Definition Essay
Definition Essay
Forgiveness by the World English Dictionary is the “act of forgiving; state of being forgiven, disposition or willingness to forgive”. But what does it really mean? That is my question. Is being able to forgive and not forget the same thing? In my life, I have found that true forgiveness is a quality that separates us from other species and it is what makes us human. In order to truly and sincerely forgive, one must, aside from saying they have forgiven the person, let it go and not hold a grudge against that person. Just, as Mahatma Gandhi once said: “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." I believe that holds to be true.
Only a humble human being can attain the quality to completely forgive. The person must go through trials and disturbance in their lives to know pain, endure suffering, know happiness and learn from life's mistakes. We can see clearly the ability to forgive in the Holy Bible by a man that went through hard times. Jesus Christ died for our sins. He could have damned every person from them on, but he chose to forgive for they and we do not know what we are doing. He possessed what so many of us take for granted nowadays: true forgiveness. Another case, in the church when Pope John Paul II asked “...forgiveness to all mankind for the mistakes made by the Catholic Church, for abuse committed by priests against children (sexual abuse).” Does asking for forgiveness on behalf of all the priests who were guilty of this crime somehow swipe their plates clean from such an unthinkable act? How far and to what extent are we, as humans, able to forgive one another? Have we truly changed from those people who crucified Jesus? In my short life, I have had many opportunities to understand the value of forgiveness. As far as time has allowed me to remember, I have always been taught to forgive, but never forget. When one of my friends decided to take my toy without permission I would forgive them, but I would
Forgiveness by the World English Dictionary is the “act of forgiving; state of being forgiven, disposition or willingness to forgive”. But what does it really mean? That is my question. Is being able to forgive and not forget the same thing? In my life, I have found that true forgiveness is a quality that separates us from other species and it is what makes us human. In order to truly and sincerely forgive, one must, aside from saying they have forgiven the person, let it go and not hold a grudge against that person. Just, as Mahatma Gandhi once said: “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." I believe that holds to be true.
Only a humble human being can attain the quality to completely forgive. The person must go through trials and disturbance in their lives to know pain, endure suffering, know happiness and learn from life's mistakes. We can see clearly the ability to forgive in the Holy Bible by a man that went through hard times. Jesus Christ died for our sins. He could have damned every person from them on, but he chose to forgive for they and we do not know what we are doing. He possessed what so many of us take for granted nowadays: true forgiveness. Another case, in the church when Pope John Paul II asked “...forgiveness to all mankind for the mistakes made by the Catholic Church, for abuse committed by priests against children (sexual abuse).” Does asking for forgiveness on behalf of all the priests who were guilty of this crime somehow swipe their plates clean from such an unthinkable act? How far and to what extent are we, as humans, able to forgive one another? Have we truly changed from those people who crucified Jesus? In my short life, I have had many opportunities to understand the value of forgiveness. As far as time has allowed me to remember, I have always been taught to forgive, but never forget. When one of my friends decided to take my toy without permission I would forgive them, but I would