News
Forgiveness and Physical Health
U.S. News and World Report – Author Angela Haupt reviews some of the latest scientific studies linking forgiveness to positive physical health. Dr. Enright’s book, The Forgiving Life, is featured as is a brief description of his forgiveness model.
According to the article, experts say that forgiving those who have wronged us helps lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart rate. One study found that forgiveness is associated with improved sleep quality, which has a strong effect on health. And Duke University researchers report a strong correlation between forgiveness and strengthened immunity among HIV-positive patients. The benefits aren’t just limited to the physical, either: Letting go of old grudges reduces levels of depression, anxiety, and anger. People who forgive tend to have better relationships, feel happier and more optimistic, and overall, enjoy better psychological well-being.
Read the full U.S. News and World Report story: How to Forgive, and Why You Should. The same article also appears in 9/2/12 issue of The Huffington Post.
Creator of Thalidomide Asks Forgiveness
Long Island Newsday – The German manufacturer of Thalidomide, Gruenenthal Group, apologized to mothers who took thalidomide during the 1950s and 1960s and to their children who suffered congenital birth defects because of the drug.
“We ask for forgiveness that for nearly 50 years we didn’t find a way of reaching out to you from human being to human being,” Harald Stock said. “We ask that you regard our long silence as a sign of the shock that your fate caused in us.”
Thalidomide, a powerful sedative, was sold under the brand name Contergan. It was given to pregnant women mostly to combat morning sickness, but led to a wave of birth defects in Europe, Australia, Canada and Japan. Thalidomide was yanked from the market in 1961 and was also found to cause defects in the eyes, ears, heart, genitals and internal organs of developing babies.
Thalidomide was never approved for use in pregnant women in the United States.
Read more: Thalidomide Maker Asks Forgiveness.
“We Forgive You,” Says Father of Slain Son to the Killer
Waltham (Ma) News Tribune – For the first time in nearly two years, Mamadou Ndiaye got to speak to the man who stabbed and killed his only son, Elhadji.
But, instead of lashing out at Robenson Daniel, Ndiaye spoke of forgiveness.
“We forgive you, from our heart,” Ndiaye told Daniel after Daniel pleaded guilty in Middlesex Superior Court Thursday to a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter in the stabbing death of Elhadji Ndiaye at Regis College.
“We forgive you, person-to-person, we forgive you. As a family, we forgive you,” Ndiaye said. “This is the hardest thing that has ever happened to me. He was my only son. Nothing this hard will ever happen to me again, but we are human and we forgive you.”
Read more: Father of slain Waltham teen to son’s killer: ‘We forgive you’.
Should an Apology Lead to Legal Pardon in the Philippines?
ManilaStandardToday.com, Manila, Philippines – A man who ran a red light and was ticketed by a law enforcement officer has apologized for hitting the officer with his fist. He is hoping for a legal pardon because his job requires the use of a car. Metro Manila Development Authority Chairman Francis Tolentino made the distinction between the officer accepting the apology and the Development Authority continuing with justice.
Motorist Robert Blair Carabuena issued a public apology for berating and hitting the traffic officer who tried to cite him for going through a red light. Despite the apology, the Land Transportation Office maintained that Carabuena should be held accountable for his action.
“LTO will not accept the public apology of Carabuena. He violated a law. He should be accountable for his action. Regardless of whether he gets pardoned by the MMDA traffic enforcer, the LTO will determine its own independent course of action,” said LTO Metro Manila director Teofilo Guadiz.
Story is here: Forgive me, Carabuena asks authorities.
How Forgiving Are You?
News item that could make a difference in your life: Did you know that Dr. Enright’s newly released book, The Forgiving Life, is being produced in conjunction with a major publisher of psychological scales and tests called Mind Garden? Mind Garden has set up on their website three forgiveness scales that are discussed in the book, The Forgiving Life. You can go on-line to MindGarden.com and fill out the forgiveness scales. Mind Garden then does all the work to score your responses and to let you know how forgiving or unforgiving you are toward any particular person. Mind Garden can then chart your progress in forgiving after you have worked through the process of forgiveness in the book.
Mind Garden is an independent publisher of psychological assessments and instruments. The company’s goal is to “preserve and grow” important psychological assessments. In the quest to grow the health of the human psyche, it facilitates feedback and self understanding.
Mind Garden serves members of the academic, research, and consulting communities by offering high quality, proven instruments from prominent professionals. Mind Garden has partnered with Dr. Robert Enright, founder of the International Forgiveness Institute, to create a series of scales related his latest book The Forgiving Life. Jump to Mind Garden.
