Peacemakers in Action

In January 2007 this new book will be available, Edited by David Little of Harvard and with an Introduction by Richard Holbrooke. It is the story of sixteen peacemakers from around the world who work at the grassroots level and draw from their religious convictions. There are Muslim, Jewish and Christian.

I have the privilege to be included in their number. One chapter focuses on my upbringing in Mississippi from Christian roots and then my work in Sudan where I worked with the New Sudan Council of Churches and helped Dinka and Nuer tribes use their own traditional methods to bring an end to an eight year war between them. The role of rituals in peacemaking takes a particular prominence in the chapter about my work.

The book can be ordered from Amazon or directly from Cambridge Press by using the following link:
http://www.cambridge.org/us/catalogue/catalogue.asp?isbn=0521618940

Various quotes about the book are included on the Cambridge site. They include the following:

"This is a must read for people of faith and those with doubts about the integrity of religion in our contemporary world of cultural wars and the clash of civilizations – an inspiration to all of us.” Dr. John Paul Lederach, Professor of International Peacebuilding, Joan B. Kroc Institute of International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame

“This is the single most important book published in the field of religion and conflict resolution to date because . . . it finally demonstrates the evidence of what we have all been arguing, the living examples of heroic, positive religious peacemaking, and their inherent potential to change the face of the global community, if we let them.” Dr. Marc Gopin, Author of Holy War, Holy Peace Oxford University Press, 2002)