The Catechism of the Council of Trent was published during the Counter-Reformation, a turbulent time for the Church. A central reason for publishing this enduring work was to equip pastors to instruct the laity in important themes that could save souls. In other words, the Reformation itself was a wake-up call to instruct the laity more forthrightly on issues of central importance to both pastors and those under their care. 

The Catechism of the Council of Trent was published in 1566, so 459 years should be sufficient time for all of us to absorb the profound lessons from this stellar document. Yet, some of the startlingly essential insights in this document have gone almost unnoticed for centuries. One area that seems to have drifted from the forefront is the theme of forgiveness, as discussed under the heading of the Fifth Commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.”

Consider these four points from Trent’s Roman Catechism:

1. In discussing charity, which centers on agape love, or serving others even when it is difficult or even painful to do so, the text says: “The most important duty of all, and that which is the fullest expression of charity, and to the practice of which we should most habituate ourselves, is to pardon and forgive from the heart the injuries which we may have received from others. The Sacred Scriptures … frequently admonish and exhort us to a full compliance with this duty.” The catechism clarifies further, “He [God] refuses pardon to those who neglect it, or refuse to obey it.”

2. The authors of the Trent Catechism make the paradoxical point that it is not the unjustly acting person who most deeply hurts the unjustly treated individual. Instead, it is the latter who injures the self by holding onto hatred: “For although he may have experienced injury from external causes, he is himself his greatest enemy by wickedly staining his soul with hatred, malevolence and envy.”

3. Those who forgive obtain forgiveness of sins from God. Further, forgiving “enables and perfects our nature.” Forgiveness should be willingly practiced, and in so doing, we grow in our humanity. The discussion of the Fifth Commandment ends with the best way of obtaining God’s mercy, which is by forgiving: “For you can discover no means better adapted, none more efficacious to obtain the mercy of God than the forgiveness of injuries and love towards those in word or deed may have injured you or yours.”

4. Because revenge is part of our fallen nature, the authors exhort pastors to “persuade the faithful to forgive.” It is also vital to forgive, as our salvation depends on it, as noted in the first point above. A key question, then, is this: How can this persuasion to forgive occur?

Aristotle, in his Nicomachean Ethics, asserted that we develop moral virtues through continuous practice. The practice can lead to a love of the virtue, so that it is embraced and becomes an integral part of who we are — part of our nature, as discussed in the third point above. 

Given the vital importance of forgiveness and its consistent practice, might it be efficacious to introduce forgiveness to children early in their education, allowing them to understand its meaning without distortion? Wouldn’t it make sense to let children practice it in the classroom for minor offenses, as preparation for more severe injustices that may, unfortunately, befall the students when they are adults? If so, why do we not emphasize forgiveness to the same extent, or perhaps even more so, than we emphasize mathematics, writing coherent sentences, and knowing history and geography — subjects that dominate education?

The instruction in forgiveness must not be superficial. As one example of good intentions and insufficient instruction, a teacher told a colleague and me that she already offers forgiveness instruction to the children. She then commenced to show us the entire forgiveness “curriculum,” which amounted to a single page on the theme of forgiveness. If understanding and practice are needed to grow in this moral virtue, one page will not suffice.

Over the past quarter-century, forgiveness education has emerged with professionally produced curriculum guides for teachers, yielding scientific results across 10 countries. These findings indicate that classroom-based forgiveness education can significantly reduce students’ anger, and strengthen their ability to forgive those who have directly harmed them.

Much of forgiveness education does not focus directly on the children forgiving those who hurt them, but instead introduces forgiveness through stories. As the students see story characters forgive, they have a chance to “get it” and apply it directly to themselves.

The science shows that it works. The implementation of forgiveness education is not burdensome for busy educators because, in most cases, it is intended to be taught for approximately 45 minutes to an hour, once per week for 12 to 17 weeks, or twice per week in some cases, if teachers cannot extend the work beyond a couple of months.

Forgiveness curriculum guides are available for pre-kindergarten through high school at the International Forgiveness Institute. When making a request directly to the director of the institute ([email protected]) and identifying one’s school as Catholic, the forgiveness curriculum guides will be sent electronically and free of charge to the requester.

Who knows? Perhaps your efforts will save souls. The Catechism of the Council of Trent seems to suggest that this is true — if teaching such forgiveness lessons in schools can help “persuade the faithful to forgive.”

 

Robert Enright, Ph.D., holds the Aristotelian Professorship in Forgiveness Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is a licensed psychologist and the founder of the non-profit International Forgiveness Institute. His book, Forgiving as Unity With Christ, is published by EWTN Publishing.