The Gift of Forgiveness

Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt speaks with twenty-two people to talk about the power of forgiveness in their lives. All of the people to whom she speaks have suffered extreme violence, pain, devastation, all at the hands of others. How does each person react to the violence, to the devastation? How has each person used forgiveness as a tool to deal with suffering?

No story is the same, and each person's use of forgiveness is different. The forgiveness given to the perpetrators comes in a multitude of forms and shapes, but it is always complex and nuanced.

One of the stories Pratt tells is a story from Rwanda. She tells about the genocide that took place there between the majority group and a minority group. The majority group attempted to kill all of the minority group. Later, another group came into power and the killings halted. There were too many people involved in the killings to send everyone to jail. Instead, a plan was created where the survivors could confront the perpetrators and talk in small local meetings all over the country. The perpetrators were asked to seek forgiveness from the survivors and the survivors were asked to forgive the perpetrators. In large part, the plan was felt to work well across the country.

This book is a fascinating look at forgiveness and its power. I have taken away from this book a new way to think about how to deal with those who hurt us, a powerful tool of healing. While it is not simple, it can be effective.