This series of messages is very timely to me. As an experienced coach and facilitator (including OS), I have been craving a proper scientific basis for our work. Ok, quantum physics, chaos theory and complexity offer analogues, but that is not enough.
So, I am very pleased to be currently on the program which is based on the Positive Psychology scientific findings where the researchers and practitioners are working together and developing new tools and approaches to test. Recently, we addressed exactly the issues spoken of here. However, the angle was somewhat different in that we spoke first of Forgiveness. Only after did we address the question of Justice. The Apology did not figure at all. And from the conversation here, I see why. We are talking here about issues from the past. What happened can not be undone. Yet, our memories of what occured can be changed. The only thing that needs to happen is for us personally to take responsibility to reframing our own memories. And, this comes with Forgiveness. The act of forgiveness is a selfish act - it frees the person from the burden of anger, sadness, being stuck! Now, here is a conundrum that we struggled with on the program. By forgiving, do we reduce justice in the world? Namely, my forgiving someone who wronged me (or the world) does not have any effect on him/her nor does it stop them from doing the same again. In the lecture someone mentioned Dalai Lama and what he said when asked about Chinese occupation of Tibet. I paraphrase: "They have stolen my country, I will not allow them to steal my mind (by being angry and dwelling on it)." So, we come back to Michael and his point about direct connections between people. A place where we listen with deep desire to meet the soul of another, to hear their voice and understand their world. Place where we hold each other as sacred human beings, unique and equally valuable. As a start, I can ask my daughter's best friend (who has family in Bagdad) to connect me with some of her relatives! Finally, I come from Jewish tradition where our rituals contunially remind us to forgive but NEVER to forget. And, I have to say that it is not easy but it is enormously liberating. Lilly Evans * * ========================================================== [email protected] ------------------------------ To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your options, view the archives of [email protected]: http://listserv.boisestate.edu/archives/oslist.html To learn about OpenSpaceEmailLists and OSLIST FAQs: http://www.openspaceworld.org/oslist
