An Orthodox Rabbi asked a group of Amish leaders about the complexity of forgiveness. The Amish answer reflected a conviction about obeying a command without questioning it. However, deep inside many Amish and Old Order Mennonites keep inside anger and even the desire for revenge, as some of them with honesty have confessed. In Judaism expressing anger in words or even worse, with actions is tolerated or understood to some degree. This is a sad reality in the conflicts the current State of Israel faces. The desire for revenge among secular Israelis as well as religious ones is often a power that hurts many innocent people along the way. The same is a tragic fact among Arabic speaking Palestinians under Israel, as it was among Palestinians Jews under the British occupation after WWI.
In Jewish history we can see how forgiveness was practiced; either out of a religious conviction or political interest. Peace accords have been signed for economical and political reasons. Other times for the sake of interfaith relations. The Inquisition seems to be something forgiven or forgotten while the war crimes (all wars are a crime) of the Holocaust Nazi - will never be forgotten! Why? We have constant images, videos, and organizations reminding us the crime of antisemitism during WWII. No so with the Inquisition. There are no films preserving images from those days neither organizations seeking revenge. That is good. It seems that these images of war crimes keep alive the desire for revenge and empower this force and anger within us almost daily. Of course, this and other tragic events in the history of the Jewish people cannot be forgotten and should never be ignored, in order to avoid these horrible events from ever happening again. Even more important, to prevent us from becoming the perpetrators of such a crime instead of the victims.
If we were able to forgive the Catholic Church and develop dialogue with them, to the point that their hierarchy changed the way Catholics deal with us, could we forgive Nazism and develop a dialogue that may lead them to reject antisemitism? There are still Catholics, including priests, who are antisemitic, just as neo-Nazis today. Could we change that? Is forgiveness that powerful?
Regardless of the answers by the Amish, the Rabbi expressed his perplexity on the stories of forgiveness among Amish. Forgiveness, out of a religious conviction or due to political interests, prevent us from taking revenge, therefore, it keep us from the vicious cycle of violence that hurts the innocent. Our dialogue with Amish and Mennonites is a good example. Many Mennonites were supporters of the Nazis. There are still Mennonites who consider the Nazi Führer as a hero, displaying images of him in their homes. Regardless of it we are talking to each other. After all, the war criminals are gone. Some of the "Nazis" of WWII alive were ignorant kids at the time, misled by adults who are no longer among them. Does seeking to prosecute a 96 year old woman that was a young girl at the time, perhaps forced to work at a prison or misled by an adult, something we can call justice? Isn't that the force of revenge leading such a passion for vindication for the victims? Would that honour the memory of the victims? I don't know. All I can see is that the desire for revenge lead to more violence and the vicious cycle of wars is perpetuated.
In the Torah (Deut. 32) does not praise revenge rather recognizes that if anyone has authority to judge, that one is the Only One GOD. These words from the song Ha'azinu are interpreted by Christianity (Romans 12:19) as an advice to abstain from becoming overpowered by the desire for revenge. Jesus of Nazareth is quoted saying: Forgive seventy time seven. This have been understood by some Christian teachers as forgiving every time we remember those who hurt us. Islam also teaches forgiveness and trusting the Almighty instead of taking revenge ourselves; regardless of the images in the news of Muslims using violence motivated by the desire of revenge for whatever violence their nations suffered centuries and even millennia ago.
True forgiveness does not mean to forget. Remembering will prevent it from happening again. It means to overcome the senseless desire for revenge, out of a moral duty toward the other. Not out of religious or political convictions, but out of the fact that the other is also a human being. That moral principle is often called love. Without it, humanity will destroy itself. The power of the desire for revenge also hurts those who harvest such a desire within themselves. Therefore, let us trust in the Merciful and Forgiving GOD. It is written:
יִ֭שְׂרָאֵל בְּטַ֣ח בַּה' עֶזְרָ֖ם וּמָגִנָּ֣ם הֽוּא׃
Psalm 115:9
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