City centre pubs and clubs doing a roaring trade as people, for the first time in thirty years, dare to venture out of their own enclaves at night. There have been many examples of good people in both communities working together for the common good. But the message that comes across loud and clear is - the apparatus is all still in place. We may have a cease-fire, but it can all start again, as soon as the circumstances dictate it. Ordinary people are unlikely to be able to provide answers to these questions.
Politicians often make things worse.
Perhaps only God can sort the problem out. In times of strife and conflict, there are always examples of human goodness which God elects to bring about which make us stop and think 'If only they were all like that'. One thinks of organisations like the Red Cross with all the marvellous work they do in troubled places. Many people have crossed divides, bridged cultures and hatreds to do God's work and to show their love of their neighbour. Conflicts such as those we have looked at can never be right in the sight of God, no matter how much religion is brought into the issue.