PBS Logo NPR Logo
Public Media for Central Pennsylvania

Conversations Live: Forgiveness

Aired Thursday, February 20, 2014

Forgiveness. It’s one of the most difficult things we humans are ever called to do. Some families of school shooting victims have forgiven the gunman. If they can forgive can we all learn to forgive those who have wronged us? Forgiveness can’t change the past, but can it change the future? On the next Conversations LIVE, we’ll talk about the psychological and physical effects of forgiveness and about the role it plays in alleviating anger and grief.

Panelists

Donald B. Kraybill, Ph.D. Donald B. Kraybill, Ph.D.

Distinguished College Professor and Senior Fellow,
Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, Elizabethtown College

Internationally recognized for his scholarship on Anabaptist groups, Kraybill is the author or editor of many books and dozens of professional articles. His books have been translated into eight different languages. Kraybill’s research on Anabaptist groups has been featured in journals, magazines, and newspapers, and on radio and television programs across the United States and in many foreign countries. He has served as a consultant for various projects related to Amish and other Anabaptist groups. The National Endowment for the Humanities and numerous private foundations have supported his research projects. Kraybill is the series editor of Young Center Books in Anabaptist and Pietist Studies published by the Johns Hopkins University Press.

Terri RobertsTerri Roberts

Terri Roberts has lived just south of Strasburg, PA for the past 24 years, as wife of Chuck for 44 years, mother of four sons, and as a grandmother of 10, including 2 step-grandchildren. She is a member of Living Faith Church of God. She has survived serious illness and adheres, as a result, to an admirably rigorous diet. Hers was a relatively quiet life until seven years ago, when an unthinkable tragedy in her community, a tragedy for which one of her beloved sons was responsible, propelled Terri into the public’s eye. She describes herself as one who has walked through circumstances beyond her own ability to cope yet has found strength and even joy along the way. Hers is a message of God’s Grace given and received and the mountains it can move.

Kenneth BriggsKenneth Briggs

Kenneth Briggs has written about religion and culture for nearly forty years. His reporting for Newsday and The New York Times from the 1960s through the 1980s broke new ground for coverage of religion in American journalism. He has since contributed articles to numerous publications and taught courses in religion and journalism at Lafayette College, Lehigh University and Columbia University. His book, The Power of Forgiveness, a companion to the PBS documentary from Journey Films, examines the force of forgiveness at work in the world.

Additional Resources

More Episodes

Patty Satalia with guests Paul Starkey and David Passmore
Conversations Live

Career and Vocational Education

Posted on February 26, 2015

According to a recent report, we place too much emphasis on a college education as the single pathway to success. Some say that career and vocational training can also lead to a middle class paycheck. How can we help students find the right educational experience for them?

 

Host Patty Satalia and guests on the set of Conversations Live
Conversations Live

Making Sense of the 2016 Election

Posted on October 27, 2016

amatic, surreal, unprecedented…those are just a few of the words that describe the 2016 election season. With election day less than two weeks away, all eyes are on Pennsylvania. Tonight, our panel of political analysts will dissect the evolving issues—and what they might mean for the future of our democracy.

 

speaking grief
Conversations Live

Children’s Grief

Posted on November 20, 2020

How do children grieve? Is it different from the way adults grieve? And how does grieving change as children grow? Our panel answers these questions and more.

 

More from Conversations Live »