Beliefs Matter: Concrete theoretical discourse for clarity of restorative justice practice

In Western neo-liberal contexts, discussions regarding beliefs are ignored, dismissed, or avoided as they are deemed irrelevant without empirical evidence. People are encouraged to treat beliefs as purely a private matter. Yet, denying that everyone holds beliefs does not mean that beliefs cease to exist. Conscious or unconscious, what individuals or societies believe fundamentally shapes how people engage with one another. In this article, I explain how beliefs matter in (a) defining restorative justice, (b) implementing restorative justice, and (c) sustaining restorative justice. I make the case for boldly declaring that the belief that all people and their environments are worthy and interconnected must reside at the core of restorative justice if it is to have the transformative effect advocates wish.