Fireside Chat, Interview
Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury: Talks at GS Session Highlights
- Growing diversity is anticipated to make it increasingly difficult for church leadership to forge a unified global vision.
- Strategic decision-making will adopt a 30 to 40-year horizon, with investments expected to yield results only after the current leadership tenure.
- Maintaining religious freedom and developing new interfaith narratives are top priorities to counter radicalization within major religious traditions.
- Addressing religiously motivated violence is projected to require a timeframe of at least one to several generations.
- Crisis resolution strategies are expected to combine force, mediation, negotiation, social media utilization, and enhanced leadership integrity.
- The global religious narrative is predicted to need renewal to offer a more positive and fruit-oriented vision for human flourishing than extremist groups like Daesh, Al-Shabaab, or Boko Haram.
- Governments and the private sector are expected to engage in long-term, sophisticated initiatives in sub-Saharan Africa and semi-conflicted regions like Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt to foster societal stability and reduce refugee flows.
- Europe is expected to leverage its traditions of generosity to demonstrate the capacity to absorb, heal, and support the return of displaced populations.
- Large, established organizations like the church are noted to have a slow pace of change, particularly regarding the appointment of senior leaders from ethnic minorities.
- A shift toward a less hierarchical and formal structure with increased welcoming attitudes is expected to result in fuller church attendance.