Middle School (6-8)

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Friar Ivo Markovic is Catholic Franciscan who emerged as a force for reconciliation in the midst of the Bosnian war, a violent conflict that followed the break-up of Yugoslavia in 1992. A Bosnian Croat, Friar Ivo worked without concern for his own life, always ready to confront the hypocrisy within his own community.

By the time a peace agreement ended the conflict in 1995, nearly 96,000 people had been killed, 1.29 million people were displaced, and six new, independent states had been formed. Friar Ivo worked to stop the violence by reaching out across religious and ethnic lines to Croats (generally Catholics), Serbs (generally Orthodox Christians), and Bosniaks (generally Muslims). These efforts often put his life at risk. Friar Ivo built bridges between these opposing groups by emphasizing the commonalities in their religious traditions. Once, in the middle of battle, Friar Ivo insisted upon going into a Bosniak Muslim village by crossing the Croat forces’ line of fire. Threatened with being shot if he went any further, he nonetheless continued to speak to the imam (Muslim religious leader) on the other side. Eventually, they negotiated a meeting between the local commanders, who agreed to stop the fighting.

During the Bosnian war, Friar Ivo assumed various roles. Sometimes he was an advocate, encouraging people to ask local politicians not to inflame the conflict. At other times he was an educator, using writing to advocate for peace and to alert the outside world of the plight in their region. Often, he served as a mediator who brought together conflicting groups.

Friar Ivo continues his interfaith work today as head of Pontanima, a multi-ethnic and interfaith choir, in Bosnia’s capital city of Sarajevo. This choir includes 60 members of various religious traditions, and it truly represents the diverse religious communities within Bosnia and Herzegovina. The choir performs concerts—and shares its message of interreligious understanding—around

the world.

Still passionate about interfaith relations, Friar Ivo works behind the scenes to build positive interfaith relationships in his post-conflict society. Recognizing the importance of community healing, Friar Ivo organizes seminars and lectures that promote peace and empower students to develop creative projects to improve their communities. He continues to write and lecture against the misuse of religion to promote violence.

Share these maps of
Bosnia and Herzegovina with students.

1. Friar Ivo helped people of different religious and ethnic groups earn about each other, form connections, and negotiate their differences. How do you think his efforts helped multiple groups reframe the conflict? (Elicit that his work allowed people from opposing groups to recognize their commonalities, which helped them see the conflict as a mutual problem to be solved and work for peace.)

2. How do the skills we’ve learned in this unit, such as reframing, collaborative negotiation, and recognizing barriers to effective communication, connect to Friar Ivo’s story? How could these skills be used in other places across the globe?

3. Much of Friar Ivo’s work was focused on maintaining and advancing peace in a post-conflict zone. Why should we continuously work for conflict transformation and peace even after armed conflict ends?

4. How do religious or cultural identities play a role in this conflict? How do religious or cultural identities play a role in Friar Ivo’s peacebuilding work?

5. How did Friar Ivo’s conflict transformation skills make his region a better place? How can you use his example to make the world a better place in your own way?

1. Learn more about Friar Ivo:

• Read an in-depth feature of Friar Ivo’s life by Beyond Intractability.

• Watch a video featuring Friar Ivo discussing his work for peace.

• Listen to an audio clip discussing Friar Ivo’s work with his multi faith choir.

• Explore more information about the Bosnian War.

2. The sectarian conflict that Friar Ivo faced came about after the break-up of Yugoslavia in 1992. Put the class in small groups and ask them to research other examples of conflicts leading up to or following changes in land borders, and what efforts for conflict transformation or peace have been attempted in those regions.

3. One way that Friar Ivo promotes interfaith relations is through a multi-ethnic, interfaith choir. Partnering with a music teacher, teach about songs from different religious or ethnic traditions, then listen to or perform the songs as a class.

4. Ask students to write a short story and/or create a visual image from Friar Ivo’s perspective as he risked his life to speak with the Imam in the Bosniak Muslim village. Students should explore his emotions and motivation—why would he risk his life? What was he thinking during this event?