Protestant Identity and Peace in Northern Ireland

Abstract

What role can and do Protestant churches play in the development of peace and stability in Northern Ireland? Drawing from interviews with a wide range of Protestant clergy, this book examines how identity impacts on the Protestant imagination and relates that identity to the possibility of peace. Using history and theology as a context for understanding the principles and values on which Protestantism is built, clergy talk about how those values and principles shape different Church attitudes towards forgiveness and reconciliation. Placing these comments alongside Catholic interviews, to demonstrate differences in Christian emphasis and conviction, the book moves towards a consideration of how positive relations between opposing communities might take shape and recommends a new outlook based on inclusive rather than exclusive narratives.