ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the methods used by Cardinal Cahal Daly to create his vision of the Peaceable Kingdom. Daly developed what is known in peace studies as a moral imagination to develop and promote this vision. This process of moral imagination involved two elements: understanding the world as it is and envisaging it as it could be. Thus, for example, the inequalities that triggered and sustained violence and conflict in Northern Ireland were highlighted, whilst the benefits of an alternative possible future in which inequality did not exist were expounded. Through the development of this moral imagination, a vision of the Peaceable Kingdom as a state which encompassed justice, the dignity of the human person, the common good, development, solidarity, and dialogue and accommodation with other ideologies, denominations, and religions emerged. The chapter places this within the context of Catholic social teachings on peace and justice, demonstrating that the creation of the Peaceable Kingdom is a task that all Christians are expected to be involved in. Finally, it outlines the three elements used by Daly to create his vision of the Peaceable Kingdom: the Gospels, empirical analysis, and dialogue, which when taken together create a holistic picture of the society in which the Church is operating and provide when used in conversation with Catholic social teaching a vision of an alternative but entirely possible society.
