Kako religije mogu doprinijeti međunacionalnom pomirenju na prostoru zapadnog Balkana
HOW CAN RELIGIONS CONTRIBUTE TO ETHNIC RECONCILIATION IN THE WEST BALKANS

Summary/Abstract: This paper seeks to contribute to the response to the question of how religions can contribute to the process of inter-ethnic reconciliation in the Western Balkans. Given that religious communities still enjoy a great reputation in this area and that people of the region express high levels of religious self-identification, it is expected of religions to give contribution to this process. It is evident that religious communities are not sufficiently candid and not evenly open to the process of reconciliation, probably because of the role they had in not too long ago completed clashes as well as lack of boldness to deal with that role. If we go back to sacred texts and documents of religious communities, we will find abound arguments which advocate peace, coexistence, respect, forgiveness etc. However, the problem is not in the scriptures, but in how they are interpreted. Religious communities can contribute to the reconciliation process through a variety of ways such as: coping with their own role in the past events, encouragment of mutual recognition and respect, making dialogue, preaching the necessity of peace, coexistence and tolerance, educational processes in order to promote the ethics of coexistence in peace, preaching about the lethality of hatred and affirming the ethics of forgiveness, through joint visiting of crime scenes by the religious leaders, etc. Given that reconciliation is a complex process that requires time, we should all be a part of it so that generations that are coming know how to live with the differences that are the main feature of these territories.

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