Nazarene Compassionate Ministry (NCM) workers from around the world gathered near Belfast, Northern Ireland, in mid-September for their conference, which I was privileged to attend. "Walk the Talk: Wesleyan Perspectives on Peacemaking" was the event's theme.

Billy Mitchell, a peace worker from Belfast, had been instrumental in creating the event. He was recognized, posthumously, with the NCM Samaritan Award. Larry Bollinger, administrative director of Nazarene Compassionate Ministries, and Colin Wood, superintendent of the British Isles North District, presented the award to Mitchell's widow, Mena, during the opening session.

Gustavo Crocker, Eurasia regional director, said of Mitchell, "Billy was a true peacemaker. He spent his second adulthood bridging the gap between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland."

Nazarene Theological Seminary president, Ron Benefiel, raised this question in his address, "What does it mean to be agents of reconciliation in a broken world?"

Throughout the event, attendees strove to answer that question. The group's consensus was that holiness is not real until it hits the road and has social impact. Holiness is not an academic exercise. The social part of holiness cannot be eliminated—holiness is social.

Harry Maluleka, principal of Nazarene Theological College and pastor in Pretoria, South Africa, reflected on the Christian response to a world in turmoil, specifically from what he witnessed during the years of apartheid in his country. "It's not possible for the church to be silent. We cannot, as a church, stand on the fence. By saying nothing we are saying volumes."

Michael Mata shared that previously, there was a fairly general agreement that to change society, you had to change people. Now, it's a debatable concept that the structure of society is what needs to be changed. It's both—the person and the structure. Formerly on the pastoral staff at Los Angeles First Church of the Nazarene, Mata is a director with World Vision. The agency is an international partnership of Christians whose mission is to serve the poor and oppressed through meeting their basic needs, promoting human transformation, and seeking justice.

Reflecting on the Wesleyan roots of social justice, Crocker shared that John Wesley demonstrated three levels of engagement. He: 1) Practiced his personal disciplines through a simple, caring lifestyle, 2) Acted on his personal convictions for the needy, and 3) Advocated as a voice for the voiceless.

Everyone's journey is a personal one. Yet our personal knowledge, history, and concepts all play roles in how we develop our worldview.

Perhaps there is a common desire in all of humanity to know who we are and to explore our roots. Global conflict, poverty, disease, and other factors have done their share to destroy humanity's bonds and personal histories. As I approached Belfast International Airport for the NCM event, my thoughts wandered to unknown elements about my own ancestors. Being adopted, the pages of my history book are relatively bare. I do, however, know that I am Irish. Landing on that verdant isle brought to mind questions about my heritage that will most likely remain unanswered and unreconciled.

Reaching across the chasms of politics, wars, personal agendas, and yes, our own histories, is how we find lasting reconciliation.

I was reminded in Northern Ireland that world events, and whatever we carry in our hearts and minds, may never be resolved completely. But within the Body, we can find a sense of belonging, personal reconciliation to Christ, and mutual agreement to move beyond the past as we work to create a hopeful future.

Carmen J. Ringhiser is managing editor of Holiness Today.

Holiness Today, January/February 2007

Please note: This article was originally published in 2007. All facts, figures, and titles were accurate to the best of our knowledge at that time but may have since changed.