International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) |Volume VI, Issue XII, December 2022|ISSN 2454-6186
The Concept of Forgiveness and its Social Cultural Significance among Tabwa People of Congo
Cyprien Nkoma Kamengwa1, and Joyzy Pius Egunjobi1,2
1Department of Counseling Psychology, Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Nairobi, Kenya
2Psycho-Spiritual Institute of Lux Terra Leadership Foundation, Nairobi, Kenya
Abstract: Forgiveness is one of the hardest things to give and it is almost always given to those who don’t even deserve it. Some people don’t even like to think or even talk about it when someone hurts them. Holding on to anger and resentment can be an attitude adopted by some people in this world. On the other hand, some other people choose to practice forgiveness. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to discover the practice of forgiveness and its significance among people who have experienced hurt from others among some members of the Tabwa ethnic community (DRC). The study used a Transcendental Phenomenological Research design. Convenient sampling was used to select 10 participants aged between 20 to 60 from the Tabwa ethnic community. The study used an interview guide for data collection. A thematic approach was employed for data analysis. The results of the study indicated that the participants allocated a great importance to forgiveness. It was found that the practice of forgiveness had produced some positive emotional outcomes and behaviors such as peace, happiness, freedom, sense of humility among other values.
Keywords: Forgiveness, Anger, Resentment, Conflict, Culture, Social-Cultural
I. INTRODUCTION
A human being is by nature socially connected to other humans. In this world, where human beings are living, it is common to find that people are behaving differently in the face of societal interpersonal relationships. The increase in individualist interests may lead to the rise in conflictual situations. It is familiar to see that some people overlook the value and interest of others for the sake of their selfish desires. And those whose interests or values are undermined are ready to find means of getting back whatever they feel is loss or demeaned. The conflicting situation may open an access to a highway of violence, destruction of lives and properties. In response to this conflictual outcome, people may likely resort to the rule of law, or engage in the spiral cycle of revenge and vengeance. Forgiveness becomes unlikely.
The Oxford English Dictionary definition of forgiveness includes these key phrases such as “cease to resent or claim requital for” and “give up resentment, anger against a person”. And this clearly directs our attention to the fact that forgiveness is undertaken, at least in the first instance, for the benefit of the forgivers, in order to release someone from the pain which accompanies the afflictive emotions of anger, hatred, regret and resentment (Terry Hyland, 2017).