Forgiving … it demands from me

Accountability

Justice

I am committed to its importance

It is difficult to break the cycles of orthodoxy

Enmeshed in patterns of negativity and destructiveness

It is difficult to unlearn habits

Difficult to remember the past truthfully

Difficult to embody

God’s forgiveness is the only true lesson

To help me narrate the truth about my life, my darkness

Dying a death to my old self, my old selfishness, my old self-concern

A true reconciliation through costly forgiveness

Facing the truth about others

Reconciliation of brokenness

Restoration of communion

Living anew

Cultivating appropriate sorts of passions

In transformative relationships

I am called to disciplined living

Through inhabiting exemplar spaces

By exhibiting good character

In favour of establishing a committed community of forgiveness

Forgiveness, never a weakness, is a form of compassionate strength towards others and ourselves, the knowledge of which is often lost or forgotten when it comes to forgiving ourselves.  It is an act of no longer feeling resentful or angry towards oneself and others for some real or perceived flaw, error or mistake. It does not, however, mean forgetting – on the contrary, it encourages us to act in wisdom to protect ourselves from future, further harm, but not to let the pain or disconnection affect us any longer.  The orientation and action required is of reaching out to re-establish connection and humanity, which ultimately alleviates suffering in the world. It re-establishes the possibility for healthy future communion with others and the world.  Peace emerges when we choose to stop contending with others and ourselves, just as we would have liked for ourselves if we transgressed someone or something and require forgiveness from others. Forgiveness and the act of forgiving grow easier with use, unlike physical courage which depletes with usage.