemented at both the local and regional level. The U.S. State Department, the U.S. Institute of Peace, and other governmental agencies now recognize that religious leaders, transnational religious movements, and faith-based NGOs are central players in the post Cold War era of ethnic and religious conflict. Through the Mennonite Central Committee and its International Conciliation Service, the Mennonites have been the leaders in this emerging area of expertise. This collection of essays chronicles, analyzes, and evaluates the Mennonite contribution to the new cultural paradigm in conflict resolution and peacebuilding theory and practice. Here, essayists provide a thorough account of Mennonite initiatives to prevent, resolve, or transform conflict in a variety of settings. Part One of this volume sets the subject in historical context. Part Two presents case studies of Mennonite peacebuilding in South Africa, Northern Ireland, Colombia, Nicaragua, Somalia, Liberia, Haiti, and Hebron. In Part Three, four non-Mennonite scholars look at Mennonite peacebuilding, comparing it to Quaker and secular techniques, exploring its relationship with Mennonite religious values, and assessing its strengths and weaknesses. Thoroughly researched and carefully argued, From the Ground Up is a vital resource for students and scholars of religion, diplomacy, and peacemaking.

Cynthia Sampson is an asociate at the Institute for Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University.
John Paul Lederach is Professor of Conflict Studies and Sociology at Eastern Mennonite University.