The following is a reflection by Bryan Carey, building on a conversation with Bishop Zac Niringiye. Bishop Zac is a Ugandan theologian and retired Anglican bishop whose decades of ministry, theological leadership, and public advocacy have made him a respected global voice on faith, justice, and the church’s public witness. His work challenges the church to embody the gospel through justice, humility, and solidarity rather than power and control.

God’s reign has a direction: it moves toward the poor, the captive, the oppressed. It moves toward a world where the widow isn’t preyed upon, the orphan has an advocate, the stranger is welcomed rather than exploited. This is what the prophets meant by God’s justice.

For peacebuilders, for activists, for social changemakers, burnout is often accompanied by guilt and shame—I don’t have time to feel this way when others’ lives are at stake—and so we attempt to push through, putting all our energies into the fight until we hit the proverbial wall. But this cycle can actually do real harm. So how do we be changemakers while avoiding burnout?

Discussions about war and violence often focus on immediate solutions: how to stop the bloodshed, how to negotiate a ceasefire, how to restore order. While these are necessary conversations, they often fail to address the deeper systems that enable and perpetuate violence. This is why nonviolent co-resistance does not simply seek to end war but aims to dismantle the very systems that make violence seem inevitable.

When I became a follower of Jesus, everything changed. My citizenship, my allegiance, my purpose. I no longer belonged to the kingdoms of this world. I was transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. A kingdom that doesn’t operate by the rules of power or control or violence. A kingdom that looks like Jesus. But I’ll be honest. The more I advocate for Palestinians, the more I speak out against injustice, the easier it is for me to lose sight of Jesus. I get angry. I get bitter. I feel rage. And if I’m not careful, I stop reflecting the kingdom of Jesus and start reflecting the kingdoms of this world.

And that’s not the path I want to be on.

Peace Catalyst’s Steve Schallert and Peter Digitale Anderson talk about about how Christians—especially those of us enjoying lives of safety and stability— can shift from a posture of service to one of solidarity with oppressed communities. Drawing on Steve’s years of experience practicing and teaching solidarity in South Africa and organizing pilgrimages in solidarity with Palestinians, we explore how others’ struggle for justice and liberation is also our own, and we also explore the theology and skills that can help us truly stand for peace.

How do we understand the shared need for justice in both Minneapolis and Palestine? And how should the church be showing up and speaking out? Watch this conversation with Palestinian pastor Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac and local Twin Cities clergy and racial justice activists about liberation and solidarity across borders.

In a time of unimaginable violence in the Middle East, how can the Church imagine a future reconciliation? What wisdom can Christians gain from Jewish, Muslim, and Middle Eastern Christian concepts of justice? In this conversation, we talked with Palestinian Christian Salim Munayer about his latest book, Reconciling Justice: Concepts of Justice in the Multireligious Context of Palestine/Israel.

Black lives matter. Until they matter equally with every other life, in practice and policy, Peace Catalyst will continue to work for structural change. The tragic deaths of Breonna Taylor, David McAtee, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd should compel all of us to work for equality and justice in our world, and they should also prompt inner reflection. How did we get to this point in history? Why have we been silent for so long?