Christians often think peacemaking work between religious groups requires setting the bar really low in terms of the results we hope for. “Peace” must just mean getting along at some basic level, being able to have nice conversations, and not offending people from other groups. But that’s not the case. So what is peacemaking really?

COVID-19 is upon us, but don’t let yourself be overcome by stress and anxiety. Here are some ways to deal with it in healthy, constructive ways and use it for positive transformation in yourself, your relationships, and your community.

A friend recently told me, “Rather than Bosnia becoming more like America, America is becoming a lot more like Bosnia.” Bosnians look onto the vicious exchanges between political parties in the U.S. with a certain amount of grief. Although many feel that the West has made a lot of harmful mistakes in the Balkan region, they strongly prefer American leadership in the world to an autocratic Russian or Chinese influence. While we grieve and become frustrated about social fragmentation in the U.S. and rhetoric that dehumanizes people, our Bosnian friends often remind us of what is so great about America and why its ideals, although imperfectly enacted, are desperately needed in the world today.

How can religious tourism and peacemaking go together? In a place like Bosnia, where the negative impacts of division, conflict, and war are tangible, travelers can’t avoid being confronted with the violent past. When that happens, there’s a choice about how to engage with the past, and to either contribute to peace or division.

Our Bosnia “Catalyze” peacemaking trip wrapped up a couple weeks ago after an exhilarating and rewarding 10 days filled with new relationships, dialogue, history, and learning across religious and ethnic differences.

Before the Bosnian War in the early 90’s, Bosnia and Herzegovina enjoyed a long-held tradition of Christians hosting Muslims for Iftar during Ramadan, and Muslims hosting Christians during Lent and around Christmas or Easter. Before the war, it was very normal for neighbors to celebrate one another’s religious holidays with them through hospitality in one another’s homes, especially in Sarajevo where there was such diversity and even intermarriage between people of different faiths. Things like this happened all the time. But that was before the war. Now, in 2019, when our pastor suggested not only inviting members of the congregation to show up to an Iftar somewhere, but to actively host one on our own turf – well, that was a little unusual.

In the aftermath of recent shootings, many Christians are expressing the desire to show solidarity with Muslim communities around them. Solidarity is defined as “unity or agreement of feeling or action,” but what does that really mean, and how is it actually done?

Christian refugee workers and ministry leaders from around the world visited a mosque in Sarajevo this month to learn from local Muslims about Islam, the refugee crisis, and the opportunities and challenges that occur when doing humanitarian work and talking about faith. Here’s what we can all learn from their conversation.

A few days ago over coffee, I enjoyed a good conversation with a Muslim friend whom I met on my first trip to Bosnia. He shared with me how much he loved a recent message from Pope Francis that called Christians to focus on simplicity, charity, and love instead of the materialism and greed that usually accompanies the holiday season. He also lamented how Muslims are often trained to try to persuade Christians through arguments, rather than spending time learning about and from them.