Why Forgive?

Johann Christoph Arnold was born in Great Britain on November 14, 1940 to German refugees. He spent his childhood in South America, where his parents found asylum during the war, before immigrating to the United States in 1955. He was a senior pastor of the Bruderhof, a movement of Christian communities, for forty-three years.

He was a speaker and writer on marriage, parenting, and end-of-life issues. He wrote a dozen books include Why Forgive?, Rich in Years, Their Name Is Today, Seeking Peace, Cries from the Heart, Be Not Afraid, Why Children Matter, and Sex, God and Marriage.

He and paralyzed police officer Steven McDonald started the Breaking the Cycle program, which works with students at public high schools to promote reconciliation through forgiveness. He also served as chaplain for the local sheriff's department. Arnold died from cancer on April 15, 2017 at the age of 76.

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