Sitting in the Fire: Large Group Transformation Using Conflict and Diversity

We read this book as part of our readings in the LIOS program. The book grabbed by and kept me engaged all through it.It is an earlier work, but I feel it is probably one of the most engaging books on group transformation that I have ever read. I'll be reading more of his work.

Is your group breaking apart from internal conflict? You need to sit in the fire. Don't let them get away with playing the innocent victim of the wicked other side. Make them keep talking until they learn from each other. Power politics will just add to the spiral of violence, throw gas on the fire. But your sitting in the fire can facilitate bringing the community together. The author says "... we want to insist on peaceful behavior: line up here, single file. ....." "But the world is not composed of docile little groups" "... engaging in heated conflict instead of running away from it is one of the best ways to resolve the divisiveness that prevails on every level of society - in personal relationships, business and the world." Are you concerned about global trends? Do you want people to learn to share this earth? You need this book to guide you. Jump in and lead a deep democratic process. Be a midwife at the birth of our sustainable global community. "Severe conflict can threaten to separate or be facilitated to bring a community together." "If violence is admitted and addressed, it is less destructive than if it is repressed. Going consciously into battle is an intense experience, but one that revitalizes everyone. You are renewed in hope. You find not only solutions to issues, but something more precious. You find that a battle does not mean the end of the world, but the beginning of the river called community."