The Blessings of Gratitude
In Chapter 3 of your textbook The Science of Virtue, gratitude is defined as the “sense of thankfulness and joy in response to receiving a gift, whether the gift be a tangible benefit from a specific other or a moment of peaceful bliss evoked by natural beauty.” (p. 72)
Most people associate gratitude with the response of “thank you” to someone who has helped them or given them a gift. And that would be one form of gratitude. But gratitude is much more than a courtesy response. It is an emotion that reflects an attitude. It is a positive emotion that has the capacity to transform the way we live our lives.
Gratitude is also a way to strengthen meaningful relationships. Those who are willing to express gratitude tend to forgive others more easily, see the positive traits in people, and work to find common ground. Gratitude lets us find the blessing amid a difficult situation and brings us back to what is truly important. It doesn’t just make life more positive, it literally changes us from the inside.
A prime example of gratitude that had life-altering effects is the parable of the ten lepers in Luke Chapter 17. Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem when He entered a village where ten lepers met Him. They begged Jesus to heal them, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” Jesus had compassion and told them to go show themselves to the priest to confirm their healing. They did so.
After confirming they were healed from leprosy (a disease that had no cure at the time), only one of the ten came back to find Jesus to show gratitude. “When he [the leper] saw that he had been healed, he turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet giving thanks to Him” (Luke 17:15–16). To make both the healing and the act of gratitude even more dramatic, Luke tells us that the leper was a Samaritan, a group of people the Jews did not normally associate within that era. Jesus healed someone who not only was incurably sick but who was also a social outcast. The spirit of gratitude was so strong for the healed man that he risked social ostracism and ridicule to find and thank Jesus.
In this discussion, you are to write a short letter of gratitude to someone who has given you a “gift” and changed you somehow by the giving of that gift. It could be the gift of time, of kindness, of favor, by mentoring you, being an example, believing in you, giving you a tangible gift of money or other possession, or just extending unconditional love. This person can be living or deceased. You are encouraged to choose a person who is living because you will have a related gratitude assignment in the next course (PSY-563) where you will be asked to write a letter of gratitude to someone whom you can actually visit and deliver the message to personally. More information about the assignment will be given in the next course. You can half your effort by choosing a living person for this discussion assignment and then using the same person in the related assignment in the next course. But for this discussion, you have the option to write the letter to either a living or deceased person.
The discussion assignment instructions will provide guidance on what your letter should include. Then, once you’ve finished your letter of gratitude, you should post your letter in the discussion, just as you’ve written it. If your story has sensitive aspects of your story that you don’t feel comfortable sharing, you can be more general in these details or choose another person to write about.
Not only will you be able to share how the “gift” you received has changed your life, but you will also have the opportunity to see amazing examples of gratitude in other students’ stories and respond to some that you find interesting or moving.
Upon successful completion of this discussion, you will be able to:
· Apply the principle of gratitude through sharing a life experience.
Background Information
Write your letter of gratitude as if you were actually communicating with the person you’re writing to. So, it should read like a personal letter but include information regarding the five core questions to help the other students understand the relevance and importance of the “gift” to you.
Instructions
1. Read Chapter 3, “Gratitude,” in your textbook The Science of Virtue: Why Positive Psychology Matters to the Church.
2. Watch the video “YOUTUBE TEDX: How Gratitude Transformed My Life into a Tale of Wonder” and/or read the How Gratitude Transformed My Life (Word document) video transcript:
3. Navigate to the discussion topic and post your letter of gratitude to the discussion. Address it to the person (first name only is appropriate) and make sure that it answers each of the following core questions:
a. What is/was your relationship to that person? (How do/did you know them? How long and in what capacity?)
b. What your life was like before he or she gave you the “gift”?
c. Explain what the “gift” to you was. (Be specific.)
d. How did the “gift” change/shape/influence you then and how does it still affect you today?
e. In what way can you pass this “gift” on to others?
4. Your initial post is due by the end of the fourth day of the workshop.
a. Use Academic Writer (new tab) to write your papers in APA Style or navigate to the APA Style Page (new tab) and scroll down to the APA 7th Edition Paper Template.
b. You may also review the OCLS Evaluating Sources Page (new tab) , where you can examine the criteria for credible Internet research websites.
c. Your post should be between 400 and 500 words long.
d. If you use outside sources in your posts, be sure to include APA-formatted in-text citations and references at the end.
5. Your postings should also:
a. Be well developed by providing clear answers with evidence of critical thinking, supported by at least two academic sources.
b. Add greater depth to the discussion by introducing new ideas.
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