On Saturday 14 May, the diocese held a training day called Making Peace with Conflict, to help people learn how to deal with conflict.
The day started with a discussion about the meaning of conflict and attendees gained tools to help adapt behaviour in the face of conflict. A diverse group of fourteen people went along to the event, including some lay leaders, Licensed Lay Ministers, clergy and Bishop Amos and his wife.
Revd Chris Dobson, Ecumenical and Global Partnerships Officer, led the training.
Stephanie Hayton, Adviser for Lay Ministry, said: "Most of our views are negative – we do not like conflict – yet it is inevitable because it arises from difference. Such a diverse group brought difference in itself, but fortunately not too much conflict!
"We looked at how we handle conflicts. Are we bulls who push our way forward or turtles who hide in our shells? Or maybe owls who take a wide view but take a long time to move? We watched the leaders role play an escalating conflict and so learned to categorise conflict because different levels require different responses.
"The atmosphere was surprisingly light-hearted given the topic, while people were honest about their feelings."
Image: cred Stephanie Hayton, 2022