Monday, November 30, 2009

Cynthia Yockey offers an excellent reminder

by Smitty

She knew one of the victims of the Mumbai Massacre, and has a post at News Real Sunday which is worth your time.
Just a couple of weeks later, despite the overwhelming pain from her loss, Alan's wife, Kia, was calling for forgiveness. Earlier this month, the Synchronicity Foundation announced that Kia is co-founding the One Life Alliance to teach people that life is sacred and about the power of forgiveness to create world peace. The organization was officially inaugurated on Thanksgiving Day.

Forgiveness is giving up the resentment you feel toward someone who has hurt or wronged you, which frees you from being emotionally tied to them and stops them from being able to feed on your pain. It does not mean you condone the wrong. You just let go of the resentment it caused.

So forgiveness is, indeed, a great power — IF you can get people to do it.
Forgiveness is a vital function of the healthy individual soul. It's also easy to forget this point, in the middle of being a fire-breathing military type of fellow. I'm thankful to Cynthia for this crucial reminder.

4 comments:

  1. revenge is a better teacher.

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  2. @Anonymous:
    Inigo, is that you? Mellow.

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  3. Forgiveness is a fine thing between individuals. It's a sucky thing when 3rd parties are involved. E.g. I don't forgive Bill Clinton for diddling Monica Lewinski b/c he hasn't asked for it. And it wasn't my rug he got all messy.

    Forgiveness is not appropriate when the guilty party hasn't bothered to repent. And that applies to governors who pardon men sentenced to multi-decade terms. Got that, Huck?

    My Christianity obligates me to forgive those who wound me personally, provided they ask for it and their repentance is real. It would not obligate me to turn justice on its head were I a governor. Got that, Huck?

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  4. To forgive does not mean forget.

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