Forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting or ignoring wrongdoings, but it’s still so important if we want to feel
better. Forgiveness is often easier to talk about than to practice. This reading explores why forgiveness matters, not because it erases pain or excuses wrongdoing, but because it allows us to move forward without carrying the burden of resentment.
Forgiveness is a door to peace and happiness. It is a small, narrow door and cannot be entered without stooping. It is also hard to find. But no matter how long the search, it can be found… When we forgive someone for a mistake or a deliberate hurt, we still recognize it as such, but instead of lashing out or biting back; we attempt to see beyond it, so as to restore our relationship with the person responsible for it.
Our forgiveness may not take away our pain – it may not even be acknowledged or accepted – yet the act of offering it will keep us from being sucked into the downward spiral of resentment. It will also guard us against the temptation of taking out our anger or hurt on someone else.
Forgiveness does not mean ignoring what has been done or putting a false label on an evil act; it means, rather, that the evil act no longer remains as a barrier to the relationship. Forgiveness is a catalyst creating the atmosphere necessary for a fresh start and a new beginning.
-Johann Christoph Arnold