CELTIC   MAY   TERM   2016
COURSE   OVERVIEW
WHY   SCOTLAND   AND   NORTHERN   IRELAND?
Our   answer   is   simply   this:    There   is   no   better   place   in   the   world   to   understand   the   complexities   and   challenges   to   bringing   about   peace   and   reconciliation   than   in   these   two   countries   sharing   a   common   Celtic   heritage.
Scotland   and   Northern   Ireland   afford   us   the   opportunity   to   learn   about   conflict,   peace ‐ building,   and   reconciliation   without   language   barriers.
We   engage   a   life   changing   study/travel   experience   in   faith,   communication,   and   community   with   the
Scottish   Iona   Christian   Community   and   the   Corrymeela   Community   in   Northern   Ireland.
By   understanding   the   centuries ‐ long   histories   of   social,   ethnic,   sectarian,   and   political   conflict   that   have   helped   shape   these   nations,   we   can   explore   the   efforts   by   many   groups   to   bring   about   lasting   peace   and   reconciliation.
The   Celtic   May   Term   will   address   the   broad   themes   of   community   in   faith,   peace   building,   intergroup   dialogue,   and   Celtic   culture   and   history.
To   help   us   more   fully   understand   and   appreciate   each   of   these   broad   themes,   participants   will   be   asked   to   do   each   of   following:
1) IMAGINE   new   ways   of   engaging   Christian   faith   in   a   secular   world   through   the   study   of   reconciliation   and   community.
2) DISCOVER   the   ancient   practice   of   pilgrimage   and   recognition   of   sacred   space,   or   as   Phil   Cousineau   put   it,   “ the   art   of   reimagining   how   we   walk,   talk,   listen,   see,   hear,   write   and   draw   as   we   ready   for   the   journey   of   our   soul’s   deep   desire ”   (The   Art   of   Pilgrimage:   The   Seeker’s   Guide   to   Making   Travel
Sacred,   Conari   Press,   1998).
3) PRACTICE   the   principles   of   intergroup   dialogue   and   learn   how   dialogue   can   build   common   ground,   understanding,   and   healing
4) LEARN   quantitative   and   qualitative   research   methodologies   by   conducting   interviews   and   analyzing   data.
5) EXPLORE   specific   cross ‐ cultural   practices   of   peace   and   reconciliation   in   depth   by   interviewing   former   combatants   and   active   peace   builders.
6) ENGAGE   the   popular   culture,   people,   art,   literature,   and   history   of   Scotland   and   Northern   Ireland   from   500A.D.
to   the   present
7) UNDERSTAND   how   local   peace ‐ building   can   create   bridges   for   conflicting   groups   in   deeply   divided   societies.
8) QUESTION   the   policies   of   post ‐ conflict   community   building:   How   can   real   and   lasting   reconciliation   be   sustained?
Whose   narrative   is   driving   policy   responses?
What   role(s)   do   identities   play   in   reconciliation?
What   creates   unity   in   the   context   of   contested   identities   and   narratives?
What   meaning   and   memory   do   memorials   –   from   parades   to   sacred   holidays   to   murals   –   play   in   remembering   a   society   to   future   reconciliation   after   active   violence   subsides?
What   roles   does   religion   –   as   faith,   as   civil   society,   as   ethnic   marker   –   play   in   conflict,   identity,   memory,   and   ultimately   to   reconciliation?