Could You Forgive?

Could you forgive a Nazi soldier? So many horrible crimes were committed during the Holocaust and so many people suffered that it is almost inconceivable to think of showing mercy and forgiveness to the very people who mercilessly tortured the Jews. It is infuriating to think that people could commit such atrocious crimes and then expect to be forgiven so that they can die with a clear conscience.
This is exactly the situation that Simon Wiesenthal, a Jew, was faced with. While he was imprisoned in a concentration camp he was taken to the bedside of a dying SS soldier named Karl. Karl confessed to atrocious crimes he had committed and then asked Wiesenthal for his forgiveness so that he could die with a clear conscience. Wiesenthal was in such utter shock that he left in silence, thereby not granting the forgiveness that Karl so desperately sought. Did Wiesenthal do the right thing? One question to first answer is, what did the silence mean? Personally, I interpret the silence to be an act of shock and confusion, not an unwillingness to forgive. Wiesenthal simply did not know what to do. At the same time he obviously did not offer his forgiveness to Karl. Should Wiesenthal have offered his forgiveness to Karl? If I were in his situation, I think I would have reacted the same way--silence. Not forgiving or refusing to forgive; I would have been in too great of shock to be able to say anything. What Wiesenthal should have done takes further exploration and considerati...

Could You Forgive?

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