An Incredible Example of Forgiveness in the Aftermath of Apartheid
"He who will not forgive others breaks down the bridge over which he himself must travel.”—Spencer W. Kimball
Have you ever struggled to forgive not just a petty act or phrase but something that was truly an injustice? Have you been trapped inside the prison of unforgiveness?
Marianne Williamson, whose wisdom was quoted by Nelson Mandela in his inaugural address, counsels: “Forgiveness is not always easy. At times, it feels more painful than the wound we suffered, to forgive the one that inflicted it. And yet, there is no peace without forgiveness.”
During apartheid in South Africa a black woman had to endure the pain of having her son shot by white police officers, who then set his body on fire and celebrated around it. A few years later, those same men tied her husband to a pile of wood, doused him with gasoline, and then set him on fire.
When the apartheid system crumbled, a commission was established to rectify the wrongs of the past and to try to bring about justice and reconciliation between blacks and whites. One of the purposes of this Truth and Reconciliation Commission was to find an adequate punishment for the wrongs that had been perpetrated in the past.
The men who had committed these atrocities on her son and husband were tried by the Commission and as they approached the sentencing phase the now elderly black woman was allowed to confront the leader of the group, a Mr. Van de Broek. He and the other men had confessed their guilt and the Commission asked the woman what she thought an appropriate punishment might be.
“I want three things,” she replied. “I want Mr. Van de Broek to take me to the place where they burned my husband’s body. I would like to gather up the dust and give him a decent burial."
“Second, Mr. Van de Broek took all my family away from me, and I still have a lot to give. Twice a month, I would like him to come to the ghetto and spend the day with me so I can be a mother to him."
“Third, I would like Mr. Van de Broek to know he is forgiven by God and that I forgive him, too. And, I would like someone to come and lead me by the hand to where Mr. Van de Broek is so that I can embrace him and he can know my forgiveness is real.”
"To let go of the ones who hurt us is to let go of our identity as the one who was hurt, the one who was violated, the one who was broken. It often feels like the bad guys are getting off scot-free while we are left holding the bag of pain. But forgiveness is not just for them. . . . Forgiveness . . . allows us to be set free from the endless cycle of pain, anger, and recrimination that keeps us imprisoned in our own suffering."—Wayne Muller, from his book, the Legacy of the Heart: The Spiritual Advantages of a Painful Childhood
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Posted by: jordans chaussures | March 19, 2012 at 08:58 AM