Forgiveness and the Healing Process: A Central Therapeutic Concern

The question of forgiveness is an essential part of counseling and psychotherapy. Many clients retain memories of abuse or other traumatic events and may not be willing to forgive. This book explores whether forgiveness is helpful or harmful and offers a framework for therapists to help their clients break out of a cycle of bitterness. With perspectives on personal relationships to political trauma, the contributors discuss the utility of forgiveness in the context of therapy and in today's more secular world. The editors, practicing Christian Terry Spy and agnostic Cynthia Ransley argue for and against the merits of forgiveness. They come together to suggest a "dual orientation model" a way of helping people face the wrong while rebuilding a different future in which the individual finds his or her own unique path.