WORCESTER, Mass. – What does it mean to forgive? Is forgiveness always appropriate? Does forgiving mean forgetting? Is it compatible with justice? What does it accomplish? These issues and more will be examined in an interdisciplinary conference on forgiveness held at Holy Cross on Friday, Sept. 14, and Saturday, Sept. 15. The conference is part of the inaugural semester of the College's new Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture. It will be the centerpiece of a semester-long series of events that explore the theme of forgiveness in a variety of cultural, political, social, economic and religious contexts.
The conference is made up of a broad range of panels, focusing on a wide variety of contexts that raise particular questions about forgiveness. Guest experts and Holy Cross faculty will speak to and invite discussion on topics including: forgiveness and reparation for past crimes such as slavery; forgiveness in the aftermath of sexual assault; the history and evolution of forgiveness; forgiveness and the American criminal justice system; and the similarities and variation between Catholic, Jewish and Muslim views on forgiveness.
Other panels will explore modern social issues, such as the death penalty, Third World debt, forgiveness in post-civil war societies like Argentina and Guatemala, and what the implications of the Holocaust are for Christians. The major speakers are Donald W. Shriver Jr., president emeritus and professor at Union Theological Seminary, who is a renowned scholar on forgiveness; and Professor Aaron Lazare, M.D., chancellor and dean at UMASS Medical School, a recognized expert on apology.
The conference is inspired by the recognition that public dialogue about forgiveness has recently taken some surprising twists. South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission has made very public use of it to heal the rifts of Apartheid; the Catholic Church made a plea for forgiveness for past sins against humanity; and western leaders have apologized for their countries' role in political subversion in the Third World. Conversely, the American criminal justice system has become more wary of the value of forgiveness and relied on the death penalty and longer incarceration.
For a complete schedule of events, please view the attached, or visit the conference's Web site at http://www.holycross.edu/departments/crec/website/forgiveness.html.
This event is sponsored by Holy Cross' Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture.
Schedule of Events:
Friday, September 14
4:30 PM
Liturgy
Saint Joseph Memorial Chapel
Celebrant: Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J., President, College of the Holy Cross
7:30 PM
"An Ethic for Enemies: Forgiveness in Politics"
Ballroom, Hogan Campus Center
Donald W. Shriver Jr., President Emeritus and Professor of Applied Christianity, Union Theological Seminary
Saturday, September 15
9:00 AM
"Apology and Forgiveness"
Ballroom, Hogan Campus Center
Prof. Aaron Lazare, M.D., Chancellor and Dean, University of Massachusetts Medical School
10:00 AM
Break
10:15 AM
Concurrent Panels
1. "Forgiveness and the Crimes of Our Ancestors"
Rehm Library, Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
"Abortive Rituals: Historical Apologies in the Global Era"
Prof. Michel-Rolph Trouillot, Anthropology, University of Chicago
"Forgiveness and the Question of African-American Slave Reparations"
Deadria Farmer-Paellmann, Lawyer/Activist
2. "Responding to Sexual Violence: Forgiveness Versus Justice, or Forgiveness as Opportunity for Justice?"
Suite A, Hogan Campus Center
"Forgiveness and Violence Against Women"
Rev. Marie Fortune, Center for Prevention of Sexual Violence
"Remorse, Rehabilitation and Criminal Justice"
Prof. Ann Chih Lin, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan
"Forgiveness as Re-Conciliation: Responding Responsibly to Male Violence"
Prof. David Livingston, Mercyhurst College
3. "The Genesis of Forgiveness"
Room 402, Hogan Campus Center
"Vengeance, Rage and Reconciliation: Homer and an Ancient Greek Perspective"
Prof. John Hamilton, Classics, College of the Holy Cross
"Seventy-times Seven: Forgiveness in the Teaching of Jesus"
Prof. Frederick Murphy, Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross
"Reinterpretation and the Politics of Forgiveness: the Political Thought of Hannah Arendt"
Prof. Roxanne Euben, Political Theory, Wellesley College
4. "Christian Notions of Forgiveness in Light of the Holocaust"
Room 401, Hogan Campus Center
"After Christendom: The Holocaust and Catholicism's Current Search for Forgiveness"
Prof. James Bernauer, S.J., Philosophy, Boston College
Respondents: Prof. Larry Cahoone, Philosophy, College of the Holy Cross, and Prof. William Stempsey, S.J., M.D., Philosophy, College of the Holy Cross
12:00PM
Lunch
1:30 PM
Interfaith Prayer Service and Blessing of the Rehm Library and the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
2:15 PM
Concurrent Panels
1. "Forgiveness and the Aftermath of Contemporary Crimes Against Humanity"
Rehm Library, Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
"Argentina: Forgiveness(?) in the Face of Impunity"
Marguerite Feitlowitz, Independent Scholar
"Guatemala and the Challenges of Forgiveness"
Prof. Anita Isaacs, Stinnes Professor of Global Studies, Haverford College
2. "Psychological and Interpersonal Aspects of Forgiveness"
Room 401, Hogan Campus Center
"The Psychological Process of Forgiveness"
Prof. Catherine Coyle, University of Wisconsin
"Narrating Forgiveness: Conscious and Unconscious Dimensions"
Prof. Mark Freeman, Psychology, College of the Holy Cross
3. "Forgiveness in the Context of Modern Economic and Bureaucratic Structures"
Suite A, Hogan Campus Center
"Does the American Legal System Thwart or Encourage Forgiveness?"
Vincent Rougeau, Associate Dean, University of Notre Dame Law School
"Forgiveness and Third World Debt"
Prof. Roberto Rigobon, Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4. "Is America a Forgiving Place?"
Room 402, Hogan Campus Center
"Is America a Forgiving Place?"
Prof. Emerita Elise Boulding, Dartmouth College, former Secretary-General, International Peace Research Association
"Remorse, Responsibility and Forgiveness in Popular Culture: An Analysis of the Film 'Dead Man Walking.'"
Prof. Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College
3:45 PM
Break
4:00 PM
Inter-religious Theological Forum
Rehm Library, Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
"Christian Theology and Forgiveness"
Prof. Edward Yarnold, S.J., Holy Cross/Oxford University
"The Relationship Between Repentance and Forgiveness in Jewish Thought"
Prof. Solomon Schimmel, Hebrew College
"How Shall We Heal? Restoration Through Forgiveness and Compassion"
Prof. Abdulaziz Sachedina, University of Virginia Schedule of Events:
Friday, September 14
4:30 PM
Liturgy
Saint Joseph Memorial Chapel
Celebrant: Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J., President, College of the Holy Cross
7:30 PM
"An Ethic for Enemies: Forgiveness in Politics"
Ballroom, Hogan Campus Center
Donald W. Shriver Jr., President Emeritus and Professor of Applied Christianity, Union Theological Seminary
Saturday, September 15
9:00 AM
"Apology and Forgiveness"
Ballroom, Hogan Campus Center
Prof. Aaron Lazare, M.D., Chancellor and Dean, University of Massachusetts Medical School
10:00 AM
Break
10:15 AM
Concurrent Panels
1. "Forgiveness and the Crimes of Our Ancestors"
Rehm Library, Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
"Abortive Rituals: Historical Apologies in the Global Era"
Prof. Michel-Rolph Trouillot, Anthropology, University of Chicago
"Forgiveness and the Question of African-American Slave Reparations"
Deadria Farmer-Paellmann, Lawyer/Activist
2. "Responding to Sexual Violence: Forgiveness Versus Justice, or Forgiveness as Opportunity for Justice?"
Suite A, Hogan Campus Center
"Forgiveness and Violence Against Women"
Rev. Marie Fortune, Center for Prevention of Sexual Violence
"Remorse, Rehabilitation and Criminal Justice"
Prof. Ann Chih Lin, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan
"Forgiveness as Re-Conciliation: Responding Responsibly to Male Violence"
Prof. David Livingston, Mercyhurst College
3. "The Genesis of Forgiveness"
Room 402, Hogan Campus Center
"Vengeance, Rage and Reconciliation: Homer and an Ancient Greek Perspective"
Prof. John Hamilton, Classics, College of the Holy Cross
"Seventy-times Seven: Forgiveness in the Teaching of Jesus"
Prof. Frederick Murphy, Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross
"Reinterpretation and the Politics of Forgiveness: the Political Thought of Hannah Arendt"
Prof. Roxanne Euben, Political Theory, Wellesley College
4. "Christian Notions of Forgiveness in Light of the Holocaust"
Room 401, Hogan Campus Center
"After Christendom: The Holocaust and Catholicism's Current Search for Forgiveness"
Prof. James Bernauer, S.J., Philosophy, Boston College
Respondents: Prof. Larry Cahoone, Philosophy, College of the Holy Cross, and Prof. William Stempsey, S.J., M.D., Philosophy, College of the Holy Cross
12:00PM
Lunch
1:30 PM
Interfaith Prayer Service and Blessing of the Rehm Library and the Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
2:15 PM
Concurrent Panels
1. "Forgiveness and the Aftermath of Contemporary Crimes Against Humanity"
Rehm Library, Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
"Argentina: Forgiveness(?) in the Face of Impunity"
Marguerite Feitlowitz, Independent Scholar
"Guatemala and the Challenges of Forgiveness"
Prof. Anita Isaacs, Stinnes Professor of Global Studies, Haverford College
2. "Psychological and Interpersonal Aspects of Forgiveness"
Room 401, Hogan Campus Center
"The Psychological Process of Forgiveness"
Prof. Catherine Coyle, University of Wisconsin
"Narrating Forgiveness: Conscious and Unconscious Dimensions"
Prof. Mark Freeman, Psychology, College of the Holy Cross
3. "Forgiveness in the Context of Modern Economic and Bureaucratic Structures"
Suite A, Hogan Campus Center
"Does the American Legal System Thwart or Encourage Forgiveness?"
Vincent Rougeau, Associate Dean, University of Notre Dame Law School
"Forgiveness and Third World Debt"
Prof. Roberto Rigobon, Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4. "Is America a Forgiving Place?"
Room 402, Hogan Campus Center
"Is America a Forgiving Place?"
Prof. Emerita Elise Boulding, Dartmouth College, former Secretary-General, International Peace Research Association
"Remorse, Responsibility and Forgiveness in Popular Culture: An Analysis of the Film 'Dead Man Walking.'"
Prof. Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College
3:45 PM
Break
4:00 PM
Inter-religious Theological Forum
Rehm Library, Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
"Christian Theology and Forgiveness"
Prof. Edward Yarnold, S.J., Holy Cross/Oxford University
"The Relationship Between Repentance and Forgiveness in Jewish Thought"
Prof. Solomon Schimmel, Hebrew College
"How Shall We Heal? Restoration Through Forgiveness and Compassion"
Prof. Abdulaziz Sachedina, University of Virginia
Holy Cross to Host Conference on Meaning of Forgiveness
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