  Spiritual
This week: Edited by: Sophy New Year  
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Hi, I'm Sophy New Year ~ your editor for this edition of the Spiritual Newsletter. This week we'll talk about forgiveness.
The Rev. Scotty McLennan, author of the book Finding Your Religion, compares humanity's innate need for spiritual searching to climbing a mountain. In his view, we are all endeavoring to climb the same figurative mountain in our search for the divine, we just may take different ways to get there. In other words, there is one "God," but many paths. I honor whatever path or paths you have chosen to climb that mountain in your quest for the Sacred.  |
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FORGIVENESS
For this issue of the Spiritual Newsletter we'll be talking about forgiveness.
The first part of this essay will briefly deal briefly with forgiveness within a variety of religious traditions; the second part shares my own personal take on forgiveness;
and the last part will deal with how prominently forgiveness figures into writing themes.
PART 1:
All of the major world religions have forgiveness at their core. Below I'll look briefly at forgiveness within four different religions. I don't have the space to include every religious belief about forgiveness, so if your religious or spiritual practice doesn't appear below, please send a comment describing how forgiveness fits into your spiritual path and I'll share it in the next newsletter. Also keep in mind that I only included a short paragraph relating forgiveness to the specific religions below. Obviously much more could be written about each one, but my intention was merely to outline the gist.
In Christianity, one of Jesus' primary messages was about forgiveness, both in terms of seeking and granting it to each other, as well as seeking to make things right in one's relationship with God. As a response to God's forgiveness, the Christian believer is expected to forgive others; in fact, some would teach that the forgiveness of others is a necessary part of receiving forgiveness ourselves, and vice versa. And Jesus is viewed as paying the ultimate sacrifice by dying on the cross for the forgiveness of all of the sins of humanity. There are different groups within Christianity (Catholic and the variety of Protestant denominations), which means that some vary in terms of how forgiveness of sin relates to one's ultimate salvation. But ultimately forgiveness, from others and from God, is a key element of Christian faith and practice.
Since Christianity stems from Judaism, forgiveness is also a key element of Jewish practice as well. In fact, if someone harms another, and then sincerely and honestly seeks atonement for the wrong and forgiveness from the person who was harmed, the wronged party is religiously required to grant the forgiveness requested. Additionally, a person cannot receive forgiveness from God unless the wrongdoings were committed against God. Unlike Christianity, where God can serve as a mediator, in Judaism one can only receive forgiveness for the harm done to another person by rectifying the situation with the other person.
The concept of performing atonement from one's wrongdoing (Prayaschitta), and asking for forgiveness is very much a part of the practice of Hinduism. In fact, "Prayashitta is related to the law of Karma, which is a sum of all that an individual has done, is currently doing, and will do. The effects of those deeds and these deeds actively create present and future experiences, thus making one responsible for one's own life, and the pain in others." (quoted from Wikipedia)
In the practice of Islam, "forgiveness is a prerequisite for any true or genuine peace. Islam teaches that God (Allah) is 'the most forgiving,' and is the original source of all forgiveness. Forgiveness often requires the repentance of those being forgiven. Depending on the type of wrong committed, forgiveness can come either directly from Allah, or from one's fellow man (sic). In the case of divine forgiveness, the asking for divine forgiveness via repentance is important. In the case of human forgiveness, it is important to both forgive, and to be forgiven." (also quoted from Wikipedia)
PART 2:
Near the end of the book Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom, there is a scene where Mitch wondered if Morrie had a need to say, “I'm sorry” before he died, because that's how many deathbed scenes are played out in movies and novels. And Morrie's response was, “Forgive yourself before you die. Then forgive others. There is no point in keeping vengeance or stubbornness. These things,” he sighed, “these things I so regret in my life. Pride. Vanity. Why do we do the things we do?” At that point Morrie told Mitch about a friendship that ended because Morrie wasn’t able to forgive his friend for a personal slight many years earlier. His voice choked up when he told Mitch that his friend died a few years ago, without their reconciliation. “I feel so sad. I never got to see him. I never got to forgive. It pains me now so much … Forgive yourself, forgive others. Don't wait, not everyone gets the time I'm getting. Not everyone is as lucky. Forgive everything.”
I love this passage. While certainly easier said than done, Morrie reminds us that life is precious and short, and should not be wasted by carrying grudges against people. Certainly great harm can be done by one person to another, and some injuries are so severe in nature that they can never be forgotten, and the perpetrator may never be able to be trusted again. But that does not mean forgiveness is not possible. Perhaps this story will better explain what I am getting at. A former survivor of a Nazi concentration camp was visiting a friend who had been in the camp with him. "Have you forgiven the Nazis?" he asked his friend. "Yes." "Well," he replied, "I haven't. I'm still consumed with hatred for them." "In that case," said his friend gently, "they still have you in prison." The prison mentioned by the Holocaust survivor is what I am talking about. People hurt other people, sometimes viciously and with evil intent. That is reality. And we may never be able to forget that harm. That is reality as well. But we do have a choice about forgiving and moving on - maybe even more for ourselves than for the perpetrator of the wrongdoing.
As Morrie says, "Forgive EVERYTHING!"
PART 3:
The mention or overall theme of forgiveness is found often in much of great literature throughout human history. Regardless of which religion or spirituality one practices, forgiveness is a key part of most spiritual paths, most likely because it is such an essential element of the human condition. In fact, forgiveness itself is a normal part of human relationships even if one doesn't ascribe to any religion or spiritual path. Thus it is not surprising to find forgiveness as a foundation or theme of so many novels and other great writings.
Sometimes the plot may deal with seeking to achieve forgiveness and redemption throughout a lifetime of wrongdoing or hurt, or perhaps it will focus on someone trying to forgive someone for a past wrong. For instance, Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky are both well known Russian authors whose many works often dealt with redemption and forgiveness, while modern authors like Barbara Kingsolver, Nicholas Sparks and Wally Lamb also weave themes of forgiveness throughout their work. Two of my favorite novels of all time are The Poisonwood Bible bye Kingsolver, and I Know This Much is True by Lamb -- both are excellent examples of writing that deals with forgiveness and redemption, and I highly recommend them both. And these are just the tip of the ice burg when it comes to writings that deal with forgiveness.
We are human beings, and the reality of that is we sometimes hurt or cause harm to one other, either intentionally or unintentionally. Regardless of how the harm came about, in order to restore the relationship the injured party has to find a way to forgive the one who harmed him or her, and the one who caused the harm needs to seek forgiveness for their wrong. That in and of itself is a compelling aspect of what it means to be human, so it's no wonder it is a theme found in so much of our writing.
If you choose to include the theme of forgiveness in your writing, there are a variety of ways to do so. You can write a poem that includes forgiveness as a foundation, or an essay about the nature of forgiveness itself (about how difficult it can be, or about why it's a healing thing to pursue, issues like that). Or perhaps you'll choose to write a story, true or fictional, about how forgiveness plays an integral role in a relationship or even the lifetime of a major character.
I encourage you to look back over your writing and see how often forgiveness appears, as well as to be creative in how you include it in future readings. Not only does it make for a good subject and storyline, it also helps the write work through some of their own issues surrounding forgiveness as well.
Until next time! Sophy New Year |
Below you'll find some offerings from other WDC members about forgiveness. Some are religious, some are not, some have happy endings, some do not -- just like the real world! Please let the folks now if you read their piece with a thoughtful comment or review.
First a poem from "The Writer's Cramp - Poetry Week!" -- which came from a prompt asking them to write about "forgiveness." I said I'd share the best ones, and here they are:
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And several more items from around the site:
| |  | The Bus Ride (13+)
fictional look at forgiveness- left openended because it was used for a discussion group
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Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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Thank you for the responses to my last newsletter about spiritual retreats!  Here are a few of the emails/comments I received:
From pcaneday
Dear Sophy,
Thanks so much for including my piece (Retreat!) in your recent newsletter. I am honored!!!
Here is my latest piece. I hope you have time to read it.
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Thanks for the support!
Patrick
Thanks Patrick! Your Retreat item was what prompted me to focus my last newsletter on Spiritual Retreats, which I greatly appreciated. Thanks for sharing your latest piece as well. Write on!
From Katya the Poet  :
Another great newsletter! Thanks for including me in it--twice! And it was great to see your mom's piece again. I feel like I have been on a sort of retreat all summer.
You are most welcome! You are one of my favorite poets, so it's hard for me not to find something of yours to use from time to time. Glad you have had a retreating summer, hope it has been a blessing for you.
From SHEA
GREAT JOB Sophy!
In Christ, Shea
Thanks Shea, your encouragement and kind words are appreciated.
From darkin
Wonderful newsletter, Sophy! I liked the subject, and the picks are great!
Darkin
Aww, thank you. You are my favorite squirrel of all time, but you already know that. Glad you enjoyed the newsletter and the picks.
Please keep your comments and suggestions coming! And if you have an idea for a future newsletter theme, please let me know. See you next time! Sophy New Year
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Spiritual: August 29, 2007 Issue [#1914]
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