Personal Transformations: Moving from Violence to Peace

[Jedburgh]

USIP, Apr 07: Personal Transformations: Moving from Violence to Peace

This report is neither exhaustive nor definitive. Rather, I seek to take a closer look at the phenomenon of transformation through several individual cases. How it is that in societies at war, surrounded by ideologies of violence and experiences of threat, some people nevertheless become seekers of peace, advocates and practitioners of nonviolent conflict resolution?

Summary

• Just as people become religious extremists, some of them abandon extremism and embrace peace. For some this change is a spiritual transformation, similar to religious conversion.

• Under certain circumstances stress, crisis, and trauma appear to play an important role in the process of change.

• Geographic relocation may be important for some. Migration involves novelty, insecurity, and instability, conditions that enhance vulnerability and, perhaps, openness to change.

• The transformation experienced by religious extremists involves a reorientation in outlook and direction but does not necessarily imply an alteration in basic personality structure.

• A key factor in the transition is personal relationships. Change often hinges on a relationship with a mentor or friend who supports and affirms peaceful behavior.

[marct]

Hi Jed,

Thanks for posting this. The profiles I've read so far match quite closely what I was trying to get at in another thread about "struggling with God" and the ability of someone to have very strong religious beliefs that are "fundamentalist" without resorting to violence to impose those beliefs.

Marc

[120mm]

A "real" religious extremist would be most angered by the attempts to create "heaven on earth" or attempts to "influence God." Therefore, the true religious extremist would feel no need to physically coerce others. (Or to commit acts of violence "in the name of God.")

What is loosely interpreted as religious extremism is actually a form of lack of confidence in the power of the worshipper's chosen deity. Is my God such a weakling that His Will can be defeated by the sight of a woman's face?

Religious insecurity is a much more appropriate label to apply to those who convert on the tip of the sword, and who commit acts of violence and use the religious "excuse" for pursuing violent means to an end.

"Just as people become religious extremists, some of them abandon extremism and embrace peace. For some this change is a spiritual transformation, similar to religious conversion."

This phrase is just downright insulting and disingenuous. It implies that religious extremism is violent and one cannot be religious and embrace "peace". About what I expect from the rabid humanist.

[marct]

Hi 120mm,

A "real" religious extremist would be most angered by the attempts to create "heaven on earth" or attempts to "influence God." Therefore, the true religious extremist would feel no need to physically coerce others. (Or to commit acts of violence "in the name of God.")

I'm not so sure about that. There's some interesting precedent for a belief that people are "commanded" to "build heaven on earth" - the Mennonites and Ahmish are non-violent examples. And, as for influencing God, there are tons of examples of that (mainly Christian and Jewish).

What is loosely interpreted as religious extremism is actually a form of lack of confidence in the power of the worshipper's chosen deity. Is my God such a weakling that His Will can be defeated by the sight of a woman's face?

Religious insecurity is a much more appropriate label to apply to those who convert on the tip of the sword, and who commit acts of violence and use the religious "excuse" for pursuing violent means to an end.

Now, this I agree with totally! Let me toss in one additional psychosis that also seems to play out in addition to a lack of confidence in their God(s). In religions that are based on a guilt-sin complex, there may also exist a complex that says that God chooses only to act through individual humans. These humans must "hear" God and their ability to hear God is decreased by any personal sin. Therefore, in order to hear God better, they must get rid of personal sin as much as possible. Since sin derives from temptation and temptation from the Devil it is, therefore, imperative to eliminate all the sources of temptation that may be eliminated.

This type of psychosis appears to have been one of the major factors in the witch craze's instigators (i.e. Spengler and Kramer) and, I would suggest, is a major one in large parts of the Islamist movement.

Marc

[120mm]

Most really good lies are very close to the truth. As a practical matter, those who divest themselves of "sinful" items, and practice prayer and meditation, are able to gain "wisdom".

Effort spent pursuing reproductive, or pseudo-reproductive activities, for example, result in the consumption of limited time and resources. Time spent meditating or "praying" free from distraction can be used to develop wisdom and "a long view", regardless in one's individual belief system.

The Judeo-Christian 10 Commandments have an undeniably practical purpose. A person who makes the choice to attempt to apply them to his/her own life won't go too far wrong.

The train appears to leave the tracks about the time that application departs from one individual doing this to themselves for personal reasons and decides to apply it to others.

[Tom Odom]

The train appears to leave the tracks about the time that application departs from one individual doing this to themselves for personal reasons and decides to apply it to others.

Absolutely!