'Is Violence Ever Justified?'
A Lecture by Archbishop Desmond Tutu - Wednesday 12th May 2010 at 12.00 noon, St. John’s, Smith Square, London, SW1P 3HA.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu will deliver The Forgiveness Project’s inaugural annual lecture and be joined for a panel discussion by Pat Magee, convicted of planting the 1984 Brighton Bomb, Jo Berry, daughter of Sir Anthony Berry MP who was killed in the bombing, and Mary Kayitesi Blewitt, who lost more than 50 members of her family in the Rwandan genocide. Chaired by BBC broadcaster Edward Stourton. Event sponsored by Anglo American
Debit/Credit Cards MasterCard, Visa and Maestro accepted. Booking fees By telephone £2.00 per transaction, (£1.50 to Friends of St. John’s).
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Tickets £35, £25, £10
By telephone 020 7222 1061
Online www.sjss.org.uk
By fax 020 7233 1618
By Post St. John’s, Smith Square, London SW1P 3HA. Please enclose SAE.
The Forgiveness Project is a charity working at a local, national, and international level to help build a future free of conflict and violence, by healing the wounds of the past. It aims to create a dialogue and promote understanding of forgiveness and conflict resolution by collecting and sharing personal stories, and providing outreach programmes for schools, prisons, faith communities, and any group wishing to explore the nature of forgiveness, whether in the wider political context or within their own lives. The Forgiveness Project has no political or religious affiliations.
This inaugural lecture, given by the charity’s patron, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, is the first in The Forgiveness Project’s annual lecture series exploring the nature of forgiveness and conflict resolution.
The Forgiveness Project
New Empathy Blog
Should you empathise with your father’s killer?
by Roman Krznaric
One of the greatest challenges of leading an empathetic life is trying to step into the shoes of people who we consider to be ‘enemies’ or whose views and values are very different from our own. If you’re on the receiving end of a racist comment from someone at the pub or a torrent of unfair verbal abuse from your boss, the idea of trying to empathise with them would probably be the last thing on your mind. If you came face to face with the person who had recently burgled your house, could you overcome your anger to see the crime from their perspective, and understand the circumstances that may have driven them to it?
You can view the blog here.
This is a fortnightly blog about empathy. It acts as a global portal for empathy news and ideas from around the world, and contains advice on how to expand your empathy, the stories of great empathetic adventurers, and interviews with key empathy activists and thinkers.
Why have I called it OUTROSPECTION? The twentieth century was an age of introspection, when the self-help industry and therapy culture encouraged us to be excessively individualistic and narcissistic, unashamedly emphasising what can be done to help me. I believe that the twenty-first century should become the age of outrospection, in which we place a greater focus on discovering and fulfilling ourselves through being interested in other people, and understanding how they live, think and look at the world. Empathy is the ultimate art form for the age of outrospection.
But what, exactly, is empathy? I define empathy as the imaginative act of stepping into the shoes of other people and seeing the world from their perspective. Psychologists usually call this ‘cognitive empathy’ or ‘perspective-taking empathy’.
Official launch of the Charity
On Sunday 18th October, Jo Berry officially launched Building Bridges for Peace at the Duke of York Cinema, Brighton.
Following the screening of the film, Soldiers of Peace, Jo addressed an audience of over 100 people setting out the aims and aspirations of the charity.
Accompanied by her friend and colleague, Pat Magee, and supported by writer and broadcaster Simon Fanshawe, Jo took questions from the audience.
(Picture: Brighton Argus)
"The fact that I am standing here with Pat and launching this charity in Brighton, the place where my father was killed 25 years ago, is a sign of how the world has moved forwards."
The event was filmed by the production company, Positive TV, and you will be able to watch it here shortly.
Earlier in the day, Jo gave an interview with the BBC in which she introduced the charity and its work. (see below)
Bombing Daughter launches charity
reprinted from BBC News Online Sun 18th October
'The daughter of one of the five people killed in the bombing of Brighton's Grand Hotel 25 years ago has returned to the city to launch a new charity.'
Jo Berry's father, Conservative MP Sir Anthony Berry, died in the explosion which came close to killing members of Margaret Thatcher's Cabinet.
Ms Berry's charity, Building Bridges for Peace, is the result of her 25-year quest to forgive those responsible.
Brighton bomber Patrick Magee was joining Ms Berry for the launch.
He was convicted and sentenced to serve at least 35 years in jail, but released in 1999 under the Good Friday Agreement.
He and Ms Berry have been in contact ever since.
"I have learned that rather than just being the enemy, there was a human being we could have communicated with," she said.
"I think we have to find ways to communicate with people before they choose violence."
She and Mr Magee are featured in a film about reconciliation, Soldiers for Peace, shown at the Duke of York's Picturehouse in Brighton on Sunday.
Afterwards they were to answer questions from the audience together.
Ms Berry said she was not surprised by the continuing interest in their friendship.
The Grand Hotel was bombed on the morning of 12 October 1984
"I can see it is an unusual friendship and sometimes it surprises me," she said. "I hadn't planned for this to happen but we will carry on meeting as long as I feel it is contributing in some way."
She said the charity would work on projects at home and overseas.
"I live near Manchester and I am going to be helping some work there with families of knife crime. "It is about raising awareness in schools and with children. I feel that learning the language of reconciliation and mediation and if how we resolve our conflicts is very important for children."
She said Mr Magee was aware that his presence in Brighton might cause distress to people. "We are looking at what we can learn and where we go from here and he is hoping he won't cause distress to anyone," she said.
