Forgiveness from "the Many"

For this Rosh Hashana d'var, I wanted to think about forgiveness. Erica Brown relates this story, appropriate for Rosh Hashanah (Weekly Jewish Wisdom, 10/6/16).

            Many years ago, famed Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal wrote The Sunflower, a fictional scenario of an S.S. officer on his deathbed begging for forgiveness from a Holocaust victim. There was no doubt to the dying man’s sincerity, but the victim could only offer him silence. After the S.S. officer's death, the survivor wondered whether he should have forgiven him.  

            Wiesenthal challenges us: can we forgive? He says, "The crux of the matter is, of course, forgiveness. Forgetting is something that time alone takes care of, but forgiveness is an act of volition, and only the sufferer is qualified to make the decision."

            Sometimes we feel it is harder to seek forgiveness than to offer it. But even when forgiveness is offered, there too often remains a residue of resentment. Brown cites Maimonides on this precise issue: “…at the time that someone who has done wrong asks for forgiveness, one should forgive with a complete heart and a willing soul."

            But Maimonides recognized that there are instances where forgiveness can be withheld. One of them is that forgiveness can be withheld from one who maligns "the many" without mentioning a specific person from whom one can request forgiveness. As Brown notes, Wiesenthal's fictional Nazi wanted forgiveness from the many. It can never be granted. There is no one to ask who could possibly forgive this collective, tragic wrong-doing against "the many."

            Similarly, when we castigate a group of “the many,” can we repent and receive forgiveness? Maimonides encourages us to seek forgiveness from those we have wronged, but when we malign a group, we cannot hope for complete forgiveness. The answer is to avoid as best we can statements or actions against "the many," whomever they may be.