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Mt.5:38-48
What does the term ‘unforgiveable’ really denote? Are there circumstances under which we cannot forgive someone? Let me narrate an oft-recounted incident.’ Simon Wiesenthal was a young prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp. Post World War II, he was led by a nurse to an erstwhile Nazi soldier who was on his deathbed. He wanted to repent for his cruelty and for the merciless atrocities he has committed against Jews. He recalled an event where together with the other soldiers he threw several Jews into a building where they had kept highly inflammable cans of petrol. Then they cold-heartedly threw grenades at the building, setting them aflame and he could hear the screams of the old and the young alike. All those who tried to jump out and escape through the windows were shot dead. The dying man vividly remembered the last moments of a particular Jewish family and narrated the horrendous incident as follows: “behind the windows of the second floor. I saw a man with a small child in his arms. His clothes were alight. By his side stood a woman, undoubtedly the mother of the child. The man covered the child’s eyes with his free hand and then he jumped onto the streets. The mother followed suit. Burning bodies fell from other windows…we kept on shooting…O My God… This soldier desperately wanted to be forgiven by a Jew and to make peace in his heart for his terrible past. Simon Wiesenthal listened to him but left in silence as he could not bring himself to forgive this man…
The radicalism that gospel demands from the followers of Christ are the path of unconditional love rooted in mercy and forgiveness. The Old Testament spirituality was extremely conditioned. ‘Love your friends and hate your enemies.’ We can perceive a certain form of retaliation in all the cultures. According to this principle, if someone has harmed you, you have all the right to take revenge. “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth…” This was the vengeance principle. There was a tendency in the ancient world to take revenge seven times greater than the actual harm that had done by the enemy. To reduce it to just level, Moses gave them this principle of retaliation to the people of Israel. However, the new Moses, who is Jesus himself, gave a new law that stressed the need for forgiveness without taking revenge. No one has gained anything by taking revenge. The history behind all the wars teaches us that there were no winners, all were losers.
Jesus did not teach us to have absolute silence when we encounter injustice. We need to fight for justice nevertheless not using weapons and causing harm to the other. Jesus exhibited this unconditional forgiveness through his life example. In the garden of Gethsemane, the soldiers wanted to capture Jesus then Peter cuts the ears of a soldier as part of self-defense nonetheless Jesus corrects Peter and says: “Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.”(Mt. 26:52) All through his passion and crucifixion, we see several occasions wherein Jesus expresses this unconditional forgiveness, not only towards his persecutors but also to his disciples. After the resurrection, he did not ask them: why did you betray me? Or reject me, or abandoned me, etc?
Now the basic concern in our mind might be that it would be easy for Jesus to forgive because He is the Son of God and as humans it is not easy for us to forgive, however, we need to keep in mind that Jesus was fully divine and fully human too. It is true that when we are severely hurt, physically or mentally, forgiveness will not be an easy task. The basic feeling in us is to take revenge or we will be filled with hatred. The prayer ‘Our Father’ contains this clause: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Mt. 6:12) the following verse underlines this fact: “if you forgive others their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”(Mt.6:14)
As we are preparing ourselves to enter into the season of Lent, let us meditate the unconditional forgiveness that Jesus extended and receiving strength from his cross, let us forgive the unforgivable…