Forgiveness News
The Call for Forgiveness in Nigeria, a National Pain Reliever
Nigerian Tribune. Saturday, June 23 2012. Peter Salawu, a college student at Federal Polytechnic Bida, Niger State, called on the people of Nigeria today to consider forgiving one another as a way to quell bomb blasts and other acts of aggression in his country.
“Let us remove thoughts of revenge from our hearts and begin to love unconditionally; it heals our relationship and lives. Think of forgiveness, not so much as an act, but as a lifestyle. Try to forgive and forget, let by-gone be by-gone. Enough is enough of bomb blasts and terrorism in our beloved country, Nigeria.”
According to Federal Polytechnic Bida student Peter Salawu, “To ensure a better Nigeria, let us learn how to forgive and bury the hatchet and let the sleeping dog lie, because nothing good comes out of revenge, rather it complicates issues by making people kill their fellow brothers without having a rethink.
“I used to think that by withholding forgiveness from my offenders they would suffer. I later realized that I was the one suffering when I finally understood the power of forgiveness, it was truly enlightening. I discovered that I have a lot more freedom, felt happier and focused.”
Rodney King Forgives Officers Who Beat Him
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM – Rodney King, who became a symbol for civil rights and police brutality in 1991, was found dead at the bottom of a swimming pool in Rialto, California on Sunday.
King was 25 years old and on parole from a robbery conviction when he was stopped by police for speeding on March 3, 1991. According to the Detroit Free Press, four Los Angeles police officers hit him more than 50 times with batons, kicked him and shot him with stun guns.
King suffered a broken eye socket, numerous skull fractures, and facial nerve damage in the beating. Meanwhile, a man videotaped most of the incident and gave a copy to a TV station.
Before his death, King said he had forgiven the officers involved in his beating.
“Yes, I’ve forgiven them, because I’ve been forgiven many times,” he said last year, 20 years after the beating. “I have to be able to forgive — for the future, for the younger generation coming behind me, so… they can understand it and if a situation like that happened again, they could deal with it a lot easier.”
After the Rodney King beating, a three-month trial took place in predominantly white Simi Valley, and three of the officers were acquitted of all charges. There were no black members on the jury. A year later, two of the officers were found guilty of civil rights charges.
As a result of the 1991 verdict, Los Angeles faced a series of fiery riots over three days that killed 55 people and injured more than 2,000. During the third day of riots, King said: “People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along?”
Even Bishops Couldn’t Jump the Queues
In a follow-up to the 50th International Eucharistic Congress held in Dublin (see the June 9 post below), The Irish Times, Ireland’s daily newspaper, gave special attention to the forgiveness workshop conducted by Dr. Robert Enright, founder of the International Forgiveness Institute. Of the more than 160 workshops held during the Congress, Dr. Enright’s session was singled out by The Irish Times reporter who wrote:
There was a bewildering array of topics on offer, everything from reaching lapsed Catholics to justice for the developing world. It is unfair to pick just one, but I was really moved by Dr Robert Enright’s talk. Based at the University of Wisconsin, he is the acknowledged pioneer in the scientific study of forgiveness.
One of his fascinating pieces of research concerns heart attack survivors. Practising forgiveness enhanced their cardiovascular function.
He has also worked with survivors of incest and chronic pain sufferers. His talk cannot be summarised, but take a look at www.internationalforgiveness.com.
Richard Moore, blinded by a rubber bullet, provided a living example of forgiveness in his testimony in the arena.
Without Forgiveness, Bitterness Remains
KHOU.com, Houston, TX. A man whose wife and son were murdered has forgiven the killer–his other son–and is now spreading the word about the power of forgiveness.
Kent Whitaker says he was consumed with anger when he learned that his son Bart had committed the murders nine years ago in order to get the family inheritance. But Whitaker said he’s turned his anger into a message–one he hopes can convince others to forgive, no matter how badly they’ve been hurt.
“If we don’t forgive, then the bitterness that comes from the result of the event stays with us forever,” he said.
Even though Bart has been forgiven by his father, he has not been forgiven by the state. He received a death sentence for the murders and remains on Death Row, but his execution date has not been set. Read the full story and watch a video.
Former Student Leader Forgives on the 23rd Anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre
The Gospel Herald: Global Chinese Christian News Service – On the 23rd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, one of the student leaders at the time, Chai Ling, proclaimed her forgiveness toward those responsible for the tragedy.
“Two decades ago, the Chinese government’s crackdown in Tiananmen Square left hundreds of my fellow students dead,” she explains. “Since then a new generation has grown up in China, and many of them are kept in the dark about what happened on this day in China’s history.”
Describing her forgiveness, she says, “I forgive Deng Xiaoping and Li Peng. I forgive the soldiers who stormed Tiananmen Square in 1989. I forgive the current leadership of China….”
“I pray that a culture of grace will arise in China, giving all people dignity and humanity…” Chai Ling said. “I pray that those who have suffered under oppression will not seek vengeance – like King David’s soldiers did when they killed Absalom – but have the courage to forgive. Forgiveness does not justify wrong, but rather yields the power of judgment to God.”
