A common topic which keeps coming up in my seminar is vengeance and forgiveness. Now I am referring to forgiveness on a large scale in regards to ethnic cleansing and genocide.
The question is can forgiveness be given for such great crimes? But if forgiveness is not given the how can people move on from what has happened to them. If forgiveness is not given the cycles of hatred will continue, the same hatred which started the violence in the first place. So then how do you get to forgiveness? How can you come to terms with letting go of the angry you have for those who committed the crimes.
I think about it and wonder how can we ask someone to forgive someone who may have killed or raped a loved one of theirs for that crime? Why do we have the right to say forgive and you will feel better? Is it forgiveness for the greater good? To end the cycles of violence? Isn’t that a lot to ask of someone? But forgiveness is better than vengeance, because with vengeance will anyone really ever feel better? If someone kills your loved one does that give you the right to kill that individual? Will that make you feel better or be at peace? What about the people that person loves how will they feel if you kill them?
I feel it is all a vicious cycle. Where is there an answer to it? I feel forgiveness is the right choice. Forgiveness will put you at peace and allow you to move on from your grief. But how hard must that be, forgiving someone for someone who did something so horrific? I see the only way to be able to give forgiveness is by instilling conversation between the two sides so you can see them as yourself. But that is all that I see as a possibility other than that I do not have a solution.
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