BY KLAUS DÖRING
TO FORGIVE is divine. The British poet Alexander Pope (1688-1744) created this saying. And, in my opinion, he is so very right.
Alexander Pope, poet of the Enlightenment, lent a famous line from his 1711 treatise An Essay on Criticism to the US Institutes of Medicine’s report on patient safety: To Err is Human. The remainder of the line, “to forgive divine,” would have further reinforced the report’s message.
To err is human; to forgive, divine means that it is the nature of a human being to make mistakes, because humans are not perfect. However, forgiving someone for his mistakes is an imitation of the mercy of God. Of course, the idea is that it is good and moral to forgive people for their human failings.
Despite our best efforts, we are all fallible and make mistakes. Some of these mistakes are trivial, while others are serious, and even fatal. How can we best cope with our fallibility? First, we must recognize and accept our fallibility as inevitable.
In our daily life struggles we also pass innumerable periods of splendid isolation and act, as William Shakespeare said, “Thoughts are Free” by hurting and insulting relatives, friends and colleagues. Many times we err, and, even if we know it, we don’t care. BAHALA SILA…
We pray and ask for forgiveness. And, we are so sure of having our complimentary ticket in our pockets and pouches. Nobody is perfect – sure! Me too! Yes, I confess! But that’s no excuse for broken promises.
How many times do we commit a mistake? How many times are we mistaken, or get astray? How many times do we sin?
How often do we catch ourselves being roving, wandering and acting eccentric, changeable, capricious and not dependable? Or, how many people in our surroundings do we meet daily, who err terribly on their decisions? I am not talking about the deviation from right or truth and the sins, blunders and mistakes, which we make in our daily life.
To err is human, sure – but not if we err willfully, intentionally or if legal premeditation is done. But the second part of my today’s column here is much more important: forgiveness! Yes forgiveness is divinity – meaning to say: godhead and theological together.
I looked into my dictionaries and found innumerable explanations: “If we are able to forgive, we are belonging to, or, we are having the nature of God. We might be holy, sacred, heavenly or a superhuman -being a priest, a pastor, a clergy or theologian!”
I guess, it’s already a wonderful situation, after being insulted or hurt by someone to hear the simple expression “SORRY!” Yes, it’s coming from the bottom of the heart. “SORRY!” … – and I ask God also to forgive all my ins and my wrongdoings to others.
Regarding “seeking forgiveness” we can find plenty of passages in our Holy Bible. The most touching part for me is being found in Proverbs 28:13: “You will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins. Confess them and give them up, then God will show mercy to you!”
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