Reconciliation and It's Colours in Time of C-19

RECONCILIATION

a)   What is reconciliation?

Reconciliation means:

Restoration of broken relationships, like when Yahweh brought back Israel from exile into their land; He restored the broken relationship between Him and Israel.

Its also used for healing

Improvements in a negative relationship

Reconciliation stresses the mutual relationship and its reconstruction.

Through reconciliation, the changed relationship is rectified for better, a relationship between person or groups who formally were at enmity with each other.

It means a renewed walking together of those who had been separated from each other by conflict.

In this light it refers to the act of which people who have been apart and split off from one another begin to stroll or march together again.

Essentially, it means the restoration of broken relationships or coming together of those who have been alienated and separated from each other by conflict to create a community of love again.

Reconciliation involves the willingness of both sides to résumé the risks of relating with each other once again.

Reconciliation is a process:

First we note that in reconciliation confession, repentance and forgiveness of sins are means by which reconciliation with God and others in sought.

Forgiveness and reconciliation presuppose each other, and their relationship is so close that it is not really possible to talk of one without the other.

In the process of reconciliation forgiveness is the first element. However reconciliation is more comprehensive, since it presupposes forgiveness, on the one hand, but on the other hand, is the fact that there can be no true reconciliation without forgiveness and that forgiveness has to be complete only when there is reconciliation.

Every sin committed offends the holiness of God and affects the personal relationship with other, thus having a social effect. Forgiveness has both divine and human dimensions. Christians endeavour to reconcile through forgiveness has to be inspired by God’s forgiveness of His sinful people.

In order to realize reconciliation in Christian community, that makes way for peace, forgiveness has three practical requirements that ought to be fulfilled by the estranged parties.

First, there should be restoration of an attitude of love in the Christian community, because wrong doing is not a valid reason for not loving the wrongdoer.

Second, there should be working through pain, anger and alienation until both parties perceive that the repentance process is mutually satisfactory. Through family to family apostolate and by other sciences like psychotherapy, psychological support through counselling both pastoral and clinical to repair damages.

Thirdly, there should be the opening of the future to appropriate relating, with trust and good faith that permits risks, spontaneity and the possibility of further or conflict.

The willingness to forgive and reconcile stands first in the list of things that make human relationships work. All members of the community must understand quite well that no fault can be repaired without forgiveness.

What needs to be understood is that reconciliation is a process that:

-        Is often painful and costly

-        Requires moral compromises;

-       Involves negotiating with one’s memory deciding which memories are to have the last words.

-          Cannot be imposed;

-          Should be done freely;

-          Takes time.

© Don J.B Nyamunga 

Girimori Catholic Parish - Kericho