Abdallah Family and i4Give Reveal Four Steps to Forgiveness
by Tara Kennedy
Leila and Danny Abdallah have released their 4 Steps to Forgiveness, a new initiative to help sufferers identify how to forgive those who have hurt them, and what to do next.
The launch by the couple’s i4Give Foundation at the Calyx at Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens took place on the annual i4Give Day on 1 February.
It was also the fifth anniversary of the day their children Antony, Angelina, and Sienna Abdallah, together with their niece Veronique Sakr, were hit and killed by a drunk and drug-influenced driver in Oatlands.
In attendance were Kay and Allan Davidson, parents of the jailed driver Samuel Davidson.
Healing
Also in attendance were former Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and NSW Premier Chris Minns, who each spoke about the power of forgiveness.
“When you forgive the other person, we start to heal,” Minns said.
“By spreading this message and, more importantly, by lining the way with your example, you’ve helped other people heal.”
Each step begins with an initial of one of the children, which Leila said was an “intentional decision”.
“It’s not a coincidence that four children entered eternal life and that i4Give has the number four in it,” she said.
“From the very beginning, I knew these steps had to reflect them.”
The steps to forgiveness are: acknowledge the hurt and its impact, accept what cannot be changed, surrender the pain to find peace, and voice your forgiveness.
From Pain to Peace
Leila said the first step of acknowledgement was processing the pain without rushing healing, and the second of acceptance was recognising the “new reality”.
“Acceptance does not mean excusing or justifying what happened — it means recognising the past cannot be rewritten,” she said.
She said the third step of surrender was where the “journey of healing begins” and to offer the pain up to God, with the fourth step of voicing forgiveness as being a choice.
“Forgiveness is a decision, not a feeling, it doesn’t always require confronting the other person who hurt you — you can forgive in your heart,” she said.
“Forgiveness is for your peace, not for the other person.”
Leila said the steps were not linear, and any of them could be used as a starting point.
“The first thing I did was step three, I went on my knees, I prayed, and surrendered to God,” she said.
“I had to sit in my faith for a while and then I chose to forgive before even I accepted what happened.”
___
Republished with thanks to The Catholic Weekly. Image courtesy of Adobe.
3 Comments
Leave A Comment
Recent Articles:
19 June 2026
3.5 MINS
One Nation’s “Fire the liar” rebuttal to Labor’s “fight the far-right” fundraiser has gone primetime. The clever return to sender was aired at least twice during Wednesday’s State of Origin game.
19 June 2026
3.7 MINS
Hon Maryka Groenewald asked the Cook Government to commit to protecting Christians’ right to express their faith freely. The Attorney General’s office dodged the question, instead pledging “balance” for WA’s “diverse” population.
19 June 2026
7 MINS
Nation First reports on Pauline Hanson’s National Press Club showdown and how the media, GetUp and the Liberals all helped prove her point.
19 June 2026
6.5 MINS
The West was repulsed by the Holocaust perpetrated by the Nazi Regime against the Jews in WWII. Yet, it can find itself aligning with an underlying anti-Semitism that can be traced back to an error in an understanding Scripture first made by early Church leaders.
18 June 2026
3.6 MINS
History was made last night. Last night showed that the pro-life movement is capable not merely of resisting change, but of advancing its own positive vision for the protection of human life.
18 June 2026
4.2 MINS
Pauline Hanson has delivered her first formal address to the National Press Club of Australia, outling her positions on everything from immigration and energy to Islamism and transgenderism.
18 June 2026
3 MINS
Earlier this month, Robbie Katter introduced a disallowance motion seeking to halt the LNP’s regulation change to allow midwives to prescribe the abortion pill. One issue sits at the very heart of the matter — that Health Minister Tim Nicholls failed to address.
Thank you. Very beautiful and real. I am so sorry for your loss but grateful that God has enabled you to forgive and to express the how of forgiveness in a way that will be helpful to many,
Powerful example of forgiveness setting people free. Leila and Danny, you are so brave. Your testimony will help countless numbers heal as they apply four 4 steps.
This is a very tender and beautiful article and wonderful words of wisdom. True Christianity. It is true that forgiving is for one’s own peace. I have to agree with the previous comments also, from Meryl and Ian. The four steps of healing give real clarity to the healing process. The Abdallahs are a living and powerful testimony of the goodness of God reflected in His children. Thank you.