Episcopal Press and News
News Briefs
Episcopal News Service. December 20, 2001 [2001-358]
Survey says Americans feel forgiven, but not forgiving
(ENS) Americans seem to be very ready to accept God's forgiveness, but less eager to extend it to those they feel have wronged them.
In a study conducted by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research (ISR), nearly 60 percent of Americans surveyed have forgiven themselves for past wrongdoing, and nearly three-quarters feel they've been forgiven by God, but only 52 percent have forgiven others and 43 percent say they have actively sought forgiveness for harm they have done.
Middle-aged and older adults were more likely to forgive others than were younger adults, and forgiving others was linked with better self-reported mental and physical health. "The benefits of forgiveness seem to increase with age," said Loren Toussaint, a psychologist who is the first author of the study, published in the Journal of Adult Development.
Toussaint reported he was "slightly surprised" by the finding that older people were more likely than the young to feel forgiven by God, although all ages reported experiencing high levels of this type of forgiveness. "There's a remarkably high level of confidence across the country that God forgives us, compared to a much lower level of forgiveness of oneself and others," he said.
The researchers also found that women were more forgiving than men, with 54 percent of women scoring high in forgiveness of others compared to 49 percent of men and 48 percent of women reporting that they had actively sought another's forgiveness, compared to just 37 percent of men.
Not all forgiveness is created equal. "High levels of 'proactive forgiveness,' which involves asking forgiveness from someone you've hurt, asking God to forgive you, or praying to God to forgive someone who has hurt you, were strongly linked with high levels of psychological distress," reported Toussaint. "This is understandable, since asking forgiveness can be stressful. It involves admitting to yourself that you've done something really wrong. Also, you risk rejection from the other person."
To find out why certain forms of forgiveness are positively related to health, Toussaint and Williams plan to examine the extent to which forgiveness is important in dealing with the anger and trauma following September 11. "I suspect that forgiveness may prove to be a sort of psychological antidote to anger, which has already been shown to have a host of negative physical and mental health effects," said Toussaint.
Established in 1948, the Institute for Social Research (ISR) is among the world's oldest survey research organizations. Visit the ISR Web site at www.isr.umich.edu for more information.
Lieberman names Episcopal church as sacred place to save
(ENS) On December 17, Connecticut senator Joseph Lieberman named St. Augustine of Hippo Episcopal Church in Galveston, Texas to Ten Sacred Places to Save 2001, a national list of historic houses of worship with major capital repair needs that are endangering their community outreach programs. The Ten to Save list was developed by Partners for Sacred Places, a national, non-profit organization.
"In our nation's time of need, and in the midst of this very holy season, it should be clearer than ever what our churches, synagogues, mosques and temples mean to our communities. They are much more than houses of worship. They are anchoring centers of community service and moral leadership," said Lieberman, a leader of national efforts to support faith-based community services. Lieberman called for corporations, individuals and foundations to support community-serving houses of worship and committed himself to eliminating the bias against religious properties in federal preservation funding.
From a modest, 1902 wood frame building, St. Augustine of Hippo reaches out to its neighborhood with a day care center, mentoring program, and drug awareness programs. The congregation wants to do more but can't, because storm damage to program space has gone unrepaired for lack of funds.
Leaking roofs, bowing windows, and structural failure are common problems for older sacred places, but some face especially daunting repairs. The fragility of their buildings makes Ten to Save congregations particularly vulnerable to crises.
"Unless government, corporations and philanthropy can develop new sources of capital funding for these and other endangered sacred places, America will begin losing historic buildings as well as the vital social services they house," said A. Robert Jaeger, co-director of Partners for Sacred Places, an organization dedicated to the sound stewardship and active community use of America's older religious properties. Partners' 1997 study, Sacred Places at Risk: New Evidence on How Endangered Older Churches and Synagogues Serve Communities showed that 91 percent of all surveyed congregations with older buildings open their doors to the larger community. The study, based on more than 100 congregations in six cities, also found that 25 percent of congregations face major structural problems with their buildings.
Churches petition online for Middle East peace
(ENS) Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) has posted a petition, "A Christian Call for Peace," online at www.cmep.org. The petition calls for the establishment of a "viable Palestinian state" and an end to Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza; a shared Jerusalem; a negotiated agreement for Israeli-Palestinian-Arab peace; and the presence of international observers to discourage further violence between Palestinians and Israelis.
CMEP is a Washington, D.C.-based program of the American Friends Service Committee; Catholic Conference of Major Superiors of Men's Institutes; Christian Church (Disciples of Christ); Church of the Brethren; Church World Service and Witness; Episcopal Church; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Friends Committee on National Legislation; Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers; Mennonite Central Committee; National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA; Presbyterian Church (USA); Reformed Church in America; Unitarian Universalist Association; United Church of Christ; United Methodist Church; and the U.S. Catholic Conference (associate member).
According to the web site, CMEP's mandate is "to voice the churches' perspectives as timely and relevant to U.S. policy considerations by the Administration and Congress and to educate and activate church leaders and members in advocacy of just U.S. policies." CMEP produces newsletters with issue analysis and advocacy guidance and, through an e-mail network, advocacy alerts.
Anglican national office concludes sale of Toronto property, plans new headquarters
(ACC Canada) The General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada announced the completion of the sale of its property in Toronto as part of a five-year plan, first announced in 1998, to provide new headquarters for the church's national offices.
The General Synod office site will be redeveloped by a Toronto-based property company into a mixed-use residential and office complex in two phases, with completion of Phase I, a 17-storey tower, projected for Fall 2003. The national office of Canada's third-largest religious denomination will remain in its current building until the first phase is completed, after which the present three-storey brick building will be demolished and the offices moved to four floors of the adjacent new facility.
"We are pleased to have this unique opportunity to bring our facilities up-to-date," said James Cullen, treasurer of General Synod. "Our existing property was acquired in 1922 and has been added to several times over the years. The last major upgrade was in 1962 and the property is now in need of major repairs. The renovations to bring the facilities to modern standards for nearly 100 employees would cost considerably more than to rebuild under this plan."
Earlier this year, church officials predicted the General Synod could run out of liquid assets and be forced to wind down by the end of 2001. This pessimistic scenario was based on the huge financial drain--so far nearing $5 million and continuing at a rate of more than $1 million a year--caused by residential schools litigation.
Archdeacon Jim Boyles, General Secretary of Synod, said the forecast of insolvency for the Anglican national church has now been pushed back into 2002. The reason, he said, is a slowdown in the rate of payments required from earlier lawsuits and a small increase in voluntary donations to the church during the current year. The church now has enough cash flow--barring unexpected, new developments in the settlement of claims--to continue operations through 2002.