The Virtue Of Forgiveness

FRI., JULY 22, 1994, 5:35 AM
FARM, STUDY

Of all the virtues that I have ordained and that I encourage, forgiveness is certainly one of the most important to peaceful earth life. It can be a very hard one to practice, and I admit that there are situations and circumstances when forgiveness clashes with justice, and decisions are difficult. So, whether you decide to repeat or recreate that sermon on Barnabas or not this Teaching shall be worthwhile.

Forgiveness has reciprocal value… even when one or both parties do not agree on what should be forgiven. If you have made a mistake or come short in some way… and you realize this and would like to have done other… then forgiveness is welcome to you. You can yearn to be forgiven, for it offers the feeling of “fresh and new.” The “error” has been accepted, for what it is, and you shall not be punished for it. The slate is clean. It is time for new action, without guilt and shame.

The one who forgives also can gain. To recognize and accept that another has not acted as she should, has truly erred, in some way, can bring thoughts of the need for justice, for “payment” of some kind. This can be punishment for its own sake or as a deterrent to further undesirable behavior, of the same or similar nature. Such thoughts encourage feelings of superiority, of righteousness, and of the “need” for justice. If the one who has erred is unrepentant, these feelings can be even more powerful. It seems so right to push for justice, even as this is harmful to the errant one. “An eye for an eye”… becomes dominant, and even thoughts of how valuable it is to enact justice. The other must suffer for the wrongs committed.

And yet I say that there often is more spiritual benefit to the one who becomes the forgiver. It is the triumph of My strange dictum that the last shall be first, and the first last… when this is enacted voluntarily. When you forgive you take yourself out of the first chair and let one who appears not to deserve it to have that prime seat. You have let mercy prevail where justice was expected. This should feel good. And it does if you are not too self-centered… even basking in the thought that now you “deserve” to be forgiven future mistakes and sins. No, the real spiritual challenge is to forgive another without expectation that now you deserve like treatment. It is just a bit masochistic, but still the best for your spirit.

But what about justice? Justice also is a virtue, and your culture certainly spends much time and money trying to see that justice “is done” and that wrong-doers are properly punished. Fines are one type of punishment. Forced community service is another. Incarceration is more severe, and death is the ultimate expression of non-forgiveness. These verdicts are meted out daily in courts all over your land. And crime and wrong-doing persist. Criminals often seem unrepentant, ready to strike again. Many battered women seem to offer forgiveness too easily and continue to be battered. Isn’t forgiveness, then, merely another form of weakness?