Remembering Forgiveness
A cursory look at today’s headlines paints a picture of a troubled world with growing violence and complex conflicts. Local and international news outlets continue to reflect those dire realities. From the shootings of unarmed young black American men and the point-blank murder of unarmed American Muslims to issues abroad with the extremist attacks on cartoonists and the emergence of a new order of global deadly violence. Almost every continent, region, country, and community is plagued by a global nexus of interrelated conflicts.
Consequences of these conflicts are often translated into cultures of fear and hate, which fuel anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, racist, or sexist paradigms. The world we live in today is in desperate need of a potent dose of healing and reconciliation. Joseph Montville sees forgiveness as an integral part of processes that lead to healing and reconciliation. However, there is very little talk about prospects for forgiveness. Perhaps, the time has come to reprioritize forgiveness within the clashing public spheres.
Forgiveness is not a new phenomenon, and the word “reprioritize” was chosen purposefully to demonstrate the roots of such an old understanding. Forgiveness is perhaps as old as humanity, and is certainly embedded in all major religions and exists in the spirit of humankind. As forgiveness is timeless, it is also impactful, with continued influence even years after an act of forgiveness. A notable example of such long-impactful forgiveness is illustrated in the case of Pope (Saint) John Paul II. Pope John Paul II was shot by Turkish extremist Mehmet Ali Agca in 1981. Pope John Paul II spoke publically from the hospital, and forgave the man who had tried to kill him, before visiting him and forgiving him privately in person.
John Paul II’s public and private gestures of forgiveness captured the hearts of millions around the world. He was a religious authority and a world leader who personified the notion of love and forgiveness. His message and this important act of love remain in the hearts and minds of so many of his admirers to this day and serves as an example of the lasting power of forgiveness. Seeking a richer understanding of such a powerful notion, the former Dean of S-CAR, Dr. Andrea Bartoli, and I designed and implemented an exploratory action research with support from the Fetzer Institute (2012-2014). The core idea was to test esteemed Saudi Arabian Islamic scholars’ reactions to a Catholic leader’s act of forgiveness towards a Muslim assassin, and at the same time unravel insightful meanings of Islamic forgiveness. The data collection took place in Saudi Arabia, which wields great influence over the Islamic world, but is simultaneously often greatly misunderstood. The project was designed to strengthen the understanding of forgiveness concepts from an Islamic perspective, raise awareness of historic acts of forgiveness, and engage Muslim scholars and leaders in conversations on forgiveness.
For this project, I took two trips to Saudi Arabia and collected data in the cities of Jeddah and Mecca. I approached as many scholars as I could, but was faced with the challenges of arranging for meetings in a society not usually open to engaging with external initiatives. Nevertheless, through the efforts of a capable research assistant and the support of key local contacts, I was able to meet with over twenty scholars and ask them a set of open- and close- ended questions in a semi-structured informal approach. Many of the interviews took place at Umm Al-Qura University, one of the most renowned Islamic universities in the world. Other meetings took place at research centers, in scholars’ homes and offices, in and around mosques, and places of historical significance.
This research initiative yielded a number of informative results. These results began with the difficulty of transferring the literary meaning of the word forgiveness and unveiling the richness of such word in the Arabic language, to appreciative reactions of Muslim scholars towards the historic Pope’s act for forgiveness vis-à-vis many other acts from Islamic history. After engaging with Muslim scholars in Saudi Arabia, in what could best be described as difficult interviews on sensitive issues, we discovered that no harm could be done by raising awareness of historical acts of forgiveness even in reticent societies. Rather, by remembering those examples from history, a rewarding positive learning experience may be the only obvious result of such initiative. We learned that not only were the majority of Saudi scholars appreciative of the Pope’s choice to forgive, but some went as far as saying that he should have been rewarded. As much as the Muslim scholars demonstrated gratitude towards the Catholic leader’s action, they were also adamant in responding with examples from Islamic history. Islam does not require forgiveness but encourages and rewards such acts, and thus there are many examples of Islamic forgiveness in history. Famed Muslim leaders such as Saladin showed compassion and forgiveness post-Crusades, and Emir Abdelkader, who protected the Christians from the Druze in nineteenth century Damascus. Abdelkader’s character earned global recognition, even as far as the U.S., where the city of Elkader in Iowa was named after him. Abdelkader and Saladin, among all Muslims, drew their inspiration from the Prophet Mohammed.
The Muslim scholars explained that the Prophet Mohammed remains the exemplary character to emulate for all Muslims. His acts of forgiveness were revisited by all the scholars that participated in this research effort. Perhaps the most recognized example was when Prophet Mohammed forgave the people of Quraish who had attempted to kill him and his followers for years before he returned to Mecca. In a well known example from biblical history, Prophet Mohammed referenced Joseph and his forgiveness of his brothers, and let everyone who had been fighting him go free.The examples set by the interviewees portray a side of Islam that contradicts ongoing media-driven misconceptions of the world’s second largest religion, a side that is often overwhelmed by understandings of violence and extremism. Saudi scholars recognize that the image of Islam as an unforgiving religion is false. In fact, they insist that Islam is the most forgiving religion. Muslims believe that forgiveness combined with reconciliation will earn them a reward from Allah, which is a strong source for motivation. In addition, Islam puts forgiveness in very high regard. Mohammed Abu-Nimer says, “The forgiveness that vanquishes hatred and anger is a prized virtue in Islam, greater even than justice.”
No matter which world religion is the most forgiving, competition towards greater forgiveness seems more useful for our field than competition towards more violence. As the CAR community continues to research ways to approach and deal with conflict, forgiveness becomes increasingly relevant to the study of conflict resolution. The power of forgiveness may influence positive and lasting change, an important concept to understand for scholars and practitioners in our field. It is time to remember and reprioritize forgiveness in the face of growing global fear, hate, and violence.