Author Archives: abfifer

A Bid to Mediate Church Conflicts

June 10, 2019 – 3:36 pm

A very good article about mediating church conflicts was recently posted on mediate.com, “Referring Church Conflicts to Mediation.” The author, Wayne Plenert, uses the passage in Paul’s letter to the Philippians about the conflict between Euodia and Synteche to argue that there is a biblical basis for mediating church conflicts. In that passage (Philippians 4:2-3), […]

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One-Man ADR

May 17, 2019 – 3:08 pm

There are Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) processes, and then there’s Ken Feinberg. Mr. Feinberg has become a one-man process unto himself, a unique blend of mediation and arbitration, completely outside the judicial system. Michael Lewis, in his podcast series “Against the Rules,” interviews Mr. Feinberg and delves into aspects of his power and authority, in […]

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Restorative Justice in Murder Cases

May 14, 2019 – 8:53 am

The CBS TV news program “60 Minutes” did a story Sunday May 12, called “The Most Unlikely Meeting,” about using restorative justice principles to bring together family members of murder victims face-to-face with the murderers. Interviews with both the family members and the convicted murderers demonstrate the power of this process. One murderer admits that […]

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Peacemaking Doesn’t Mean Passivity

May 6, 2019 – 9:25 am

“Peace is not just about the absence of conflict; it’s also about the presence of justice. Martin Luther King Jr. even distinguished between ‘the devil’s peace’ and God’s true peace. A counterfeit peace exists when people are pacified or distracted or so beat up and tired of fighting that all seems calm. But true peace […]

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Mother Forgives Son’s Killer

April 29, 2019 – 3:22 pm

Stories of forgiveness are literally extraordinary—outside of the ordinary. One took place in a Grand Rapids courtroom last week. As reported by the Grand Rapids Press, Javika Wallace-Hawkins faced the man who murdered her son Andre last year, and told him, “I have forgiven you from the bottom of my heart.” Andre was just 17 […]

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