London, England - THE role of religion as a means of achieving harmony on the road towards peace in Northern Ireland is to be investigated by Scottish academics.
Professor John Brewer, head of the department of sociology at Aberdeen University, has been awarded almost £124,000 for a research project focusing on religion as a reconciliation tool.
He said: "Even though the fighting is not about religion, but about the legitimacy of the state, the church is the form through which the conflict is experienced.
"Some churches and para-church organisations have tried to obstruct reconciliation and some use religion as a resource to mobilise against peace, but it is part of folklore that some key churchmen and women have been hugely instrumental to the peace process."
The research will be conducted through a variety of methods including in-depth interviews with churches and para-church organisations, politicians and parliamentary groups, and peace activists.
Northern Ireland will be used as a case study to explore the role of society in political transformation, and to look at the ways in which social conflict is experienced through religion.
"The research is intended to have policy relevance to these sorts of situations in ways that enable the church to be a positive agent for peace.
Professor Brewer will work with colleagues Professor Steve Bruce, head of the school of social sciences, and Dr Francis Teeney, honorary research fellow in sociology.
The two-year study is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, the UK's leading research funding and training agency addressing economic and social concerns.