"I will forgive. I will forgive."
Pastor Jamie White on forgiveness and faith de-construction
As a young woman, Rev. Jamie White would sit on her bed with clenched fists, repeating, “I will forgive. I will forgive” after suffering a sexual assault that left her pregnant.
Years later, when counseling parishioners through their own anger and grief, she reminds them that reconciliation does not come naturally over time. We have to make a deliberate choice. It may take years for that choice to do its work, but the feelings of forgiveness do eventually follow.
Life continues after tragedy, even after violent tragedy. The choice to forgive is a choice to re-enter life after being transformed by tragedy. A mentor once told Jamie: “You are going to have to figure out how to take that tragedy, that scar—that has to be your greatest treasure.”
Jamie is generously offering two workshops at our inaugural Interfaith REPAIR gathering of peacemakers at her church, First Presbyterian in SLC on March 6th.
“Forgiveness: the Power and Freedom of Letting Go”
Workshop Description: Do you feel stuck by what’s happened to you? Or something you’ve done? Not sure how to let go of your bitterness? Tired of carrying around resentment? This workshop is designed to help us process our pain, release resentment, and move towards healing as we choose forgiveness. We’ll draw from both spiritual resources and therapeutic skills-based practices to offer a variety of tools to move beyond what’s happened to us and toward freedom. Bring your grudges!
“When Faith Falls Apart: Moving through Doubt and Deconstruction to the Other Side”
Workshop Description: Questioning and critiquing religious belief isn’t really a new idea, even if ‘deconstruction’ language has gone mainstream. People have—always and everywhere—doubted and questioned their religious traditions; a natural, healthy, and necessary factor in spiritual growth. But what happens when those questions threaten to unravel everything we used to hold sacred, including relationships with loved ones who may not understand? Even more there can be often an impulse to toss out all our beliefs, like ‘the baby with the bathwater’, in our attempt to live authentically and freely. But what happens after this messy and painful season, when we discover that we still hunger for God and may want to reevaluate a life of faith? Reverend Jamie White and her husband Dave will co-host this workshop that focuses on moving through deconstruction with grace for ourselves and those we love, offers resources and practices for spiritual healing, and explores what reconstruction might look like on the other side.
We’d love for you to attend one, or both of her workshops, and start the process of forgiving yourself, others and if necessary, thinking about how to navigate your own spiritual journey in the wake of trauma.
I’ve had the honor of getting to know Pastor White over the past year and half. I’ve seen her work with parishioners and I have joked (not joking) that she’s my pastor.
Want a powerful preview of what three-hours with Pastor White might look like?
Jamie shares, powerfully, how Jesus’ example has guided her reconciliation process in my favorite Where Peace Begins videos. It’s totally worth the eight minutes of your time.
“There’s a lot of things Jesus didn’t say. There’s a lot of questions he did not answer. However, he did talk a ton about love. And he said a lot about loving our enemies. And then he showed us what it looked like: he laid his life down. And none of that looked like weakness. Every single time, it looked like incredible strength. And it didn’t make anyone afraid of him. It made everyone want to be near him. And people got whole, and healed.”
- Pastor Jamie White
When: Friday, March 6, 9 AM - 5 PM MT
Where: First Presbyterian Church of Salt Lake City, 12 C St E, Salt Lake City, 84103
Across the world’s faith traditions, faith leaders have long carried tools for peace. Sacred texts, rituals, histories, and lived practices offer pathways for repair—within ourselves, between communities, and across generations.
What: Interfaith REPAIR is a one-day gathering where participants from across faith traditions come together to explore how conflict is navigated and peace is practiced, taught, and embodied in different spiritual lineages, and how those tools can help us navigate conflict in an increasingly fractured world.
This is not a lecture-style conference. It’s an intimate, participatory, workshop-based day designed to help you engage deeply, learn across difference, and leave with tools you can use everyday in relationships at home, at work and in the world.
Who Interfaith REPAIR is for:
Faith leaders and community organizers
Educators and facilitators
Activists seeking spiritual grounding
Curious minds who love to learn about world religions, customs, traditions, and cultures. No religious affiliation required. Curiosity is enough.
We encourage you to try at least one workshop outside your own tradition and learn from a different faith community.
Check out the schedule, workshop descriptions and facilitators’ bios below!
FULL SCHEDULE: Friday March 6, 2026
8:30 AM – Arrive for check-in
9:00 AM – Opening remarks with Chad Ford & Patrick Mason
9:30–12:30 – Morning workshop of choice (three hours)
12:30–1:30 – Lunch* & Peacemaker Mingle
1:30–4:30 – Afternoon workshop of choice (three hours)
4:30–5:00 – Closing remarks with Ravi Gupta
*Lunch is included with ticket purchase.
Tickets cost $100 and are for full-day participation; event access includes one morning workshop, one afternoon workshop, and lunch.
Space is limited to just 200 tickets!
FEATURED WORKSHOPS
“Repairing Our Relationship with the Living World”
Indigenous and faith based approaches to religious ecology with David Whippy
Workshop Description: Environmental harm points to broken relationships—with the land, within and between communities, and with the sacred responsibility many of our faith traditions teach. In this interactive workshop, David will lead a discussion on Religious Ecology as a faith-related human practice of repair and reconciliation.Through reflection, small-group dialogue, and brief shared insights, you will explore how different faiths understand responsibility, stewardship, and care for the Earth. Together, we will listen across differences, hold space for accountability and hope, and consider how repairing the world includes healing our relationship with the living systems that sustain us.
“Cultivating Inner Peace of Mind through the Compassionate Heart”
Early Buddhist principles of peacemaking and mindfulness with Sam Akers
Workshop Description: Sam will lead participants in heart forward mindfulness practices, small group dialogues and gentle movement all through the lens of the friendly, kind and compassionate heart of Metta. Metta, the Pali word for friendship or kindness, is for all beings, without exception, including ourselves. Here, you’ll explore how having an open heart naturally supports healing and inner peace.
NEARLY SOLD OUT “Kirtan Immersion: Peacemaking through Music and Mantra”
Hindu ritual of inner and communal transformation through music & mantra with Ravi Gupta & family
Workshop Description: Kirtan is an ancient practice from India that aligns our body and mind through music and mantra. Participants in this workshop will explore the power of devotional music to create pathways of peace within ourselves and in community with others. We will learn techniques of mantra meditation as we immerse ourselves in sacred sound. No prior experience with kirtan needed.
“Forgiveness: the Power and Freedom of Letting Go”
Forgiveness perspectives from the Christian tradition with Reverend Jamie White, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Salt Lake City
Workshop Description: Do you feel stuck by what’s happened to you? Or something you’ve done? Not sure how to let go of your bitterness? Tired of carrying around resentment? This workshop is designed to help us process our pain, release resentment, and move towards healing as we choose forgiveness. We’ll draw from both spiritual resources and therapeutic skills-based practices to offer a variety of tools to move beyond what’s happened to us and toward freedom. Bring your grudges!
“When Faith Falls Apart: Moving through Doubt and Deconstruction to the Other Side”
Faith de-/reconstruction with Reverend Jamie White and husband Dave White
Workshop Description: Questioning and critiquing religious belief isn’t really a new idea, even if ‘deconstruction’ language has gone mainstream. People have—always and everywhere—doubted and questioned their religious traditions; a natural, healthy, and necessary factor in spiritual growth. But what happens when those questions threaten to unravel everything we used to hold sacred, including relationships with loved ones who may not understand? Even more there can be often an impulse to toss out all our beliefs, like ‘the baby with the bathwater’, in our attempt to live authentically and freely. But what happens after this messy and painful season, when we discover that we still hunger for God and may want to reevaluate a life of faith? Reverend Jamie White and her husband Dave will co-host this workshop that focuses on moving through deconstruction with grace for ourselves and those we love, offers resources and practices for spiritual healing, and explores what reconstruction might look like on the other side.
SOLD OUT! “Arguments for the Sake of Heaven: How Disagreement and Confrontation can be Holy Experiences”
Jewish frameworks for sacred disagreement with Rabbi Sam Spector, Kol Ami
Workshop Description: Rabbi Spector shares how confrontation and disagreements can lead to growth and understanding and create sacredness in your communities. We will see examples from the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) and Talmud that show how we can hold strong differences in view and yet still maintain respect and understanding. Through finding dignity in differences, we can create communities and societies that are safe and thoughtful despite lacking consensus.
NEARLY SOLD OUT! “The Core Elements of Reconciliation Practice”
Exploring the core elements of reconciliation with James Patton, Quaker Peacemaker
Workshop Description: Whether between individuals or communities, reconciling a relationship damaged by harm is a challenge that often involves unpacking convoluted motives, perceptions of history, abiding pain, anger, and fear, and complex justifications for destructive behaviors. While each situation will be different, and deeply marked by individual experiences, some basic and principles apply across reconciliation efforts, such as addressing the past, confronting perceptions of the other, and seeking to transition beyond acts of harm—including the delicate nuances of dialogue, restitution, and pardon. This workshop explores the ideas and practices of reconciliation, with the objective of moving a broken relationship towards a less broken one.
“Families Can Be Together Forever – But What About Today?”
Navigating the paradoxes of committed relationships with Wendy Ulrich, PhD, MBA, author | Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Workshop Description: The possibility of eternal marriage and family is a fundamental doctrine of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However, the prospect of an eternal relationship sounds like anything but heaven when we can hardly get through dinner together today. This workshop will explore the stages of long-term committed relationships—in families and even with God—then suggest tools for navigating relationship paradoxes that call for both individual flourishing and committed connection, both fixing problems and tolerating them, and both holding on and letting go. Bring your current relationship challenge or fear and let’s see if we can move the needle toward peace, hope, and flourishing—whether or not we believe in forever.
This sounds amazing. I’m sad I missed it. Are there any recordings we can purchase?