Julie Bogart, a regular reader and commenter on this blog, has a story about forgiveness worth reading at her site. You can interact there or even here. Here's how it begins:
I remember when my parents got divorced, people used to tell me, "Time will heal your pain." I hated that rhetoric. Why should my dad and his new wife get away with wrecking our family by virtue of time's ability to heal, to make us forget, to help us move on? So I vowed that time would not heal, that I would not forget, that, in fact, the pain would last.... [Please click on her name above to read the rest.]
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Anyone here read Miroslav Volf's "Exclusion and Embrace"? I couldn't recommend it more fervently to anyone interested in this topic, or anyone living it.
Grace and Peace,
Raffi Shahinian
Parables of a Prodigal World
I've spent a year trying to "work up" feelings of forgiveness for a group of pastors who wronged me out of misguided notions of "defending the faith." The hurt drove me to depression so badly I required medication to function normally again. I sit here at my computer on a Sunday morning reading this web site, more comfortable worshipping online, or sitting in my backyard, than attending church. Not willing to believe or accept that church is anything more than an institution designed to empower and enrich certain men--who defend a system of belief and doctrine carefully constructed to keep them in authority and keep others under control.
While still in communication with these men, I was confronted with my own "lack of forgiveness" as yet another sin in my life. I was told that if I didn't demonstrate forgiveness to these men who were judging me, then that also demonstrated my failure before God.
Few of God's ideas have been more abused than forgiveness itself.
Miriam, you once again remind me that the price of forgiveness is paid by the forgiver, but the price of justice is paid by the offender. Only one of these, as the offended party in a civilized society, do we have control of.
#16 Mike
My own opinion is that Christ paid the price for forgiveness. I don't believe I paid a price for forgiveness - it was a gift - both the giving and receiving of it. As for justice, I'm actually sort of hoping Christ might have paid for some of that as well - otherwise I'm doomed!
Just wanted to say thank you to all of you for reading my blog entry and to those of you who linked and/or commented as well. I've been writing about midlife all week (including a recent entry about smoking) in case you are interested in continuing the journey.
In any case, I really enjoyed this thread of discussion. So thanks.
Julie
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