Peacebuilding mediation: contributions of the local Catholic Church to the Havana agreements. The case of the Diocese of Buga

Abstract

This article sought to understand, through an interpretive reading of the event in question—phenomenology—the practical development of ecclesiastical mediation in peacebuilding, with the intersection between the subjective experience of a Colombian priest and the cultural, social, and political expressions that defined the Catholic Church's participation in the demobilization of the armed insurgent group Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia – Ejército del Pueblo FARC-EP. From a local setting in Valle del Cauca, the recorded history addressed the relevance of the testimony under the analysis of its trajectory through theoretical contributions on post-liberal peace, leadership in peacebuilding, mediation, and ecclesiastical operations in peace processes. It concludes that, in this mediation, the search for multidimensional reconciliation converged. An ethnographic, emotional, and reflective approach, immersed in a continuous reconfiguration towards the post-secular in the modern era.