Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) is an accredited graduate-level program founded in 1994. It also offers non-credit training. The program specializes in conflict transformation, restorative justice, trauma healing, equitable development, and addressing organizational conflict. CJP is housed at Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) in Harrisonburg, Virginia, which describes itself as "a leader among faith-based universities" in emphasizing "peacebuilding, creation care, experiential learning, and cross-cultural engagement." One of the three 2011 Nobel Peace Laureates, Leymah Gbowee of Liberia, earned a master's degree in conflict transformation from CJP in 2007.
History The Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) is anchored in two currents within the Mennonite stream of Christianity: Its tradition of helping people suffering from violent conflict or natural calamities, regardless of their religion or ethnicityAmy Worden and David O'Reilly. "Mennonites Have Tradition of Service," The Philadelphia Inquirer, www.philly.com/inquirer/local (10 August 2010). Retrieved 24 January 2011. Its renunciation of all forms of violenceR. Scott Appleby, The Ambivalence of the Sacred – Religion, Violence and Reconciliation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2000), p. 144. Stuart Murray, The Naked Anabaptist – The Bare Essentials of a Radical Faith (Herald Press, 2010), pp. 117-134. Also see "Mennonites and Peace" entry in the Oxford International Encyclopedia of Peace (2010).
Relieving Suffering The founding of the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding grew in part out of the work of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). Founded in 1920 to aid fellow Mennonites and others in Russia and Ukraine, the organization developed a global reputation for providing assistance after natural and man-made disasters by the mid-1970s usually operating under MCC's Mennonite Disaster Service, founded in 1950."History of MCC," http://mcc.org/about/history. Retrieved 27 January 2011.Joseph S. Miller, "History of Mennonite Peacebuilding" in From the Ground Up – Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding (Oxford U. Press, 2000), edited by Cynthia Sampson and John Paul Lederach, p. 6.
Nonviolence, Peace, and Justice By the late 1970s and early 1980s, MCC started work on establishing a better training program focusing on the peace and justice fields at a systematic level.Harold S. Bender and Elmer Neufeld. "Mennonite Central Committee [International]." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1987. http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/M46549.html . Retrieved 28 January 2011.R. Scott Appleby, The Ambivalence of the Sacred – Religion, Violence and Reconciliation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2000), p. 144."There was an increasing realization that cleaning up and rebuilding after a war, riot or tornado was important, but a Christian was also called to address systemic conditions that created injustice and violence. Mennonite relief workers were taught by their hosts that it was not enough for relief workers to distribute food and clothing to the starving and homeless. The starving and homeless articulated the need for more than material assistance. Mennonites were also asked to be peacemakers, to work at changing systems and institutions that caused suffering." Joseph S .Miller, "History of Mennonite Peacebuilding" in From the Ground Up – Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding (Oxford U. Press, 2000), edited by Cynthia Sampson and John Paul Lederach, p. 17 This was addressed first by founding the Office on Crime and Justice, with renowned restorative justice expert Howard Zehr as its first director. This office had the goal of moving the justice system away from retributive punishments toward processes that would help heal those harmed and restore communities. Zehr began the first victim/offender conferencing program in the United States during this period."Dr. Howard Zehr Presented the 2003 International Prize for Restorative Justice," http://www.restorativejustice.org/editions/2003/September/award . Two years later, MCC founded Mennonite Conciliation Service (MCS) with Ron Kraybill as its first director. The mission of this organization was to encourage Mennonites and others to pursue peaceful resolution of conflicts. These two offices later were integrated into MCC's Office of Justice and Peacebuilding."Office on Justice and Peacebuilding," http://us.mcc.org/programs/peacebuilding . Retrieved 11 October 2011. Kraybill left MCS in 1989 to pursue a Ph.D. and was replaced by John Paul Lederach."A Review, Celebration and Farewell – 23 Years of Conciliation Quarterly," a publication of MCC US Mennonite Conciliation Service, Spring 2005, Vol. 24, No. 2. The tenure of Kraybill and Lederach overlapped a bit, allowing them opportunity to develop a shared vision for a new kind of peace studies program in the world of higher education. Kraybill later recalled those early conversations: We wanted a good mix of academics via theory conceptualization, but with practice in the real world. I don’t think we were necessarily thinking of a master’s program, just some kind of situation where teaching and practice went together. Another strong desire was to work in a team with others for an institution where a faith-based perspective was valued. We were wary of desire for individual prestige and wanted to work in a setting where individuals were more committed to an institutional mission than to going to the highest ladder of individual success.Ruth Zimmerman and Bonnie Lofton, "From Dream to Reality: 10 Years of Peacebuilding," Peacebuilder Magazine, Summer/Fall 2005, p. 4. The work of MCS in the late 1980s also coincided with the development of Christian Peacemaker Teams a joint effort by the two largest North American Mennonite denominations and the Church of the Brethren. Founded after a Mennonite World Conference keynote address by Ronald J. Sider author of the bestselling Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger (published and republished in 1977, 1997, 2005) in which he said, We must be prepared to die by the thousands. Those who believed in peace through the sword have not hesitated to die. Proudly, courageously, they gave their lives. Again and again, they sacrificed bright futures to the tragic illusion that one more righteous crusade would bring peace in their time, and they laid down their lives by the millions. Unless we . . . are ready to start to die by the thousands in dramatic vigorous new exploits for peace and justice, we should sadly confess that we never really meant what we said, and we dare never whisper another word about pacifism to our sisters and brothers in those desperate lands filled with injustice. Unless we are ready to die developing new nonviolent attempts to reduce conflict, we should confess that we never really meant that the cross was an alternative to the sword."Christian Peacemaker Teams History," http://www.cpt.org/about/history. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
Founding In 1990, Eastern Mennonite College (EMC) hired John Paul Lederach to teach sociology and international conciliation. He continued to head MCC's conciliation work, including training MCC workers prior to their international assignments. During this time he was consulting in a number of conflicts, in the Basque region of Spain, Colombia, the Philippines, and Northern Ireland among others. After an exhausting trip Lederach began talking to Mennonite opinion-leaders and conflict workers including Hizkias Assefa, Kraybill, and others about systematically educating people to do the kind of work he was doing. A pair of retired educators, James and Marian Payne (both EMU alumni), stepped forward when they learned of the hope of a center devoted to peace education at EMU. They guaranteed the funds necessary to support CJP for its first year of existence, plus made CJP the beneficiary of their estate. The Paynes made an initial donation of $25,000 (by 2007, their donations totaled more than $500,000.)"Best Investment We Ever Made," Crossroads Magazine, Spring 2007, pp. 18-21. CJP began in the fall of the 1994-95 academic year with two masters-level students: Jonathan Bartsch, an American who had studied and worked in the Middle East for almost three years and who spoke Arabic, and Jim Hershberger, an American who had spent eight years with Mennonite Central Committee in war-torn Nicaragua and was fluent in Spanish. They started their studies a year before accreditation of the program was granted. They were joined in the spring semester of 1995 by Moe Kyaw Tun, who had been involved with the resistance movement in Myanmar (Burma) before fleeing to Thailand."Our First Grads – What Happened to Them?" Peacebuilder Magazine, Fall/Winter 2010-11, p. 3. In establishing CJP, its founders said they sought to build on the lessons learned by MCC and other Mennonites in the peace arena. Five recurring characteristics of these lessons referenced by scholars are:Marc Gopin, PhD, a rabbi ordained by Yeshiva University who directs the Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University, addressed this topic in "The Religious Component of Mennonite Peacemaking and Its Global Implications" in From the Ground Up: Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding (Oxford University Press, 2000) edited by John Paul Lederach and Cynthia Sampson, pp. 233-255.These five are condensed from 15 attributes explored by Sally Engle Merry, PhD, formerly anthropology professor at Wellesley College, now (2011) at New York University, in "Mennonite Peacebuilding and Conflict Analysis: A Cultural Analysis" in From the Ground Up: Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding (Oxford University Press, 2000) edited by John Paul Lederach and Cynthia Sampson, pp. 203-217, as well as from Rabbi Marc Gopin’s chapter in the same book, pp. 233-255. Humility: Instead of playing the role of "educated professional telling social subordinates how to do things," anthropologist Sally Engle Merry wrote that Mennonites tend toward "listening, being creative and innovative, remaining vulnerable, making space for others to take control over their lives."Sally Engle Merry, "Mennonite Peacebuilding and Conflict Analysis: A Cultural Analysis" in From the Ground Up: Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding (Oxford University Press, 2000) edited by John Paul Lederach and Cynthia Sampson, p. 209. Openness to personal change: Rabbi and scholar Marc Gopin wrote: "The Mennonite intervener is prepared to go through a spiritual transformation... [I]t seems quite clear that ethical traits, such as gratitude, an eagerness to learn from others, an openness to positive change, and generosity are all critical to Mennonite conflict transformation."Bonnie Price Lofton, "You’ve Transformed Us!" Crossroads magazine, Summer 2003, pp. 16-18. Long-term commitment: Dr. Sally Engle Merry wrote that a distinctive feature of Mennonite-style peace work is "commitment to long-term involvement in the conflict situation. This is related to the emphasis on learning the languages and culture, on developing workshops and trainings out of local languages and practices, on building relationships and serving as bridges, all of which require an investment of time."Sally Engle Merry, "Mennonite Peacebuilding and Conflict Analysis: A Cultural Analysis" in From the Ground Up: Mennonite Contributions to International Peacebuilding (Oxford University Press, 2000) edited by John Paul Lederach and Cynthia Sampson, p. 210.