Christian churches and development organisations in Cambodia provide the immediate context for our peace programming. Together, we mobilize community peacebuilders for effective conflict management strategies in their circles of influence.
a) About the program context of Christian Churches
As a Christian faith based organisation Peace Bridges is in a unique position of being able to connect into the many enablers offered through working in partnership with churches, Protestant and Catholic, and Christian development organisations to bring about transformation in conflict approaches in communities connected to these institutions and also the wider communities they are part of.
The Royal Government of Cambodia’s Ministry of Religions and Cults estimates that the Christian church now makes up 3% of the overall population. Furthermore, the amount of Christians, both national and international, involved in community development throughout the country is significant.
While the majority of Cambodians describe themselves as Buddhist, the Christian church is a segment of the population Peace Bridges believes warrant strategic focus for the following reasons:
- The problems Christians face in managing conflict in families and wider institutions are not significantly different to the overall population. Indeed it has been noted that church leadership styles often reflect similar values based on patronage, hierarchy, authoritarianism and distrust. Additional challenges for the churches include the influence of foreign missionaries and development practitioners, often with strong agendas of their own that may contribute to unhealthy conflict. Added to this is the tension created by emerging younger leaders, with a different mindset, usually less baggage from recent history and more opportunities for education.
- Churches and Christian development organisations have effective platforms throughout the country accessible to Peace Bridges. These platforms enable Peace Bridges to extend its reach well beyond the church to surrounding communities.
- Peace Bridges as an insider to the Christian faith has the ability to make connection with Christian spirituality and traditions that will deepen the engagement of peace making values and attitudes within trainees. As suggested by a comprehensive UNESCO sponsored study on management of local conflicts - "training programmes on conciliation, mediation and arbitration techniques must be set up in collaboration with the key partners involved…. Training programs must be fully assimilated by the people they target. It is therefore essential to design programs based on the reality of everyday life in Cambodia and that they take account both the religious framework and the traditional conventions." [1]
- Peace Bridges is having much success in nurturing Christians to values of appreciation and respect for people of other faiths. This is significant in a context where Christians often contribute to major conflict in communities through proselytizing practices or poorly thought our development approaches. Yet Christians also unfairly suffer from prejudices of others in many instances [2]
- Peace Bridges grew out a request by Church leaders who recognised a need for better conflict management approaches in their churches and the wider community.
Notes:
[1] UNESCO, “Between a Tiger and a Crocodile”, 2002, p 166[2]As an insider to the Christian community Peace Bridges is
able to engage Christians in reflective processes that deepen appreciation and
cooperation with Buddhist constituents, neighbours and family members. This is a
prerequisite to any effective interfaith dialogue and generally a great lack
within some ecumenically minded groups who no longer have influential
connections with those they claim to represent.
