10/12/2006
Forgiveness - a better world, a better community?
Press accounts of the tragic Pennsylvania murders have mentioned forgiveness as a centerpiece of the Amish community. Essayist Anne Taylor Fleming brought it home vividly by contrasting the serenity of Amish forgiveness with the violence of Shiite-Sunni hatred. .
"In a world gone mad with revenge killings and sectarian violence, chunks of the globe, self-immolating with hatred, this was something to behold, this insistence on forgiveness. It was so strange, so elemental, so otherworldly…
“The freedom contained in Jesus' teaching of forgiveness, wrote the German philosopher Hannah Arendt, is the freedom from vengeance, which includes both doer and sufferer in the relentless automatism of the action process, which by itself need never come to an end.”
Would forgiveness stop the killings from Darfur to Baghdad?
Would forgiveness allow for the two-state solution?
Would forgiveness help 9-11 victims’ families move on?
Would forgiveness allow families of victims who suffer horrible deaths, to love their torturers? Oh my.
Would forgiveness make public life more civil? More honest? Less politics and more constructive policy-making? No negative ads? Ok – maybe that’s going too far! But just imagine….
In November, voters will be asked if they support reinstituting the death penalty in Wisconsin.
“Should the death penalty be enacted in the State of Wisconsin for cases involving a person who is convicted of first-degree intentional homicide, if the conviction is supported by DNA evidence?”
- Why support the death penalty?
- Some believe it’s a deterrent
- For certain, it removes a violent criminal from society
- Is it revenge?
- Or is it justice served – an eye for an eye?
What would the Amish say?
Surely, forgiveness isn’t easy. Yes, protection of society, punishment, consequences – all critical. Yes, many would see a world of complexity in such a simple answer – “forgiveness.” In their simplicity, the Amish invited the wife of their children’s killer to the funerals. And they loved her. Can you imagine it?
“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Mark 11:25
COMMENTS
I was also profoundly moved by the forgiveness of the Amish toward someone guilty of such horrendous murders. I would add that it not only stands in contrast to the Shiite-Sunni violence but also to the general direction of our own society as exemplified by our use of "pre-emptive" violence against Iraq and the continued quest for the death penalty. The Amish demonstrated that they live their faith. Mainstream society just seems to talk about it and then defaults to reacting vengefully, giving in to fear at nearly every turn, instead of living up to the principles of the faith that is professed every Sunday.
Clif Morton (Thu Oct 12 16:19:47 2006)
If we were not all so human forgiveness surely would be an easy thing to do.
Perry Brown (Thu Oct 12 17:28:02 2006)
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