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ABOUT The POWER of FORGIVENESS
I think of forgiveness in layers like an onion. Only God can forgive completely. We mortals struggle to peel the onion, layer by layer. The longer we take to forgive, the more the onion will make us cry. Some people never pick up the onion, knowing it will cause tears. I was deeply moved by the film. The people who forgave, I found inspiring. They helped me in my quest to forgive.
Nancy M.
This program touched my soul. Thank you.
Scott S.
I thought this program was wonderful and had a certain synergy, given the speech which Obama gave on race the other day. I am a retired US diplomat, and was sad to see that the program confirmed something which I feared. Americans are not particularly forgiving. Their attitudes towards Muslims, towards people who have committed crimes and strangers (e.g., illegal immigrants) seem sadly unchristian. It is an irony that many of the most rigidly judgmental claim to be strong Christians. Thanks again for reminding us that there is another way to react to the wrongs we feel and see.
Laura C.
I have been through several struggles in my life including a terrible abuse abusive marriage at an early age and losing my son, my only child, when he was 29 years old. As I was going through cancer treatments of daily radiation I had a transformation. I did not want radiation and when it began I thought, “This is to be. And I must turn this light into something positive.” I began to focus on the light going into my breast (over my heart) saying this was a healing and loving light. My mantra was, “Forgiveness and love will bring you back to the light within your heart.” I realized that forgiveness and love are two of the keys to your inner heart-of-hearts, where only you and your creator share. There was a silver lining to my getting cancer, which brought me back to my path of spirituality. I'm truly blessed to have found total forgiveness and, from that, love in my heart.
Sharmon
Thank you for making this film. I hadn't realized when I sat down to watch this film that I would see my sister in it. I hope this film is just a step in the long process to educate and change the hearts of the American people.
Jayne S.
I found the film beautiful. I have always seen myself as a forgiving person. After seeing these people in the depths of their sorrows and the depths of their forgiveness I questioned my own methods of forgiving. I can only hope that this film is seen by people like me who want and wish to be more forgiving to others and occasionally to themselves. This film has only touched on some of the ways people have chosen to forgive and just that little bit has changed me. We could use a lot more of the same. Thank you.
Karen D.
I watched this show on PBS last night and was so touched by the story of the two dads: one's grandson had killed the other’s son.
Carol F.
We need to separate forgiveness from forgetting.
One can forgive one's child for not performing. Nonetheless that child must take responsibility for not performing and suffer the consequences of failure of performance. Additionally he or she must admit their error and promise not to repeat it and then not repeat it. If they do repeat it then they need to suffer the repercussions of their actions again.
Forgiveness means not holding long-term grudges and acting out of those grudges in the next moment. We can act appropriately without vengeance. The correction occurs then we move on, each moment a new moment.
Forgiveness is for the forgiver, not for the forgiven. The unforgiver cannot be happy and lives life out of hatred and bitterness.
The key is not only to forgive the perpetrator but to also teach that perpetrator to care about others so that the problem will not recur.
Jan
I just finished watching your show and must say it is perhaps the most powerful thing I have ever seen on television. I am an ordinary man with ordinary problems (and rather pedestrian in contrast to the stories in this show). I am not easily moved to emotional demonstrations but this could be a life-changing message for me and most individuals of all walks, religions and beliefs. It is clearly time we change as individuals in order to change the world and maximize peace. I explored your website and will contribute to the world by changing myself and my views.
Dr. Paul
In August 2007 I realized I would need to leave work because of my disability. I wish I would have had one more year to work with my students because of The POWER of FORGIVENESS would have made an outstanding addition to our curriculum on justice, shalom, truth-and-reconciliation and self-deception. Thank you for this timely and much-needed resource.
Angela W.
Some 375 people filled the sanctuary of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Tiburon, California on March 11, 2007 for the screening of "The POWER of FORGIVENESS" ... The breathtaking, soul-stirring documentary momentarily left the audience in silence. The community conversation led by Martin Doblmeier deepened and significantly personalized the theme of forgiveness and the individual stories in the film. One teen who is writing a term paper on 'resilience" commented that she was adding an entire section to her project, having seen for the first time an important connection between effective resilience and forgiveness.
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You folks took on the monsters in the film. Well done. It gives us hope that we can take on and forgive the little monsters in our need to forgive. Many of the folks I spoke with afterwards, some days afterwards, are still processing and appreciating the man whose son was killed making a pizza delivery. The father and the shooters grandfather are our great and wise teachers. Their relationship and reconciliation made me feel like I was at the feet of sages, who had mastered something deeply of God.
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ABOUT CREATIVITY: TOUCHING THE DIVINE:
I so very much appreciate the idea of getting closer to God through art. I had been a studio artist and had become so blocked that I'd gone out and gotten a real job. I've missed painting a lot, but had been at a loss how to approach it again.
ABOUT the results of the opinion poll on support for a Garden of Forgiveness at Ground Zero (98% opposed vs 2% support)
See what they're saying at Dash Goes to Church blog.
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This is very sad to me. But thanks for the report. It will become a topic of discussion in my community.
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People of faith confuse forgiveness with saying that something done to hurt them or those they care about was "o.k." Forgiveness is not about that - it's about releasing ourselves from the hurts of the past so that we might move forward into a different future, with or without the offending person. Forgiveness is always more about us than about the offender. That there's little space for forgiveness is deeply disturbing but this says more about us and about our future than anything else - and maybe a bit about the failure of Christianity in contemporary America to teach authentic Christianity.
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What a powerful statement about the hard work of forgiving. The results should generate some interesting discussion about the complex nature of forgiveness.
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An interesting conundrum. Forgiveness is one of my spiritual paths. I was very taken by a rabbi's comment that an unforgiven act is like a carcinoma of one's soul.
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The fact that a majority of people didn't support a "Garden of Forgiveness at Ground Zero" shouldn't be confused with being against forgiveness. I believe a vary large majority would support the concept of forgiveness but the place for such a garden may not be Ground Zero... There is a big difference between supporting forgiveness and support for the garden.
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Who would be forgiven and who would be forgiving, and for what?... Jesus presented the notion of unlimited forgiveness in the context of a person acting against you time after time, but after each offense coming to you and repenting with a request that you extend forgiveness... The actual terrorists have done nothing to indicate they see what they are doing as a sin against God, so forgiveness in the general sense is not appropriate.
ABOUT BONHOEFFER
Q. I recently watched the Bonheoffer documentary on PBS with my wife. We thought it was excellent. I was moved by the story. I was also moved by the excellent German hymns that were in the background. It set me off on an online search for German hymns. Unfortunately, I have been unsuccessful. Is there a soundrack available for your film? Or, could you give me any of the music sources that were used? Thank you very much.
A. Those songs were recorded specifically for the film by a small German Lutheran choir in Washington, DC. The Negro spirituals were recorded by the choir of the Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York. Neither set of recordings is commercially avialable.
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My friend (from Germany) just loaned me his copy of your Bonhoeffer documentary. I have a Jewish background but am a Christian minister (Swedenborgian). Your film was a masterpiece. Even more moving was the interview with you in which you clarified your aim - to demonstrate how one man responded to the will of God. Faith is not about creeds - it's about our life and how we respond to the needs of others. Bonhoeffer incarnates this message beautifully, as does you documentary about his life.
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Just a note of appreciation for your wonderful documentary: Bonhoeffer. I was already familiar with the subject matter as I have read his biography and at least one of his books: The Cost of Discipleship. I found that your film covered the most important aspects of Bonhoeffer's life and enjoyed tremendously the interviews with his students. I believe that recording stories of those who know Bonhoeffer was priceless. The story was told in an interesting way. The music and the voice of Bonhoeffer contributed tremendously to the overall impact of the film. I am a film student and my goal is to work in documentary films that celebrate the human spirit and all that is good and transforming in the lives of people who care about the world we live in.
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I was browsing the shelves at Blockbuster and went nuts when I saw you film on Bonhoeffer. Thank you for your vision for bringing this intelligent film to American living rooms. We are becoming a nation of passive listeners. The films that you produce inspire us to become active participants
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