|PIC1|A groundbreaking initiative set up by the Church of Ireland to foster political reconciliation in Northern Ireland is going from strength to strength as it launches a series of public forums designed to "provoke thinking that goes beyond the predictable".

That is the hope, at least, of the Church of Ireland's Hard Gospel Project set up in 2005 to challenge the 'whatever you say, say nothing' approach that previously dominated public dialogue in addressing key issues affecting the wellbeing of communities in Northern Ireland.

The Hard Gospel Project has partnered with the Make a Big Difference initiative of The Junction, a community relations resource and peace building centre in Derry/Londonderry, to launch a series of hard-hitting conversations on key issues in community cohesion and reconciliation.

The Beyond the Box series aims to bring discourse 'beyond the rhetoric; beyond the stale debates; beyond the conventions; beyond the box'.

The first seminar in the series will be held on Monday 13 November on the theme of "Where there is no vision...leadership in the Protestant/unionist community".

Prominent journalist Liam Clarke, Northern Ireland Editor of The Sunday Times, and David Ervine, leader of the Progressive Unionist Party or PUP, will be the keynote speakers and will address such questions as:
-What sort of public political leadership is being given to the Protestant/unionist community at present?
-What type of vision is informing political leadership at present?
-What challenges exist for those seeking to give political leadership?
-Reflecting on the psyche of the Protestant community at present, what type of political leadership is most needed?

Director of the Hard Gospel Project, the Rev Earl Storey, and Audrey Guichon of The Junction said in a joint statement: "The success of these events does not lie in whether or not you agree with the speakers. The purpose is to provide a forum for public discussion of difficult issues that directly affect our community.

"It is an opportunity to grapple with difficult issues in a public way."