Forgiving those who trespass against us
“In 2008 Josef Fritzl was arrested in Austria for imprisoning his daughter for 24 years, raping her continuously during that period, fathering seven children by her, and keeping them imprisoned. Should we forgive Fritzl? Should his daughter forgive him?” So begins Brian Lennon SJ in his new book So you can’t forgive…?: Moving towards freedom, just published by The Columba Press. As Brian makes clear, reconciliation is often far from easy. We really have to ask ourselves tough questions about what forgiveness is, what victimhood is, and how and why victims should forgive those who have harmed them. Brian’s answers to these and other questions are both deeply spiritual and very down-to-earth. As Terry Waite says in recommending the book: “Forgiving is often the difficult option. It is, however, the road to freedom.”