Pictured at the Churches Forum Conference in Manor House Hotel which had the Theme”Flags God and Divided Loyalties” were from left Dr. Johnston Mcmaster, Keynote speaker,Tanya Jones, Fermanagh Churches Forum secretary, Councillor Alex Baird, John Phillips, management Committee, Eileen Gallagher, Chairman and Ronnie Brown, Treasurer gkfh53
THE flags issue was the topic of the conversation at the, ‘Flags, God and Divided Loyalties’ conference held on Monday of this week at the Manor House Hotel.
Dr Johnston McMaster, the keynote speaker, gave an insightful historical analysis of the causes of disquiet in loyalism.
In his analysis, he detailed missed opportunities for political inclusion, highlighting insights from a new book by Tony Novosel entitled: ‘Northern Ireland’s Lost Opportunity: The frustrated promise of Political Loyalism’.
During a group discussion participants considered the wider question of barriers to building a shared future here.
In the afternoon session, Eileen Gallagher examined the conflict of identities here, the role of churches in identity politics and pointed towards ways in which faith communities can help find solutions and contribute to building a peaceful and shared future.
This was followed by a wide-ranging discussion in which participants shared diverse understandings both of our history and hopes for the future.
The conference was organised by the Good Relations Department of Fermanagh District Council in association with Fermanagh Churches Forum and the Irish School of Economics.
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