Forgiveness: The Essential Virtue
realclearconservatism.com
realclearconservatism.com
To which perhaps Jeremiah 6 is germane as a reply in kind, since the post is inclined towards scripture anyway:
13 From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit. 14 They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace. 15 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush.
We can reach easily to Isaiah to see what repentance looks like, too:
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear;
But there are no such rituals that can lead to forgiveness now. That is the problem. Even when people seek forgiveness, are sincere, and do what they can, they are still not forgiven.
On a personal level, we need to forgive everyone, for our own sakes.
People keep repeating this but it's false: Armed Black Panthers occupied the Capitol on May 2th, 1967. See photo here: https://capitolweekly.net/black-panthers-armed-capitol/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_1967#May_2,_1967_(Tuesday)
The Republican Party is no longer truly conservative, but populist and/or right-libertarian.
Forgiveness is needed by all sides and is also needed well beyond politics.
It reads like a stalking horse, starting with small step motherhood statements...
"Forgiveness is one of the most, if not the most, essential virtue for any civilized society."
Setting the bar so low, no reasonable person could object...
"Professionals who years earlier used an inappropriate slur are fired, despite sincere apologies."
Then begins the ascent towards overreach...
"Because of a lack of forgiveness, people are not allowed to mature, they are not allowed to change."
Then it gets ambitious and pointed...
"Even those guilty of criminal behavior need the forgiveness of both society and the individuals harmed by the crime."
Before the grand finale triple reverse twist mafioso dismount:
"Without forgiveness, America will continue to devolve into Thomas Hobbes’ dystopian vision of the pre-civilized, natural state of life for man as, “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”"
[1] https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/12/martha-minow-...
I think the original post is a stalking horse because it makes a claim i find to be true and unobjectionable, but i suspect the group making the claim is doing so duplicitously to avoid proper responsibility.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/05/us/trump-defense-first-am...
As such, I'd expect her views here to be quite a bit more nuanced than what she wrote two years ago about the legal system in general (as a whole).
There has to be repentance first. A good apology clearly acknowledges the error, agrees that they were in the wrong, and includes a (implied or explicit) commitment to not do it again, as well as (where applicable) making good any real damage done.
Whereas up until now the strategy seems to have been to retaliate to being called out on being wrong by going even further, louder, and deeper into wrongness.
Contrary to the article, there is far too little emphasis on morality and good character when it comes to "public figures," especially in politics and business. What's new is there is some accountability in this respect, sometimes, in some domains. Actions have consequences, and no one is entitled to positive public opinion, let alone a position of power and influence, regardless of how bigoted, abusive, or otherwise uncouth they are by 2020 standards. There are some rare sincere apologies, and careers that continue after apologies, and careers that continue despite no responsibility taken and no remorse expressed.
This is a time when we have the likes of Trump and Kavanaugh as public figures. No apologies. No consequences. Anyone who is talking about "virtue" and quoting the Bible who would defend these men has surely lost their way. If we're talking about the cases where there are sincere apologies, I think those apologies are definitely taken into account.
I doubt people are more anxious about saying the wrong thing than they should rightly be, especially considering the anxiety they probably cause on a daily basis if they are so immature and uneducated about how their words and actions affect those around them.
And when it comes to Trump, you are absolutely right, there has been no apology. Unfortunately, the most powerful in society often evade consequences. This post was mostly about those many who are not so powerful.
And I completely agree on the lack of character in public figures, as elaborated here: https://realclearconservatism.com/2021/01/26/moral-character...