In Longread #222, we saw how powerful forgiveness could be for the people affected by violent crime. In that case, forgiveness was a means of coping with tragedy and channeling the emotional power of loss into efforst to prevent future violence. This article also looks at the role of forgiveness, but in this case, reconciliation became part of the criminal justice process. While I would never expect for this approach to become the norm (for many reasons, including some outlined in the article), I think it nevertheless shows that the criminal justice system can be more flexible, creative, and compassionate even in the case of murder.
Published in the New York Times, January 4, 2013
Eric
This article is very limited to the Christian perspective of what forgiveness means - the people found forgiveness in their hearts because Jesus told them to.
ReplyDeleteIn past long-reads you've touched on this issue, but there was still a religious thread running through it all.
Where could agnostics fit into this type of justice system?
p.s. I still don't know if this guy wouldn't do this again in anger...how could he prove he had changed? Also, it would create a bit of an awkward conversation with his next girlfriend...
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