Calm Surrender: Walking the Hard Path of Forgiveness

Kent Nerburn is a wonderful, prolific writer! Whatever he writes the reader feels good inside. Kent is a spiritual and thoughtful author. He knows the world needs more understanding and calm surrender! I recommend all of his books to everyone.

A beautiful, short but challenging book about real forgiveness and the power that it possesses. Nerburn challenges both those who pretend that life is all essentially goodness and light, and those whose anger burns too hot (even in the name of justice) to truly make the world a better place. He takes on the challenge of slavery, of a child's untimely death, of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, and in every case recommends the hard work of honest forgiveness, of not meeting shadow with shadow but of moving imperfectly toward the light so that its glimmer, however faint, can continue to shine.

I will admit that there are indeed parts of this narrative that verge on the touchy-feely characteristics of our superficial Hallark-esque society's engagement with all things spiritual. However, I think that if the reader concentrates on the essence of Kent Nerburn's message that forgiveness needs to be an intentional act, I think that the stories--despite their occasional floridity--are worthy in depicting the need for forgiveness and forgiving. As a Dakota (Sioux) person, I was especially struck by the chapter "The Message Tree," in which the author looks at the instances of internalized oppression and the ultimate need by the "victim" to become liberated (and liberator) by the intentional act of forgiving. Ultimately, this is a book worth reading and keeping.

This is a good book on forgiveness and how difficult it is at times. I would also recommend the book An Encounter With A Prophet for some powerful ways to achieve forgiveness.

Forgiveness is perhaps the most difficult thing to actually pull-off in life, but in this book Kent Nerburn has given us several portraits of how it is done. Calm Surrender joins Kent's earlier books of Great Guidance, and together they comprise a wonderful library of wisdom and courage, strength and perserverence. The books are small, compact and beautiful to behold; what they contain is timeless and nearly priceless. May this one - and all of his others - be read far and wide!