July 7
Global Forgiveness Day
The Day to Forgive and to be Forgiven!
National Forgiveness Day began quietly in 1994, proclaimed initially with a single banner in Victoria, BC, Canada. Renamed Global Forgiveness Day, it reflects our desire to see this message spread beyond national borders.
Conflicts, clashes, disagreement revolve around us and involve us all the time, whether in domestic circles or global ones. Angry thoughts turn to angry words and then angry actions. When pushed, we want to push back. An eye for an eye …Our human nature wants to respond in kind, or with greater effect and intent (revenge)… until all the world becomes blind!
In society, justice has often imposed a high price on the guilty. Tyranny and injustice must be opposed to protect the helpless and the innocent.
But at the personal level, confrontation is often our best attempt to resolve conflict. It is not healthy to stay in conflicts. It is vital that we resolve these issues to live in peace and harmony, avoid fights and let go of petty things.
But there is a more productive and satisfying way of going about things.
Forgiveness is the key to free us from a festering and fettering past. It allows us to lay down the right to claim retribution (openly or inwardly, in our hearts and minds). We learn to deal with and then look beyond our hurts, the offender and the offence. This does not mean to forget or to wipe away all remembrance of the past. It just means to let go and not to allow whatever happened to block us.
To forgive, we must learn to become less angry, feel less hurt, be more optimistic and compassionate. Often it helps to put ourselves in the shoes of the offender. Why did he do that? … until we discover a hurt and struggling human, who hurts because he is hurt. We can break that chain! This discovery leads to healing, health, compassion, joy and peace, within oneself and with others.
Forgiveness does not make one better than the offender. It offers an opportunity for a new beginning to the offender and provides a process of healing for the victim. People who forgive are happier and healthier than those who hold resentments.
Give yourself this chance today –and gift it to those who have hurt you!
11 July
World Population Day
This event was established by the United Nations Development Programme in 1989, inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1987, the approximate date on which the world’s population reached five billion people,
World Population Day seeks to raise awareness of global population issues, such as the importance of family planning, gender equality, poverty, maternal health and human rights.
The current world’s population is 7.6 billion and is expected to reach 8.6 billion in 2030, according to the UN report 2017, roughly 83 million people being added to the world’s population every year. China with 1.4 billion people and India with 1.3 billion people are the two most populous countries, contributing to 19% and 18% of the global population respectively. It is predicted that around 2024, India will surpass China in population.
The aim of WPD is to pay greater attention to reproductive health problems: the high mortality rate of pregnant women worldwide, sexuality education, use of contraceptives and safety measures, adolescent pregnancy, girl child education, child marriage, sexually transmitted infections, etc. According to statistics among youth, especially between fifteen and nineteen years of age, around fifteen million women of this age give birth every year, and around four million go in for abortion.
Objectives of the celebration of the WPD
- To protect and empower youth of both genders:
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- offering them detailed knowledge about sexuality, about pregnancy-related illnesses and sexually transmitted diseases, and delaying marriages till they are able to understand their responsibilities;
- educating youth to avoid unwanted pregnancies using reasonable and youth friendly measures;
- ensuring equal primary education to both boys and girls;
- raising public awareness to protect the girl child, and about the dangers of early childbirth.
- To afford easy access to reproductive health services everywhere.
Sr Esme da Cunha FDCC
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