Finding peace and harmony within ourselves and in the world around us.

About the retreat:

All religions and wisdom traditions view forgiveness as a path to greater harmony with ourselves and the world around us. In addition, contemporary research confirms that the willingness to forgive promotes health and well-being. However, forgiveness is not always an easy process. Joyce Cordus and Frits Koster have developed the Mindfulness-Based Training in Forgiveness (MBTF) to support people in this process.

In this online retreat, we will explore different forms of forgiveness such as forgiving ourselves, asking for forgiveness and forgiving others. We will do this on an individual level, in relation to groups and communities and in the context of the increasing polarisation in the world around us. Dilemmas and challenges in practice will also be discussed and we will explore how we can and may respond to them in compassionate ways. The MBTF welcomes people in all their diversity. The training is secular in nature. Participation can contribute to a more peaceful and harmonious life – in relation to ourselves and the world around us.

This retreat is for those with an existing mindfulness practice, including mindfulness teachers, health care professionals, coaches and other professionals who work with people. This hands-on exploration of the practices and key elements of the MBTF will take place online. We hope this will make it supportive and accessible for people to participate. The weekend will include periods of silence and participants are encouraged to maintain silence or minimal verbal contact during the breaks and in the evenings in order to support a deepening of the practice.

This weekend could form part of the retreat requirement as part of the BAMBA Good Practice Guidelines for Mindfulness Teachers.

Objectives:

We will explore forgiveness in theory and practice in different ways:

by studying the various forms of reconciliation and possible other approaches. The willingness to forgive is linked to findings from neuroscience and positive psychology.
via guided mindfulness-based meditation exercises and exploring experiences through interpersonal mindfulness in pairs and threes in breakout rooms and in plenary. Participants who (sometimes) prefer not to participate in these interpersonal dialogues can reflect on their experiences in a written form.
by refreshing and deepening the practice of mindfulness and compassion
At the end of the retreat, we will explore how we can develop our willingness to forgive and integrate it into our daily lives.