The Arch of Forgiveness [AUDIOSTR]

Kenneth Wapnick, Ph.D.

The subject of this program drew its inspiration from the image of an arch immortalized by D. H. Lawrence in his novel The Rainbow. As the child in the story was freed to live her life framed by the pillars of love and strength represented by her parents, so Jesus asks us to view our daily lives as framed between the pillars of forgiveness and his love, allowing their quiet strength and gentle protection to nourish our experience and sustain our learning. We thus grow in our recognition of the contrast between life under the arch of his love and life outside it. Walt Whitman’s thoughts also lend their inspiration to the life of universal love and compassion under the arch:

Whoever degrades another degrades me
And whatever is done or said returns at last to me.

The discussion includes guiding students in resolving their specific dilemmas and conflicts from the perspective of Jesus’ arch of forgiveness.