Four decades ago humankind adopted its first global spiritual icon, the image of the Whole Earth, which symbolizes the common ground of unity and oneness that transcends all religious, ethnic, political, social, economic, conceptual and other organizational and cultural structures presently dividing us. Thus far, the image of our planet is the sole such symbol of wholeness – diversity united in co-operation – with which every human being can easily and readily identify.
It is now time to establish an annual global holiday that likewise signifies the transcendence of all division by encouraging the same universality and wholeness of spirit represented in the Whole Earth image. A worldwide honoring of the healing power of forgiveness is an annual holiday whose fullness of time is at hand, to evoke in humankind’s collective consciousness a willingness to resolve the grievances that fragment our societies and environments.
Such willingness is susceptible to mobilization and actualization on a global scale. Hence the prime directive of the Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance: the establishment of International Forgiveness Day, as designed by its celebrants locally, regionally and nationally with supportive Internetworking activities, to be observed annually and globally in each of the world’s 300 nations and territories on the first Sunday in August of each year.
Because most political leaders see themselves as the custodians of their constituency's grievances, humankind's increasing receptivity to forgiveness must become plainly evident as the direction in which their constituencies are moving. The originators of the International Forgiveness Day initiative are convinced that as millions of individuals and groups begin to observe this holiday annually and worldwide, our national and international leaders will be persuaded to make it the world's first official global holiday.
We envision a global parade of forgiveness that inspires leaders everywhere to get in front of it.