STMA 563 - Reconciliation: Memory, Justice and Forgiveness

This course seeks to address the three-fold problem of human estrangement from God, self, and others as it stems from our inability to forgive, do justice, and be reconciled to each other as individuals, communities, religious groups, and nations. Students will explore the biblical notion of forgiveness as the necessary precondition for reconciling all broken relationships within Creation. This will include humankind’s relationship to the earth. The course will be guided by our reflections on several important questions: Why is it so difficult to forgive? What role does memory - whether personal, familial, tribal, or national - play in personal and political forgiveness? Why do some efforts at forgiveness heal while others fail, and even offend? Is the ability to forgive a sign of strength or weakness? In what way is public forgiveness different from private forgiveness? What is the relationship of confession and apology to forgiveness, justice, and reconciliation? Can apology pave the way for structural changes in the relations between human beings who have committed offenses against others? What role, if any, does the notion of justice as reparations play in the reconciliation process? Does the lack of confession, apology, forgiveness and justice as reparations block the process of human reconciliation? Prerequisite: STMM 554 or STML 554.

Academic Level: Graduate
Instructional Method: Lecture
School: School of Theology & Ministry