I am pleased to announce that the book Roundtable Worship: A Reflective Guide is now available online at the website for JustPeace. Just go to the site (http://justpeaceumc.org/) and you’ll see it, along with a link to the full resource. It can be read on the site or downloaded free as a .pdf file for reading or printing. We will continue to add materials and plan to include a place for people to contribute their thoughts on worship in the context of reconciliation.
This little Guide has emerged from the experiences of a group that has gathered regularly over the past seven years at our church in Waynesville, NC, to explore how we can celebrate (“rehearse,” in my words) the dynamic of reconciliation and renewal at work in our world. This arose from the conviction that our activities of mediation and conflict transformation need to be grounded in deep symbols and rituals drawing on our Christian and Jewish traditions as well as on Native American circle processes.
JustPeace, the United Methodist organization for mediation and conflict transformation has been an ongoing partner and resource for this work. Its founder, Tom Porter, has just published a book about his work in mediation entitled The Spirit & Art of Conflict Transformation: Creating a Culture of JustPeace (Nashville: Upper Room Publishers). You can read more about it on the JustPeace site.
Red Clay, Blood River