Forgive others, not because they deserve forgiveness, but because you deserve peace." — Jonathan Lockwood Huie We talk a lot about love, success, and mental health, but forgiveness rarely makes the ...
Psychologists generally define forgiveness as a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether they actually deserve your forgiveness. Just as important as defining what forgiveness is, though, is understanding what forgiveness is not. Experts who study or teach forgiveness make clear that when ...
In the Bible, forgiveness takes on special meaning. It does not mean pretending an offense never happened. How to forgive someone goes deeper than that.
We might ask what kind of life is possible for someone after such self-destructive behavior. How can he move ahead knowing the harm he caused? He cannot reclaim the family he lost nor end the financial difficulty they all face. And so, we ask, how does he forgive himself? If you were in his shoes, how might you move on? The gambler may wallow in remorse, self-hatred, and regret for years to ...
Psychology Today: Why Is It So Hard to Forgive a Person Who Does Not Apologize?
Why Is It So Hard to Forgive a Person Who Does Not Apologize?
After 40 years studying forgiveness, Robert Enright explores how we define it and why people are skeptical about it.
For example, we might be willing to forgive a spouse if he’s constantly late for dinner and making us wait, but find it harder to forgive his infidelity. How easy it is to forgive may also depend on whether the transgression was a one-time occurrence or is ongoing, or on whether they sincerely apologize or agree to make amends.