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The Power of Reconciliation
The Power of Reconciliation will come to be seen as Archbishop Welby's most important book to date.
Welby writes about Reconciliation as seeking to disagree well. It relates to both religious and secular communities, from the household to the international. Conflict is widespread. With the after-effects of Covid, changes in science and technology, inequality, and increasingly polarized political and social strife, moves towards reconciliation are more necessary than ever.
Both before ordination and since Welby has seen conflict first-hand. He has spent many years working on issues of conflict around the world.
The book is full of practical advice for all those in authority on how to bring about reconciliation. There is even a step-by-step guide for this, drawn from the author's own experience.
The book is thus down-to-earth, plugged into reality and devoid of pointless optimism or a Pollyannaish view of our contemporary problems.
Furthermore, there is the dignity of difference. Today there is so much intolerance of views that are other than our own as we demonize those we do not agree with.
This revolutionary book is published in the first place for the 2022 Lambeth Conference in July, when bishops from all around the world assemble in Canterbury. But its importance goes far beyond these confines, which will nonetheless be widely reported in the media and the press. The author deals with conflict and reconciliation within families, businesses, warfare between nations, races and all forms of political conflict. The book concerns the secular sphere every bit as much as the religious, though Welby's message is Christian inspired, and the influence of Desmond Tutu strongly felt.
Welby writes about Reconciliation as seeking to disagree well. It relates to both religious and secular communities, from the household to the international. Conflict is widespread. With the after-effects of Covid, changes in science and technology, inequality, and increasingly polarized political and social strife, moves towards reconciliation are more necessary than ever.
Both before ordination and since Welby has seen conflict first-hand. He has spent many years working on issues of conflict around the world.
The book is full of practical advice for all those in authority on how to bring about reconciliation. There is even a step-by-step guide for this, drawn from the author's own experience.
The book is thus down-to-earth, plugged into reality and devoid of pointless optimism or a Pollyannaish view of our contemporary problems.
Furthermore, there is the dignity of difference. Today there is so much intolerance of views that are other than our own as we demonize those we do not agree with.
This revolutionary book is published in the first place for the 2022 Lambeth Conference in July, when bishops from all around the world assemble in Canterbury. But its importance goes far beyond these confines, which will nonetheless be widely reported in the media and the press. The author deals with conflict and reconciliation within families, businesses, warfare between nations, races and all forms of political conflict. The book concerns the secular sphere every bit as much as the religious, though Welby's message is Christian inspired, and the influence of Desmond Tutu strongly felt.
304 pages, Hardcover
Published October 18, 2022
11 people are currently reading
42 people want to read
About the author
Justin Welby
43 books11 followersJustin Portal Welby is the 105th and current Archbishop of Canterbury and senior bishop in the Church of England. Welby was formerly the vicar of Southam, Warwickshire, and most recently was the Bishop of Durham, serving for just over a year. As Archbishop of Canterbury he is Primate of All England and the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Welby's early career was in the oil industry. In 1989, he studied for ordination at St John's College, Durham. After several parochial appointments he became the Dean of Liverpool in 2007 and the Bishop of Durham in 2011.
Welby's theology is reported as representing the evangelical tradition within Anglicanism. Some of his publications explore the relationship between finance and religion and, as a member of the House of Lords, he sits on the panel of the 2012 Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards.
Welby's early career was in the oil industry. In 1989, he studied for ordination at St John's College, Durham. After several parochial appointments he became the Dean of Liverpool in 2007 and the Bishop of Durham in 2011.
Welby's theology is reported as representing the evangelical tradition within Anglicanism. Some of his publications explore the relationship between finance and religion and, as a member of the House of Lords, he sits on the panel of the 2012 Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 13, 2024
While I was still attending a United Methodist church with my father (which has since become a Global Methodist church after its split from the UMC), I occasionally went to my town's Episcopalian church due to a combination of my estrangement from my dad and my view of the Anglican Communion as liberalized Catholicism, in minor part due to my sexual liberalism and my father's church's growing intolerance towards nonheterosexuality. After obtaining vehicular freedom, I made The Episcopal Church my new denomination and eventually became baptized as a member. To date, my town's Episcopalian church remains one of very few places where I'm fully accepted.
I've mostly known during the past decade that The Episcopal Church was significantly more progressive than other Christian denominations, having Katharine Jefferts Schori as its first female Presiding Bishop and her successor, the outgoing Michael Bruce Curry, as its first African-American one. I had read Curry's Love Is the Way, and while I agreed with its general titular message, I did have some significant disagreements with him, far from theological, but more political in terms of the line between traditional family values (which had burned me throughout my life) and following Man's law, along with the standard belief among most American blacks of nonwhite infallibility.
Two years later, Justin Welby, the incumbent Archbishop of Canterbury and high primate of the Anglican Communion (and therefore my denomination's equivalent of Pope), wrote The Power of Reconciliation, which opens with a story of an ikon (an alternate spelling of icon) present in Stalingrad in December 1942 during the Second World War of the Virgin Mary and Jesus. He notes, very rightfully, that peace is always preferrable to war, and that the former is the maturity of politics and the latter the failure. Welby elaborates that death by violences spreads throughout subsequent human generations, and that historically, ancestry has defined people.
The Archbishop of Canterbury continues by mentioning different ways in which one can find an objective identity, including declarations about oneself and through relationships with others. He indicates that overreach and overspeed can mar reconciliation, since in the former case, goals tend to be unrealistic, and in the latter, peacemaking isn't an overnight process and takes time. Welby notes several obstacles to reconciliation like the need for sacrifice, perceived honor and shame, and neurochemistry due to various stimuli. He indicates various African civil wars, including those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), and that different nations across the world have divergent views of historical events.
Welby elaborates on the six Rs of the Coventry model: researching, relating, relieving, risking, reconciling, and resourcing (though I was often confused had to look online to actually determine said specific Rs since they often aren't explicitly stated throughout the book). He then moves from the theoretical to the highly practical, noting the vast challenge of difference that social media has greatly amplified, which he says should create curiosity rather than division. The Archbishop highlights a niche quote from Dr Martin Luther King Jr that Presiding Bishop Curry had mentioned that eleven o'clock Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in America, that Christians tend to go to churches full of people like themselves.
The author briefly highlights the "non-apology," an insincere apology that puts blame on victims for being offended and tend to include "if." From personal experience, I would elaborate upon this that apologies that include "but" or an excuse are non-apologies as well. He mentions the need to "disagree well," which in my case has often been difficult given that others with whom I have clashed in the past, were it in person or online, have tended not to be very civil about various disagreements. Throughout his book, he demonstrates that he is definitely with the times, given his references to various modern films like Miss Congeniality, Django Unchained, and writer J.K. Rowling.
The Archbishop highlights three examples of where reconciliation is needed, the first being climate change that threatens the habitability of major portions of the planet, especially low-lying areas and the Tropics, with individual needs of countries often not considered, along with the need for fair trade, stopping conflicts, and green technology. Second is racial and ethnic differences and divisions, which he notes are often born out of common fiction and where he cleverly weaves in the video games Tetris and Minecraft, the former being "old news" and the latter new. The third is where hatred is frequently considered the greater good, Welby noting that governments need to accommodate and adapt to divided societies.
The author concludes by mentioning that reconciliation requires courage not just from the peacebuilder but more for those caught in conflicts, noting that peace needs to be made with enemies and that the stronger must help the weaker. He ends with warnings of potential cyber and nuclear wars, which I believe could become very real within the next few years. In the end, I enjoyed Archbishop Welby's book, even though I have some disagreements with him (like being an apologist for a certain group whose name rhymes with "fat wives' bladder"). Regardless, it's an excellent philosophical read for any Christian regardless of denomination.
I've mostly known during the past decade that The Episcopal Church was significantly more progressive than other Christian denominations, having Katharine Jefferts Schori as its first female Presiding Bishop and her successor, the outgoing Michael Bruce Curry, as its first African-American one. I had read Curry's Love Is the Way, and while I agreed with its general titular message, I did have some significant disagreements with him, far from theological, but more political in terms of the line between traditional family values (which had burned me throughout my life) and following Man's law, along with the standard belief among most American blacks of nonwhite infallibility.
Two years later, Justin Welby, the incumbent Archbishop of Canterbury and high primate of the Anglican Communion (and therefore my denomination's equivalent of Pope), wrote The Power of Reconciliation, which opens with a story of an ikon (an alternate spelling of icon) present in Stalingrad in December 1942 during the Second World War of the Virgin Mary and Jesus. He notes, very rightfully, that peace is always preferrable to war, and that the former is the maturity of politics and the latter the failure. Welby elaborates that death by violences spreads throughout subsequent human generations, and that historically, ancestry has defined people.
The Archbishop of Canterbury continues by mentioning different ways in which one can find an objective identity, including declarations about oneself and through relationships with others. He indicates that overreach and overspeed can mar reconciliation, since in the former case, goals tend to be unrealistic, and in the latter, peacemaking isn't an overnight process and takes time. Welby notes several obstacles to reconciliation like the need for sacrifice, perceived honor and shame, and neurochemistry due to various stimuli. He indicates various African civil wars, including those in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), and that different nations across the world have divergent views of historical events.
Welby elaborates on the six Rs of the Coventry model: researching, relating, relieving, risking, reconciling, and resourcing (though I was often confused had to look online to actually determine said specific Rs since they often aren't explicitly stated throughout the book). He then moves from the theoretical to the highly practical, noting the vast challenge of difference that social media has greatly amplified, which he says should create curiosity rather than division. The Archbishop highlights a niche quote from Dr Martin Luther King Jr that Presiding Bishop Curry had mentioned that eleven o'clock Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in America, that Christians tend to go to churches full of people like themselves.
The author briefly highlights the "non-apology," an insincere apology that puts blame on victims for being offended and tend to include "if." From personal experience, I would elaborate upon this that apologies that include "but" or an excuse are non-apologies as well. He mentions the need to "disagree well," which in my case has often been difficult given that others with whom I have clashed in the past, were it in person or online, have tended not to be very civil about various disagreements. Throughout his book, he demonstrates that he is definitely with the times, given his references to various modern films like Miss Congeniality, Django Unchained, and writer J.K. Rowling.
The Archbishop highlights three examples of where reconciliation is needed, the first being climate change that threatens the habitability of major portions of the planet, especially low-lying areas and the Tropics, with individual needs of countries often not considered, along with the need for fair trade, stopping conflicts, and green technology. Second is racial and ethnic differences and divisions, which he notes are often born out of common fiction and where he cleverly weaves in the video games Tetris and Minecraft, the former being "old news" and the latter new. The third is where hatred is frequently considered the greater good, Welby noting that governments need to accommodate and adapt to divided societies.
The author concludes by mentioning that reconciliation requires courage not just from the peacebuilder but more for those caught in conflicts, noting that peace needs to be made with enemies and that the stronger must help the weaker. He ends with warnings of potential cyber and nuclear wars, which I believe could become very real within the next few years. In the end, I enjoyed Archbishop Welby's book, even though I have some disagreements with him (like being an apologist for a certain group whose name rhymes with "fat wives' bladder"). Regardless, it's an excellent philosophical read for any Christian regardless of denomination.
July 11, 2023
The definition of reconciliation in this book smacks one in the face … in essence it is disagreeing well with dignity, patience and respect of differences. It’s not compromising weakly so that no-one is happy. No. It is learning to disagree!
Welby criticises our world views of being defensive, armed and ready for battle, trying to get more power, being competitive rather than security through reconciliation.
He talks through the main provoker of conflict, that of ‘identity’ whether given, inherited, chosen or as a result of honour or shame. He says that our identity is actually formed in community and relationships including those we disagree with.
Then follows the need for moral imagination - a collective vision of where we want to get to and then to work towards it. He goes through in detail the Coventry Model or Reconciliation describing Research, Relating, Relieving Need, Risking, Reconciling and Resourcing.
Finally, Welby ends with a description of ‘The Difference Course’ which suggests we tackle ‘difference’ with an attitude of curiosity, being present and re-imagining.
Altogether, a very practical and insightful book.
It is full of hope and models to follow from the starting line of learning how to patiently disagree, whether that’s with ourselves, our families or nations.
Welby criticises our world views of being defensive, armed and ready for battle, trying to get more power, being competitive rather than security through reconciliation.
He talks through the main provoker of conflict, that of ‘identity’ whether given, inherited, chosen or as a result of honour or shame. He says that our identity is actually formed in community and relationships including those we disagree with.
Then follows the need for moral imagination - a collective vision of where we want to get to and then to work towards it. He goes through in detail the Coventry Model or Reconciliation describing Research, Relating, Relieving Need, Risking, Reconciling and Resourcing.
Finally, Welby ends with a description of ‘The Difference Course’ which suggests we tackle ‘difference’ with an attitude of curiosity, being present and re-imagining.
Altogether, a very practical and insightful book.
It is full of hope and models to follow from the starting line of learning how to patiently disagree, whether that’s with ourselves, our families or nations.
March 7, 2024
This is a collection of essays from a man in leadership within the Anglican Church. There is content covering the importance of reconciliation, methods and techniques for reconciliation, and some of the international and societal issues that would be benefit from reconciliation efforts.
One of his key ideas that I found thought provoking was how we are called to model Jesus. He states that because Christ’s primary mission was one of reconciliation, believers seeking to model Him should also make it one of their primary values.
Be curious
Listen carefully
Seek to understand
One of his key ideas that I found thought provoking was how we are called to model Jesus. He states that because Christ’s primary mission was one of reconciliation, believers seeking to model Him should also make it one of their primary values.
Be curious
Listen carefully
Seek to understand
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews