Do you
forgive people who have screwed you over? Can you turn the other cheek?
I try to, but it's hard.
Even the
Dali Lama speaks about forgiveness with regard to the murder of Osama Bin Laden. His comments were perhaps misconstrued initially. He virtually said the same thing Christian doctrine notes, which is-hate the sin, love the sinner.
In his response, His Holiness emphasized the need to find a distinction between the action and the actor. He said in the case of Bin Laden, his action was of course destructive and the September 11 events killed thousands of people. So his action must be brought to justice, His Holiness said. But with the actor we must have compassion and a sense of concern, he added. His Holiness said therefore the counter measure, no matter what form it takes, has to be compassionate action. His Holiness referred to the basis of the practice of forgiveness saying that it, however, did not mean that one should forget what has been done.
It's also fair to disagree with the statement, "Forgive and Forget." I think that statement is nonsense and for the most part, impossible. Given that I did not know someone who was personally damaged by the affects of 9-11 or even terrorism, it could be far easier for me to attempt to be compassionate about the death of Osama Bin Laden. But if I had lost a friend or a family member- I guarantee I couldn't do it. How does this event make you feel?
