Public Forgiveness in Post-Conflict Contexts

doi:10.1017/9781839700712

There seems to be a pervasive trend towards public apologies, forms of national introspection and appeals to grant forgiveness. Archbishop Tutu’s motto that 'there is no future without forgiveness' is well known. The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission has become an important model and source of inspiration for many other countries that want to deal with their past grievances and internal conflicts. This book discusses the role of forgiveness within processes of peace building and transitional justice. Does ‘forgiveness’ enable a public or political use of the term? Is it possible to forgive on behalf of others, and if so, under what conditions? These conceptual questions are related to reflections on the cultural and religious contexts of expressing forgiveness. Do forgiving words promote a willingness to look ahead and prevent a relapse into conflicting views on the poisonous past? Or do they bring along aversion? Maybe the ‘push’ towards forgiveness is experienced as highly unfair.

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-Iv
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Acknowledgements
pp v-Vi
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Contents
pp vii-Xii
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List of Contributors
pp xiii-Xvi
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Public Forgiveness: Theoretical and Practical Perspectives
pp 1-22
- By Bas Van Stokkom, Neelke Doorn, Paul Van Tongeren
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Part 1 - PHILOSOPHICAL ACCOUNTS OF PUBLIC FORGIVENESS
pp 23-24
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Public Forgiveness: a Modest Defence
pp 25-36
- By Trudy Govier
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The Philosophical Controversy over Political Forgiveness
pp 37-64
- By Alice MacLachlan
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Forgetting, Remembering, Forgiving, and the Mundane Legal Order
pp 65-90
- By Wouter Veraart
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Time Beyond time – time Before time: Comments on Ricoeur
pp 91-106
- By Bert van Roermund
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A Question of Forgiving words
pp 107-124
- By Erik Doxtader
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Sympathy and Inseparability
pp 125-140
- By Nir Eisikovits
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PART 2 - PUBLIC FORGIVENESS IN POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS CONTEXTS
pp 141-142
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Political Forgiveness, Promise, and the “Understanding Heart” in Hannah Arendt’S Theory
pp 143-162
- By Catherine Guisan
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Victimhood, Truth Recovery, and Public Forgiveness in Northern Ireland – some Interdisciplinary Reflections
pp 163-188
- By Margaret E. Smith
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Forums of apology and forgiveness
pp 189-202
- By Sanderijn Cels
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Public Reconciliation at the South African Trc: the Impact of the Victim Hearings
pp 203-226
- By Annelies Verdoolaege
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Should Christian Contributions to Transitional Justice Focus on Reconciliation? Learning from El Salvador
pp 227-248
- By Stephen J. Pope
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Public Forgiveness At the Boundary Of the Secular And the Religious. How Do We Read the Terrain?
pp 249-262
- By Robert Schreiter
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Public Forgiveness in Post-Conflict Contexts

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Contents

Frontmatter
pp i-Iv

Acknowledgements
pp v-Vi

Contents
pp vii-Xii

List of Contributors
pp xiii-Xvi

Public Forgiveness: Theoretical and Practical Perspectives
pp 1-22

Part 1 - PHILOSOPHICAL ACCOUNTS OF PUBLIC FORGIVENESS
pp 23-24

Public Forgiveness: a Modest Defence
pp 25-36

The Philosophical Controversy over Political Forgiveness
pp 37-64

Forgetting, Remembering, Forgiving, and the Mundane Legal Order
pp 65-90

Time Beyond time – time Before time: Comments on Ricoeur
pp 91-106

A Question of Forgiving words
pp 107-124

Sympathy and Inseparability
pp 125-140

PART 2 - PUBLIC FORGIVENESS IN POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS CONTEXTS
pp 141-142

Political Forgiveness, Promise, and the “Understanding Heart” in Hannah Arendt’S Theory
pp 143-162

Victimhood, Truth Recovery, and Public Forgiveness in Northern Ireland – some Interdisciplinary Reflections
pp 163-188

Forums of apology and forgiveness
pp 189-202

Public Reconciliation at the South African Trc: the Impact of the Victim Hearings
pp 203-226

Should Christian Contributions to Transitional Justice Focus on Reconciliation? Learning from El Salvador
pp 227-248

Public Forgiveness At the Boundary Of the Secular And the Religious. How Do We Read the Terrain?
pp 249-262

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