Intervention and rehabilitation methods with offenders—from the Jewish scriptures to the criminological field

Theological-sensitive therapy: The eight keys to forgiveness based on Jewish scriptures.

“…Expressing the longing to transcend self-centeredness is fundamental to religious faith (Ronel, 2008(Ronel, , 2022. This argument is supported by Jewish views that refer to egocentrism as the source of all evil and alter-centrism (the focus on the other, and particularly on God) as the source of all good (Ben Yair, 2021a, 2021b). Yet, instead of self-centeredness, this could be, for some people, an issue of positive self-care to cure unhealthy resentment.…”

“…Judaism offers its followers deep spiritual meanings as well as practical solutions for daily problems (Rabinowitz, 2014). Accumulated over several millennia, this knowledge can offer theoretical views and therapeutic practices related to all social sciences, including modern criminology and psychology, which are our current focus (Ben Yair, 2021a, 2021b; Kaplan & Schwartz, 2013; Ronel & Ben Yair, 2018).…”

“…15:1], and seeking peace is a very good quality indeed.This suggests that patience is a product of humility, and it is also an additional remedy that promotes forgiveness, since one has to be very patient until forgiveness is reached (Enright, 2015). Other sources suggest that humility is the first or second most important human quality, able to restrain antisocial behavior and even promote desistance (Hirsch, n.d.-b, on Deuteronomy, 23: 15; see also Ben Yair, 2021a). Thus, in a mirror image of pride, humility includes the appropriate remedies on the way to forgiveness.…”

The Practice of Spiritual Criminology: A Non-Doing Companionship for Crime Desistance

“…One powerful way to achieve this is spiritual programs with people who offended that are based on principles drawn from different spiritual traditions such as Buddhism (McIvor, 2011; Ronel et al, 2013), Christianity (Duwe & King, 2013; Maruna, 2001), Judaism (Ben Yair, 2021),Sufism (Amitay et al, 2021) and the 12-step program (Ronel, 2000). We will now outline three basic principles that spiritual programs with people who offended can share: mindful, non-doing being and acting; love and compassion; and compassionate inclusion.…”

“…Spiritual criminology (SC) is an umbrella concept for different theories, models and practices of criminology that share reference to the spiritual dimension of human existence (Johnson, 2013; Ronel & Ben Yair, 2018). It seeks to understand and reduce criminality and victimization, representing a growing body of research and writing that apply spiritual approaches to various aspects of criminology (e.g., Baier & Wright, 2001; Ben Yair, 2021; Blumenthal, 2009; Chamratrithirong et al, 2013; Kewley et al, 2020; Robinson-Edwards & Kewley, 2018; Ronel, 2009).…”