When to shake hands?

The Archbishop of Canterbury has had a meeting with President Mugabe, the President of Zimbabwe.  The BBC news showed pictures of the archbishop shaking Mugabe's hand on arrival.  Other leaders, including Jack Straw and Prince Charles, have been criticised for shaking Mugabe's hand in the past.  I  haven't heard anyone criticise Rowan Williams for this, most seem to be praising him for his bravery in meeting him in the first place, along with a number of African bishops, and for challenging him on abuses in his country.

Handshakes are simple acts of humanity - they are a sign of people greeting and show that there is no weapon in the hand of greeting.  They are also very powerful gestures of good will and that this is someone we would like to do business with and are prepared to so.  They are also open to manipulation as a sign of congeniality and support.  Everything is fine really, when the truth could not be further from the case.

In 1983 Rowan Williams, then a lecturer in Divinity at Cambridge University, wrote a book called 'The Truce of God'.  It was about peace and what makes true peace.  In it he told the story of King Henry II refusing to pass the peace with Archbishop Thomas Becket in AD1170.  Days later Becket was murdered in his cathedral in Canterbury.  Refusing to pass the peace harbours hatred and leaves it unchallenged.  Rowan Williams' point was that the challenge from the gospel to make peace even with enemies is poignant.

This passage has remained with me since I first read it.  I have never knowingly refused to pass the peace with anyone, even those who I know wish me harm or are out to get me!  I have only known two people who have refused to shake my hand and it is not pleasant to be subjected to that level of hatred.  It also closes off any hope of restoration or resolution.  The general opinion of those who observed it was to think the less of those who refused.

There is a world of difference between a loving embrace or even warm hand shake and one that just acknowledges the other's humanity.  The latter is particularly important in disputes.  There can be no constructive way forward without it. Restorative justice, where the pain and injury are acknowledged, is not possible without human greeting and meeting, and restorative justice lies at the heart of true peace.  Anything else is either to allow hostilities to continue indefinitely or to paper over the cracks which leaves nothing changed.

Rowan Williams has shown himself to be an inspirational leader and a brave one as he has challenged Mugabe on the abuses in his country.  I continue to pray for the people of Zimbabwe in all they endure.