forgiveness

After reading yesterday’s post on praying for our enemies, Not Saussure was kind enough to point me to the blog of Rachel of North London, a woman who survived the terrorist train bombings on July 7, 2005. In her post “The F Word,” Rachel explores the meaning of forgiveness in very real, very practical terms.

As Rachel recounts both her own feelings and those of other victims, the recurring theme is that forgiveness is necessary. She quotes Kristy, who says, “Forgiveness is self-preservation; if I can’t forgive it will destroy me.” Rachel says of herself,

For me forgiveness is about moving through the storm of pain and outrage, holding onto my essential self, which was there before the devastating event. It’s hard to let go of the desire for revenge: anger became my sole driver in the months after the first attack. But to be trapped in a state of permanent rage hurts me. I hold what has happened to me… and I try to live through it. I do not want to live a life defined entirely by an attack on me.

Forgiveness is a choice, and a gift I make to myself, to live freely in the light, rather than to be trapped in a hell of hatred and vengefulness. It has little to do with the perpetrators of the crimes; it is for me, not them that I choose to do this. It is how I stay sane.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu has said that “To forgive is not just to be altruistic. It is the best form of self-interest.” My own experience has taught me this truth: unforgiveness will eat me alive. Clearly, there is a real benefit in forgiveness.

For Christians, the question is not so much “Will I forgive?” as “How do I forgive?” read the complete post

Tagged as: choice, forgiveness, Jesus, maturity, Sermon-on-the-Mount