(photo: Robben Island Prison, Michael Coghlan, 2011) Storytelling is a way to do a few important things. Telling a story is a way of teaching, such that a person gains an awareness of something, or an understanding, insight, or new point of view -- the things we associate with instruction and learning in general. Because … Continue reading Little Flowers: Forgiveness and Liberation in Captivity
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Forgiveness: Heal your worldview, heal yourself!
(photo: Alex Knight, 2016) In important ways, the world we see is a reflection of ourselves. What we see is a reflection of what we are looking for, what has become important to us, what we choose to pay attention to, as well as how we think and feel about our prior experiences of the … Continue reading Forgiveness: Heal your worldview, heal yourself!
Faith in Decline: “Will forgiveness decline too?”
(photo: St. Stanislaus Church, Milwaukee, 2006) Gallup released a new poll report today marking a steady 10 year decline in religiosity in the United States. Religious faith is a significant and frequent motivation for forgiveness at the personal level, and the Gallup data should cause at least a question, if not a concern, that the … Continue reading Faith in Decline: “Will forgiveness decline too?”
Forgiveness is Seeing Fraternity with Love of Christ
(art: Siblings, Paul Klee, 1930) The REACH Forgiveness Process developed by Everett Worthington and taught through Live and Forgive is a research-validated individual level approach to forgiveness. A critical component of the REACH process is having the forgiving person cultivate empathy for the person they are forgiving based on their basic human sameness. The idea … Continue reading Forgiveness is Seeing Fraternity with Love of Christ
Our Own Anger is Still Not Good for Us
(art: Church of St. Nicetas, Macedonia, 14th cent.) Whenever the Gospel accounts of Jesus driving out the money changers from the temple come up in the Liturgy of the Word, I often see an article or hear someone asserting that the Gospel account is proof that anger can be righteous and even a virtue. It … Continue reading Our Own Anger is Still Not Good for Us
Forgiveness is a Constant Invitation to Rebirth in Love
Today's Liturgy of the Word includes a reading from the Gospel of Luke (17:1-6) that is a cornerstone for forgiveness as Christian faith in action. In this section of the gospel, Jesus teaches his disciples: If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.And if he wrongs you seven times in one … Continue reading Forgiveness is a Constant Invitation to Rebirth in Love
Forgiveness Will Make Your Best Tomorrow
(photo: The Unjust Steward, Eugène Burnand, 1850-1921) The reading fro the Gospel of Luke in yesterday's Liturgy of the Word related the parable of the Unjust Steward (Luke 16:1-8). In this parable, a servant of a wealthy property owner is found to have squandered his employer's assets, property, and holdings, and is told to prepare … Continue reading Forgiveness Will Make Your Best Tomorrow
Love & Forgiveness: Research-Informed Action is the Way Forward
Dr. Tyler VanderWeele, the director of the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University, recently published an article in Psychology Today, which was also shared as a research update from the Human Flourishing Program. Both the article and the research update recapitulate main points of the recent research by VanderWeele and Lee (2025) on the possibilities … Continue reading Love & Forgiveness: Research-Informed Action is the Way Forward
Vatican Convenes “Ministry of Hope” Catholic Forum on Mental Well-Being
(photo: Catherine Scott, 2012) Today Vatican News is reporting that the Vatican is convening the "Ministry of Hope" Catholic Forum on Mental Well-Being. The aims of the three-day convening are: Strengthen the Church's pastoral engagement with mental wellbeing. Foster listening, reflection, and collaboration among those accompanying individuals and communities facing psychological, social, and spiritual distress. … Continue reading Vatican Convenes “Ministry of Hope” Catholic Forum on Mental Well-Being
Middle East Bishop Lives Forgiveness as Path to Peace
(photo: Sidon, Lebanon, Vyacheslav Argenberg, 2008) Catholic Maronite Bishop Mounir Khairallah of Batrun (Lebanon) has been a vocal advocate for peace in the Middle East, as well as for interpersonal forgiveness. He was recently interviewed by Paulina Guzik for OSV News, and shared his personal story of forgiveness and his thoughts on the relationship of … Continue reading Middle East Bishop Lives Forgiveness as Path to Peace
Live and Forgive 