"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend ... By its very nature, hate destroys and tears down; by its very nature, love creates and builds up."

Martin Luther King, Jr. from “Loving Your Enemies”
The Center for Reconciliation is delighted to invite applications to its Conflict Transformation and Reconciliation Program (CTRP). 
 
Participants in this program will learn how to:
  • Communicate through authentic and transparent conversation on difficult issues  
  • Host and reimagine covenants and liturgies that foster transformation and reconciliation in the church and the community 
  • Apply the restorative approach to conflict transformation as distinct from conflict resolution
  • Navigate liminal spaces
  • Grow in deep listening
  • Engage in coaching others and facilitate restorative circles for conflict transformation
The CTRP offers two certificates. The first one is the Foundations in Conflict Transformation and Reconciliation (FCTR) which provides a 13-month introduction to the CFR conflict transformation model, its theological foundations, and contextual practices (105 hrs.). Participants who successfully complete this first phase of training, may be invited to apply to the 8-month advanced certificate for Practitioners of Conflict Transformation and Reconciliation (PCTR, 86 hrs.). The two program certificates offer continuing education credit. 
 
The seminars and online sessions are facilitated by leading scholars and practitioners in the fields of conflict transformation and reconciliation from Duke University and other institutions, providing a timely learning opportunity for pastors and other leaders seeking theological and practical skills to foster reconciliation in their congregations and surrounding communities.
 
The FCTR and PCTR are offered in hybrid format, including in-person seminars and online synchronous sessions, to accommodate personal, pastoral, and professional obligations. Applications are open for Cohort 4 of the FCTR in which participants will explore the potential for conflict transformation and reconciliation as they journey together in deeper spiritual growth and authentic group engagement. 

Learn more and apply.

Four people having a conversation in a lobby. Overhead POV.

Fostering Reconciliation

Hybrid Program Combines In-Person Retreats and Online Learning

Through this 13-month non-degree certificate program, participants will cultivate theological foundations and spiritual practices to equip them for a ministry that fosters conflict transformation and reconciliation amid division. Participants will learn to use practical tools such as active listening, conflict coaching, and restorative circles, and gain knowledge to increase their self-awareness about implicit bias and other dispositions that tend to create barriers between individuals and communities.

Learn More and Apply about the program