The Role Of Christian Forgiveness In Restorative Justice And Reconcili

In this book Most Rev.Dr.Kiiza Thomas affirms that, in an unjust and conflict-filled world where people thirst and hunger for justice, there is a need for Christian forgiveness to plant healthy seeds of restorative justice and reconciliation so that the world can bear the fruit of peace to quench the thirst and satisfy the hunger that the world is longing for. Generations have lived to witness bloodshed, genocides, murder some as a result of negative ethnicity, chaos, wars, poor leadership and to some percentage natural catastrophes. The worst have been: Christian brethrens rising “swords” against one another, genocides have occurred in deeply Christian communities due to failure to forgive, hatred, disagreements, anger and frustration. This leaves us to question the authenticity of the Christianity we profess and claim to practice. Christian forgiveness is based on Jesus’ teaching of love of neighbors and enemies which is against the teaching of “an eye for an eye” or “a tooth for a tooth” (Mt.5: 38-45). “For Christians, forgiveness is a faith principle. As in the Lord’s Prayer, forgiveness by God is linked to forgiveness of others by those who have been wronged (Mt.6:12).”