Simon Wiesenthal Forgiveness

Maria Lemus

Elizabeth Buchanan

English 73X

15 March, 2016

Forgiveness

Is forgiveness the answer to personal salvation if our lives are plagued by wrongdoings?

Simon Wiesenthal, a Nazi concentration camp survivor, tells of his personal struggle and experience with a repenting SS man, who laid on his deathbed. He questions himself whether or not to stay and listen to this man’s story. After deciding to stay with the SS man, he learned about the man’s life, a life that has lead him to kill innocent men, women, and children humanity's darkest times, the Holocaust. In the process, Simon is asked a question that would haunt him for the rest of his life. The SS man begged Simon for forgiveness because of his past transgressions, he remained silent at the moment, but later he questioned himself about his experience, "What would you have done?" Dear Mr. Wiesenthal, as much thought as it’s given, it is hard

True forgiveness is extremely rare. In order to truly forgive someone, one must have to forget whatever it is that they may have done. Most people say that they forgive, but they have not actually taken the extra step to forget about the incident afterwards as a process of letting go because humans tend to forgive and then hold a grudge. However, there are different levels of forgiveness or things that require forgiveness. Forgiveness should be completely up to the person who is forgiven. I’m personally bad at forgiveness because I tend to fall into the category of forgiving without meaning it. Karl, the SS man who needed the pardon, asked for forgiveness because of the tragedy that he was a part of when murdering families, friends, and anyone that fitted the massacre list.