by Nanette de Fuentes, Ph.D.

The technique of embracing forgiveness for oneself is built upon a thorough understanding of guilt. Guilt is a pervasive emotion which when unresolved, can impair one’s psychological and spiritual growth. It is classically defined as “self-reproach and feelings of culpability” or “deserving of blame.”

The various schools of psychological thought view the etiology and purpose of guilt in different ways. From a psychodynamic viewpoint, neurotic guilt emerges from an overly punitive or overly developed superego, from the constrictions of which therapy should be able to free one. This viewpoint contrasts with Reality Therapy, wherein guilt is seen as a valid reaction to a real transgression. Existentialists, on the other hand, view guilt not as … Read the rest