To the best of our ability and with God’s grace, the Bethlehem Institute of Peace and Justice seeks to uphold values:

As Pertaining to Spirituality

  • The centrality of the Fatherhood of God and his desire for peace among all peoples
  • Inclusivity toward the contribution of other religions to peacemaking and justice, recognizing that God’s grace and wisdom can be found in unexpected places
  • For Christian peacemakers, the centrality of the teachings of Jesus Christ in peace studies, especially Christ’s call to love our enemies and to be peacemakers
  • Self-reflection and an openness to change ideas that have been formed through many years and even generations, which implies humility and an openness to admit error
  • The mission of God in the world is to transform all societies by the peace and justice that God desires for all peoples

As Pertaining to Scholarship

  • Methods of teaching and leadership in all activities that model peacemaking and justice
  • Arab culture in general and Palestinian culture specifically as a source of insight and model for praxis for advancing peace and justice
  • Willingness to include voices that historically have not been given a place in the discussion of peacemaking and justice
  • Integrity in all scholarship, giving credit where it is due
  • A holistic perspective that considers all of the factors that propagate conflict and which make for peace, giving special attention to the uniqueness of each conflict and its context
  • Engagement with important peace voices in the global context especially in the global south
  • The acknowledgment of the intersectionality of peace studies with the struggle for women’s rights, environmental justice, domestic and child abuse, etc.
  • The rigorous discussion that acknowledges that other points of view are held and that all may learn from one another

As Pertaining to Praxis

  • An institutional culture that stresses inclusion and conflict resolution in relationships
  • The acknowledgment that long-held patterns of oppression such as colonialism, patriarchalism, classism, and racism may unintentionally enter into the praxis of peacemaking and justice and must be rejected in whatever form they may appear
  • The development of the practice of peacemaking and justice as a habit in our daily lives by exercising mindfulness in our dealings with others
  • The recognition that peacemaking and justice must seek creative new avenues and models
  • The acknowledgment that peacemaking often involves small steps forward,  but that such steps are of great value
  • The recognition that peacemaking begins where you are . . . and where the ‘enemy’ is (that is the ‘enemy’ may take steps toward peace but still have the profile of the ‘enemy’