Forgiveness

What do we tell our children about forgiveness? There is a dilemma that faces us all when we walk the complex and difficult path of life. Everywhere we look, the world seems awash in unspeakable cruelties. The list is endless, and, with every revelation, the caring heart breaks a little more. What are we to do? How do we deal with cruelty and evil in this world when we are taught to turn the other cheek and to forgive not seven times, but seventy times seven? How do we acknowledge the darkness of life without becoming ensnared in it? This is not a how-to book of spiritual advancement, or a book of easy answers to hard questions. Forgiveness is the journey of an ordinary man through the ordinary landscape of everyday life, trying to understand how the elusive angels of compassion and understanding can stand strong against the demons of cruelty, anger, and injustice. There is no easy answer. Each of us must find a way to respond to the darkness in the world. How we shape forgiveness is one of the most crucial questions in our lives. Let us make this journey toward forgiveness together. From the greatest pain and sorrow, a great forgiveness grows.