Collective emotional orientations around forgiveness and reconciliation in rural women in the municipalities of El Santuario and Marinilla, Antioquia

Abstract

This article aims to understand the emotional orientations that emerge in a shared and collective manner among rural women from the municipalities of El Santuario and Marinilla in relation to processes of forgiveness and reconciliation. Using a qualitative methodology and a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach, the study employed semi-structured and in-depth interviews to explore how these women individually and collectively process their emotions and express support for or rejection of forgiveness and reconciliation efforts. The results indicate that, under circumstances involving failed, unclear, or deceptive conflict negotiation processes, and in the face of severe harm inflicted by the actors, women exhibit emotions that serve as obstacles to forgiveness, reconciliation, and peace. Conversely, it is recognized that organizational processes, mutual support, psychosocial accompaniment, memory exercises, and community strengthening contribute to collective emotions that facilitate forgiveness and reconciliation. The study concludes that it is essential to create grassroots spaces where women can reconstruct their own histories, social ties, and life projects to foster community dispositions that encourage collective dynamics supporting forgiveness, reconciliation, and, ultimately, peacebuilding.