The Art of Forgiveness
with Olivia Dreier
Painting by Liane Collot d’Herbois
Sunday, December 13
2-4pm Eastern
What does it mean to forgive? Is forgiveness an act of will, or does it flower in a moment of grace? If the latter, how do we prepare the ground?
Drawing on years of accompanying reconciliation efforts in countries recovering from the horrors of war, Olivia will share testimonies of survivors and perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide who now live side by side, in peace. Their journeys of re-humanization and forgiveness have much to teach us and much to inspire us, as we navigate our own lives in a world increasingly plagued by polarization.
Most of us will never be asked to forgive the unimaginable. But every day we are called to forgive the ordinary hurts that, if left unattended, quietly shape our lives and our relationships.
Stories from Rwanda reveal that the human capacity to heal, rebuild trust, and begin again is far greater than we imagine. They also invite us to explore how the practice of forgiveness might become a path to discovering our common humanity.
Come prepared to journal in whatever medium you choose.
Forgiveness says you are given another chance to make a new beginning.
- Desmond Tutu
Meet the Facilitator…
Olivia Stokes Dreier has designed and led peacebuilding and reconciliation initiatives inpartnership with local leaders in conflict-affected regions around the world. She is currently a Senior Research Fellow on Global Challenges to Democracy at the Toda Peace Institute, based in Tokyo, and a Senior Peacebuilding Advisor to Karuna Center for Peacebuilding, an organization she directed for many years. Earlier in life, she practiced as a psychotherapist. Having worked with the Gandhian movement in rural India in her early 20s, she felt called back to international peacebuilding once her sons were launched. A longtime student of anthroposophy, she also helped found and develop the Hartsbrook Waldorf School in Hadley, Massachusetts.
Registration
Workshop fees are at a sliding scale between $30-$90
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