Repentance and forgiveness

Walter Russell Mead writes at the American Interest about repentance and forgiveness. As an example of repentance, he cites the life of

Adriaan Vlok, who was involved in overseeing South Africa’s brutal apartheid regime and now lives a life of charity and penance after repenting from his actions.

Mead links to an article in the African paper Mail and Guardian about Vlok, a born-again Christian, who is pictured in the photo below delivering food to poor black families in South Africa.



Mead also links to a story in the Washington Post about a woman who, after years of struggle, forgave the man who killed her husband in a robbery.

As Mead writes,

In the true history of the world, stories like these matter infinitely more than most of the empty pursuit of power, reputation, and wealth that the media normally follows. These events should open us to possibilities: All human beings share something with Vlok and with his victims. At one and the same time, we have participated in injustice and cruelty. We have injured others by trampling on their sacred dignity and humanity…and we’ve also been the victims of the injustice, unfairness, and cruelty of others.

So what should, what can, we do? We need to repent like Vlok, which is more than just saying “I’m sorry.” It is about trying to repair and atone, even when that’s impossible in full and even when others don’t accept our sincerity. It’s part of repairing the damage you’ve done to yourself as much as the damage you have done to others, and it’s part of the healing process. But at the same time that we have to repent, we must also forgive. The two are related. We’ve all been sinned against; we’ve all sinned against others. It’s a recognition of shared humanity that causes us to seek forgiveness—and that also enables us, at least a little, to begin to forgive.

Repenting and forgiving are difficult and painful—and necessary to a fully lived human life.

Read more here.