(Tyler J. VanderWeele Ph.D.) One of the projects of the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University has been researching the topic of forgiveness and its importance for a flourishing life. Some of our empirical work has explored how forgiveness can powerfully shape health and well-being. For example, our research indicates that forgiveness reduces subsequent depression and anxiety by about 15-20%, when controlling for other variables, and suggests that forgiveness is a freeing and healing alternative to maladaptive responses like rumination and suppression.
Related The Sympathetic Nervous System — Survival Psychology
by Tyler J. VanderWeele Ph.D., June 27th, 2019
Forgiveness, understood as the replacing of ill-will with good-will towards the offender, does not imply condoning the action or not demanding justice. Forgiving simply means desiring the ultimate good of the offender, and this can be done without excusing the wrongful action and while still pursuing a just outcome.
Our program’s work has explored how forgiveness might be conceived of as a public health issue. The experience of being wronged is common, and the effects of forgiveness on health are profound. Since there are now easy to use resources that can help people to forgive when they want to forgive, but are struggling to do so (see more below on forgiveness workbooks), we believe that more public attention should be given to this topic.
Buy Book Forgiving the Unforgivable: Finding Healing and Hope Through Pain, Loss, or Betrayal
Our work on forgiveness in fact recently captured the attention of Harvard Men’s Health Watch and they published a popular piece on forgivenessbased on our work. An article, written by Professor VanderWeele, “Is Forgiveness a Public Health Issue?”, which also addresses some of the ethical issues around forgiveness, is publicly available at this link.
New Templeton Funding for a Randomized Trial
And our work on the importance of forgiveness continues on. We are happy to announce that we recently received funding from the Templeton World Charity Foundation to launch, in collaboration with Everett Worthington, a randomized trial of forgiveness workbook interventions in six countries around the world (Columbia, South Africa, Ghana, Ukraine, Indonesia, and China). The study will examine how this forgiveness approach might work globally since most of the research to date has been within the United States.
The study will take place during 2020 and, if successful, it could potentially launch the beginning of a global forgiveness campaign. Stay tuned as our research in this area and others progresses.
Buy Book The Spiritual Technology of Ancient Egypt: Sacred Science and the Mystery of Consciousness
Stillness in the Storm Editor: Why did we post this?
Love is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. It has been said, God is love. We, as the children of love, seek it out in our lives in many different ways. Love is one of the primal emotions, with fear being the other. While the word love has been diluted over the years, life is filled with many different types of love that we would do well to identify. The preceding article discusses this powerful emotion and fundamental spiritual reality. Understanding how your life and motivations are guided by love is critically important for the development of balanced consciousness, capable of meeting the needs of the heart while at the same time, leaving a wake of benevolence. If the human race rediscovered the power of love and fellowship, the world could be transformed in short order. The strongest type of love is spiritual kinship, the love that emerges through the recognition of yourself as a child of the Creator, making all other living things your spiritual brothers and sisters. An individual that seeks spiritual maturity must learn how to balance and harmonizes their love urges. In doing so, they restore order to the chaos of their lives while at the same time preparing themselves for the Great Work of improving this world through fellowship, fraternity, and the goodness of an enlightened spirit-led soul.
– Justin
Not sure how to make sense of this? Want to learn how to discern like a pro? Read this essential guide to discernment, analysis of claims, and understanding the truth in a world of deception: 4 Key Steps of Discernment – Advanced Truth-Seeking Tools.
Stillness in the Storm Editor’s note: Did you find a spelling error or grammar mistake? Send an email to [email protected], with the error and suggested correction, along with the headline and url. Do you think this article needs an update? Or do you just have some feedback? Send us an email at [email protected]. Thank you for reading.
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