MONROVIA, LIBERIA – Dr. Robert Enright, a professor of Educational Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has emphasized the critical role of forgiveness education in fostering peace and reconciliation in Liberia, calling it a long-neglected but essential tool for healing post-conflict societies.
Speaking via video link on Thursday, April 10, 2025, Dr. Enright addressed a one-day training and awareness workshop held at the Mother Tegeste Stewart Apostolic Pentecostal School in Brewerville, Montserrado County. The event, organized under the theme “The Place of Forgiveness Education in Renewing Communities and Promoting Reconciliation in Liberia,” brought together students and teachers from 25 primary and secondary schools in rural Montserrado.
In his address, Dr. Enright thanked Bishop Kortu K. Brown for the invitation and lauded the workshop’s theme, calling it both “wise and important.” He argued that while forgiveness has been overlooked by peace movements globally for centuries, it remains a vital and underutilized solution to sustained community healing and social cohesion.
“Forgiveness is the missing piece,” Dr. Enright said. “And one reason it has been neglected is because people rarely understand what forgiveness really is. Many assume it means simply moving on or forgetting wrongs. But forgiveness is a moral virtue, like justice or patience or kindness, and it involves being good to those who have not been good to us.”
Dr. Enright, who has studied forgiveness for four decades, emphasized that true forgiveness is not about excusing wrongdoing or abandoning justice. Rather, it is about recognizing the inherent worth of the person who caused harm, and choosing to show mercy while still holding firm to the truth that the offense was wrong.
“Forgiveness does not mean reconciliation is required,” he added, using the example of a bullied child who chooses to forgive but is not obligated to maintain contact with the bully. “Justice and forgiveness must grow together. One must seek what is fair, while also being open to transformation.”
He went on to challenge Liberia to take a leadership role in the global peace movement by integrating forgiveness education into its schools. “What would happen if Liberia began teaching forgiveness to 5-year-olds and 6-year-olds? Liberia could become a model to the world,” Dr. Enright asserted.
The workshop served as a platform to introduce students to the principles of forgiveness education and its potential in rebuilding fractured communities. It also marked the beginning of an initiative to establish Forgiveness Education Clubs (FECs) in schools across the country, with the broader goal of promoting peaceful coexistence through reconciliation and moral development.
Organizers hope the initiative will serve as a grassroots approach to achieving national peace by equipping young people with tools for healing and mutual respect, rooted in the values of justice and forgiveness.
