Wiesenthal asks this question at the close of The Sunflower (btw, isn't it interesting how similar this is to the final question of No Impact Man? Anyways...). Before we read The Symposium and discuss what other people said in response to this question, we must first respond ourselves. In a well-crafted, well-written, well-organized short essay (300-600 words), define and describe what you would have done if placed in Wiesenthal's position. I know it is tough (impossible?) to understand all of the emotions and circumstances surrounding Wiesenthal's experience with the Nazi soldier--just do the best you can. Be honest. Support your stance with reasoning. And recognize that no matter what you choose, a decision like this might haunt you forever.
Please write and post this no later than Monday night.
One final request: please read over your classmates' posts before class on Wednesday. We will discuss then.
I'll miss you on Monday.
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ReplyDeleteIf placed in Simon Wiesenthal's place, I would forgive the dying Nazi soldier. Although the soldier never stated, "I'm sorry," we must accept that he was repentant because Simon said, "the fellow showed a deep and genuine repentance" (66). Since the Nazi regretted his actions, I would feel obligated to forgive him. His regret is evidenced by his inability to "shoot at [the Jewish family] a second time" by charging into battle (51). Despite the persecution I would have endured from other soldiers, I could not condemn him, for that would make me no better than the "superhuman" before me. We, soldiers and civilians, are all fallible human beings that must answer to a higher being. As a fallible human, I have no right to withhold the absolution another requires so that he may make peace with his God. Josek said that Simon would not have the right to forgive the soldier because he had not personally suffered the injustices (65). However, as a member of the mass of people which the Nazi soldier persecuted, I would have the right to forgive him. This soldier's attempt to exterminate the Jews would be an attack on my right to live just as it was an attack on the family that jumped from the window. Being a Jew in a concentration camp, I would have the right to forgive the soldier and would absolve him of his crime.
ReplyDeleteI would also tell the Nazi soldier that while I forgive him, I will never forget his terrible actions. By forgetting the injustices suffered by the Jews, we make it possible for the acts to be repeated. Instead, we must remember the events that occurred and work to make sure that our descendants do not repeat these actions. It is also important to remember these events because we cannot allow leaders, like the president of Iran, to tell the world that the Nazis never committed genocide. We owe it to those who have died to remember their story. Our memories make it impossible to forget; however, we have the opportunity to reduce the amount of hatred existing in this world by forgiving those around us. Gandhi said "an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." While this statement has become a cliché to some, it remains a truth. If not heeded, Gandhi's warning will have been made in vain.
At first thought, I want to believe that I would have forgiven him. This stems from my Christian upbringing and my, perhaps naïve, hope that anyone can change. Everyone deserves a second chance. But is there a limit to this grace one human can offer another? The idealist in me hopes that there isn’t. Speaking from the place I am in right now and the life and experiences I’ve had, I might have forgiven him because when it comes down to it, all he is asking for some peace of mind before he dies.
ReplyDeleteThere are countless arguments for each decision. Some may ask, “What authority do you have to forgive him? You aren’t related to the family he killed, he has never hurt you directly.” Yes, this is true, but his actions were the same ones being carried out by the people hurting me directly. So he is indirectly causing me daily suffering by his compliance with the standard set by his party.
Also, in response to the question of what authority I would have to forgive him, I would ask what authority I have to condemn him? Is it not the same thing, in essence? Either way, I would be judging his actions, which no human being actually has the authority to do.
But, of course, there is the issue of standing up for your own people. Why should this dying murderer get to have peace of mind before he dies when all the people he killed suffered greatly and were in no way at peace when they died. So who says this man is any different? That’s not fair. But then I think back to my earlier argument that it’s not our place to condemn someone. Even in the bible, we are called to do all we can to love the unlovable. This murderer was, by all accounts, unlovable to the Jews. But he was lovable by his mother. And he was redeemable if he was sincere in his apology. Even though sincerity is nearly impossible to judge in a case like this, one has to hope for the best.
It is impossible to know this situation personally and I honestly don’t think that there is a right way to handle this situation, but the way I see it right now, I think I would have forgiven the man.
Had I been put in this situation, how could I possibly forgive this man for his injustices against my people? He committed crimes I could never forget, and asked for forgiveness at a time when such misdemeanors were still occurring. If he had asked many years later, after the atrocities had passed and the wounds had begun to heal, the situation might have been altered, but that was not the case. I also agree with Josek, who says, “What people have done to you yourself, you can, if you like, forgive and forget. That is your own affair. But it would have been a terrible sin to burden your conscience with other people’s suffering” (65.) I don’t believe I would have had any right to forgive him for what he had done to other people. Those people may not have wanted him to be granted forgiveness, so who would I be to grant it in their place? But, through all that, I would have forgiven him anyway.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn’t have forgiven him because I thought he deserved it; I would have forgiven him out of my own selfishness. If I had not forgiven him, I would have to deal my entire life, as Wiesenthal did, with the thought that I had failed to grant the last request of this dying man. I would always fear that I had caused this man to die in a sense of internal turmoil. Even though he had caused many more painful deaths, I would not be able to deal with the thought of causing a painful death myself. It would be much easier for me to at least tell him, even if I didn’t fully mean it, that I forgave him, so he could die in peace, and I could go on without being haunted by the thought of having hurt this man during his last moments of life.
My selfishness would have its consequences. I would have to go on knowing that my forgiveness was not sincere. However, I believe it would become sincere in time. As I said, had he asked at a time when the wounds were not so fresh, I may have been more open to his forgiveness. So, through the years, I believe I would probably begin to gradually forgive this man. This would not make my initial response sincere, but it would have allowed that man to die in peace, while I could go on living and progressively forgive him.
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ReplyDeleteIf I had been in this situation, I don’t think I would have been able to forgive him. Do I think the man deserved to be forgiven? Yes. Could I have done it? Honestly, probably not. At that exact moment in time, I would have probably lashed out against the man and said something I would have ultimately regretted. I do believe (or would like to believe) that years down the road after the end of the Holocaust, I would be able to come to grips with myself, and I would be able to find it within me to forgive him…to forgive all the Nazi soldiers. (Maybe I’m thinking too lightly.) But to answer the concrete question, at the exact moment in that “death chamber,” I do not think I would have been able to truly forgive him. Only time would allow me to do that.
ReplyDeleteLike I said, I do believe that the man deserved forgiveness regardless of whether I could have given it to him. I have always believed that there should NOT be a limit to forgiveness. I think that everything should be forgiven, and when a person is truly sorry, that he or she deserves forgiveness. Everyone makes mistakes whether they have committed murder or simply hurt someone’s feelings. Sometimes, forgiving someone is the hardest thing to do, and at times, I don’t want to forgive people because I don’t want them to be content after they have done something wrong or hurtful. In the end, as hard as it may be, forgiving them is right. I see it like this: God has the Ten Commandments for his followers. He lays them out clearly in the Bible. They all focus around a sin; thou shall not do this, thou shall not do that. When people break the Commandments and truly repent to God, I believe that God forgives them no matter their sin. We are told in the Bible that no sin is greater than another, so because of this, I believe that everything is therefore forgivable.
I do not believe that the soldier was being insincere when he asked for forgiveness. I think that being in the hospital away from other Nazis made an impact on him, a wake up call. During that time, he was able to recognize his wrongs. Simon believed that the soldier was sincere as well. Because of his sincerity, I like to think that at some point down the road of my life, I would be able to forgive the soldier. Although he would not have witnessed my forgiveness, it would still mean something.
If I had been in Simon Wiesenthal’s position, I would not have forgiven the Nazi soldier. There are crimes that human beings commit that are simply unforgivable. In the absence of God, German soldiers heinously killed millions of Jews, gypsies, gays, and anyone they deemed defected when compared to the “master race”. Although the soldier Karl asks for forgiveness, I am unsure of his sincerity. Wiesenthal even says that “He was sorry for himself. His words were bitter and resigned.” (36) I find myself wondering if Karl would be asking for forgiveness had he not been wounded and on his deathbed.
ReplyDeleteI want to so badly to say that I would forgive the German solider for his actions. But going through with the ‘horrible deed’ of murdering the dozens of Jews in Poland and not protesting or realizing what he was doing was horrid and is a crime in and of itself. To ask for forgiveness for something he purposely did with a sound mind isn’t fair. I feel that in order to ask for and receive true forgiveness, both sides must be responsible. In this case, Karl is responsible for his actions but Simon is not responsible or related to his actions. Although he is a Jew, he does not have the authority to forgive this man on behalf of the family that lost their lives and for all the other dead victims of the Holocaust.
How could he expect Simon Wiesenthal to forgive him on behalf of every Jew’s tragedy? The fact that he says, “I must tell you of this horrible deed- tell you because....you are a Jew.” (30),is disrespectful not only to Simon but to all Jews involved in the Holocaust. The act of confessing to Wiesenthal is almost as bad as his crime. In doing so, he placed all of his burdens on Wiesenthal’s shoulders.
I think that the Nazi soldier could have died in peace if he only forgave himself. He could confess his actions to anyone but to ask for forgiveness of a specific action from someone who was not related to the event is not appropriate and Simon Wiesenthal did not have to carry that burden with him the rest of his life.
I would have walked away. There is no appropriate response for the confession that the soldier has given me. The decision to forgive or not to forgive the Nazi soldier is what he most wants to hear, but without asking the question. Had he asked, “Will you forgive me?” then I would have been forced to respond. However, I don’t think that being forgiven is the soldier’s last request. I think that his last request was to confess his sins and repent, a request I granted.
ReplyDeleteTo forgive the soldier would be a disgrace to his family and the way he was raised. He mentioned that his “Mother brought me up as a Catholic, I was actually a server in the Church,” (31), which showed that he knew that what he was doing was wrong. A member of the Hitler Youth, He wanted to be a part of a war, saying, “I wanted to play a part in that sort of thing.” (33). Later in the story, when the soldier’s mother is introduced, it is apparent that she did not raise her son to be a murderer.
To not forgive the soldier would be cruel. Nobody deserves to have their last requests denied, but I believe that there are some acts that are unforgivable, and murdering innocent people is one of them. I could tell him that I did not forgive him, but I would not because it would be cruel.
Walking away is not an answer. I was not obligated to forgive the Nazi soldier. I was requested to hear what he had to say. By staying with him as he made his confession and holding his hand, I would be doing all that had been expected of me. He asked for a Jew to talk to, and thought any Jew would suffice for the confession he was about to make for the people he killed. Walking away left no answers to questions that hadn’t been asked
When asked for forgiveness, my automatic response is to accept the apology. Whether or not I truly feel forgiveness towards the person who hurt or offended me, I always say, “It’s ok.” Each time I speak these words, my tone is different based on my feelings of anger, contentment, or grudge. However, every time I have been asked for forgiveness, the crime committed was against me, not a larger group of people I would have to represent. This is the difference between Wiesenthal and myself. If I was put in Wiesenthal’s situation, where I was asked to forgive a murderer on the behalf of an entire religious group, I would not have been able forgive and forget.
ReplyDeleteIt is important to consider the situation that Wiesenthal is in: a persecuted and tortured Jew singled out among the many to grant his enemy a dying request. If I was Wiesenthal, I would feel hopeless as I sat in the dean’s room, just as he expresses: “The other was himself helpless and able to do nothing for him” (55). Although I would have wanted to grant this SS man his last dying request, I know I would not have been able to do it. There is a sense of pity in the human heart, and from this pity would have arisen my desire to forgive the man so that he would die peacefully. It is hard for me to wish ill upon anyone, let alone a murdering, Hitler-following German soldier.
However, my confliction would arise as I considered who I would be forgiving for. Based on the SS man’s story, he is not asking for forgiveness from all Jews, but rather for forgiveness for the crimes he committed against the family that jumped from the burning building. “That one family [he] shall never forget—least of all the child,” and it is this guilt that pains him (43). It is as if he wishes to be forgiven for this specific sin, but I would not be able to grant this wish. Although I would have been part of the greater situation, part of the murder, persecutions, and atrocities, I would not have been attached to the SS man’s specific story. In this sense, I could not grant a pardon because I would be too far removed from the situation. There would be no way that I could feel the pain that those murdered Jews felt as they jumped out of the window or the sorrow that their family members would feel once they found out of the deaths.
Just as Josek advises Wiesenthal, “You would have had no right to [forgive] in the name of people who had not authorized you to do so,” I would not have been able to forgive for those I was not personally connected to (65). The SS man asked a question too great for one man to answer. My silence would have echoed that of Wiesenthal’s as I exited the room. It would not have flown completely out of hatred or unwillingness to forgive, but out of my own helpless state as an outsider to the tragic event discussed.
It’s not about what you feel; it’s about doing what’s right. And trying to find some measure of forgiveness, somewhere deep inside for Karl Seidl is the right thing to do because he seemed honestly remorseful. He is dying because of his remorse-filled pause on the battle field.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read The Sunflower, I can’t even imagine the anguish both parties must have gone through. However, I still believe the fact that Wiesenthal just walked away without saying a word and then lived the rest of his live hunting down Nazi soldiers is a perfect example as to why he should have at least said something. Even if it was something to simply make Seidl understand where he was coming from, saying anything at all would have been the highroad to Wiesenthal walking away silently.
I probably either would have exploded with anger or tried to explain to Seidl the fact that I was a Jew in a German Concentration Camp run by Germans like him that had done similar acts to Jews. I could have told Seidl that I didn’t feel like forgiving him just yet, but that I would try to in the future and that would have at least given him some form of comfort, to know that he might be forgiven. It would have given him hope, and possibly, a feeling of peace on his deathbed. And everyone deserves some measure of peace and closure on their deathbeds no matter who they are or what they’ve done.
This was not just an opportunity to walk away or stay and offer petty, untruthful, platitudes to German Commander Karl Seidl. It was a chance to take the high road and provide some tiny semblance of peace for him while he endured the slow, painful, sightless, motherless journey to face God after death.
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ReplyDeleteI believe Wiesenthal did the wrong thing by turning his back on the Nazi Soldier. He should have forgiven him. Forgiveness would have been the right thing to do. We must not hold on to our pasts forever. Although our past makes us who we are today, holding on to it can ruin us. We must learn to let go. We must learn to not let our emotions control us. Instead, we must learn to control our emotions. So if I was in Wiesenthal’s position, I would’ve forgiven the Nazi soldier, right? Wrong.
ReplyDeleteI would've done the same thing Wiesenthal did. But instead of walking out, I would have plainly told the soldier that I cannot forgive him. "Just forgive," people say. But it's easier said than done. How could I? How could I forgive the very person who has helped in destroying my race? How could I forgive a murderer? In the back of my head, I would know that the right thing to do is to forgive. But in this situation, I would consciously do the wrong thing. My emotions would control me, and I would not forgive.
I would listen to the whole story the soldier has to tell me. And then I would say my part. I would tell him how I got to this concentration camp. I would tell him the horrifying, disgusting things that my family and I had to go through. I would tell him how hard life is for me right now. Then, I would tell him that as much as it would be the right thing to forgive, I cannot do so. The cries of my family while it was falling apart would have scared me for life, and it would be disrespect to my deceased family if I were to forgive this Nazi soldier. As I walk out of the room, I would wish the soldier all the best because his fate is God’s hands—not mine.
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ReplyDeleteForgiveness is a two way street. To give forgiveness means not only to supply the receiver with the answer they desired, but also to calm your own heart. I don’t think forgiveness means you have to forget. Some things take time, but the fact that you’ve made the commitment to forgive in your heart the wrongs of another is enough to get the ball rolling. So what would I have done? With this in mind, I would’ve walked out the door.
ReplyDeleteForgiveness and sincerity, one must accompany the other. The German had some nerve to ask for forgiveness. But if we debate it, isn’t that what we all want the Nazis to do, apologize sincerely? Not saying that could ever cover the pain of the Holocaust, but to own up to their actions and apologize, I think we would all want that? Nonetheless, this German put himself out there, for his own benefit, hoping someone could relieve this weight that held him down so he may die in peace. But I think that was too much to ask. Asking of forgiveness was the right thing to do. But his expectations were off. He never inquired of Wiesenthal’s experience, because he really only cared about his own. Keep in mind, forgiveness is a two way street. So how can one expect forgiveness when they ask with closed ears? Therefore, I would’ve listened as Wiesenthal did, registered what the German said, and left to think. Whether or not the German received his note of assurance, I believed he would die in peace. All he must’ve really wanted was to get it off his shoulders, and hopefully someone could justify it for him, or just accept him. So he walked the road alone, therefore eliciting the response he received.
I would’ve been just like Wiesenthal, exiting the room to think. Wiesenthal may not have physically acknowledged the German’s pleas, yet he was thinking about them. And had he forgiven on the spot, there would have been no way it could’ve been sincere. I am the same, and since forgiveness means nothing without sincerity, what’s the use? Yet I feel like after a matter of thinking, I would’ve forgiven, in my own way. For we do all boil down to the same composition, we just want to love and be loved, and along the way we screw up quite often. To carry around the hatred of the Holocaust for my entire lifetime, is something I wouldn’t have deserved. The German and I would’ve come to peace in our own ways, by different revelations. But in the end, as we all boil down to the same thing, forgiveness was eventually in order.
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ReplyDeleteI believe that Wiesenthal made the wrong decision by walking away from the Nazi soldier. He speaks a lot about forgiveness throughout the story and comments on how desperate and weak the soldier is. The Nazi soldier could have been selfish in wanting forgiveness, but he was sincere in wanting it. He used the last of his energy and time on Earth to find a Jewish man and to tell that Jew his story and seek forgiveness. This act of desperation from a man that could have asked for a priest, told the nurse, or prayed to God makes me feel like he was sincere in his search for forgiveness and deserved at least an answer from the Jew he confessed to.
ReplyDeleteWiesenthal had a man’s peace of mind in his hand and from what I read of the last few minutes in the room, he could have given a man, a human being, peace of mind before he died and instead let him lay in agony and wonder if he could ever be forgiven. To me, if someone knows what they did was wrong and seeks forgiveness from the wronged party then they deserve at least recognition. Wiesenthal wasn’t in the burning building but he was affected by the German reign over the Jews. To me, he is a part of the wronged party. I feel like Wiesenthal didn’t even recognize that this man had shared his story, his guilt and his desperation and Wiesenthal walked away from it without even considering forgiving the man. I feel that if Wiesenthal had simply said, “no” or “I will think about it,” he would have given the soldier enough to die in peace or at least understand that he wasn’t forgiven and know that. The not knowing would have haunted and hurt me more than if the person I asked forgiveness from denied me of it.
Wiesenthal might not have been ready to forgive the German soldier, but he could have told that soldier that. When I read the beginning of The Sunflower , I was angry with the German soldier and I thought, “How could any human ever think that this behavior could possibly be ok?” In my mind, the soldier was following orders. When the soldier was talking about the man, Peter, that died, on page 50, he said, “He died with the memory of the most dreadful experience of his life.” This shows that the German soldier recognized what he did was wrong and now that he seeks forgiveness he deserves that forgiveness. So, if I were in the soldier’s place, I would want to be forgiven, and if I were in the Jew’s place, I would want to forgive because I want to be the change I want to see in the world. I know it’s a cliché, but what would God have wanted Wiesenthal to do? Would Wiesenthal want to be forgiven if he was in the German’s shoes? I would. I believe in doing unto others as you would have them do unto you, so I would have forgiven the soldier, if only to give him peace of mind in death.
I believe crimes deserve forgiveness only to a certain extent. I agree with Arthur when he says on page 75, “But anyhow nobody who has not had our experience will be able to understand fully.” It is nearly impossible to put ourselves into Wiesenthal’s position and situation because the tragedies that were committed in concentration camps cannot be understood without the experience of it. But I do have a sense of what I would do.
ReplyDeleteI know what I would do in a position similar to his. I know what I would do if an army of murderers came into my community and killed and tortured my friends, family, and neighbors. If one asked for forgiveness, and I was powerless to do anything, I wouldn’t just walk away like Wiesenthal did. I would wish him dead first.
There is no doubt in my mind that the Nazi felt guilty for all that he had done. But like Wiesenthal questions later in the story, if the soldier wasn’t facing death, would he have felt the same guilt? Or would he have smirked in court like the others? I feel that the fact that the soldier was dying is irrelevant. He was a Nazi asking for forgiveness and that is all that should be considered. He was a Nazi who had taken a part in burning innocent people, and so why should he deserve peace of mind before his death? The Jews who had to jump from the burning house certainly did not receive the pleasure of peace of mind during their death.
I understand that Karl was most likely brainwashed by Hitler and the Hitler Youth. At the same time, however, most of the Nazis were. To me, that doesn’t mean they deserve forgiveness. It is a loaded question and a difficult decision. I, like Wiesenthal, would probably think of the time often and weigh the two options heavily. However, in the heat of the moment, there is no doubt in my mind that I would not have forgiven the man.
I can say with confidence that if I had been in Wiesenthal’s situation, I would not have forgiven the SS. man. In fact, I think that Wiesenthal’s reaction of silence is quite tame compared to what mine might have been. It makes me angry that the SS. man even had to nerve to ask for forgiveness. I think it is extremely selfish that he would put a burden like that on a man who had already suffered so much. Obviously Wiesenthal was haunted by this encounter for the rest of his life. I am afraid to think of how I would have responded to the man’s plead for forgiveness. I know myself pretty well, and I know that I hold grudges, and I definitely let my emotions get the best of me. In a situation like that, I am afraid that my angry would have overcome me. I think that I would have had to try extremely hard not physically hurt the soldier. This makes me sad to think about, but I believe that this would be my first instinct, although I cannot know for sure.
ReplyDeleteThe only reason I can think of for why I would have forgiven the soldier is fear. I think that I would be truly afraid that if I did not forgive him, I would feel the burden of my decision for the rest of my life. However, I don’t think that this burden would go away even if I had granted him forgiveness. Also, from a religious point of view, I would be afraid that God would judge me for making the wrong choice by not forgiving the soldier. However, I think that if I had experienced that great amount of suffering, I, like many of the people in the story, would find it hard to keep believing in God.
I think that if I had had the opportunity to talk to the SS. man's mother like Wiesenthal, it would have been easier for me to eventually forgive him. After hearing the mother's account of her son's life and her experience raising him, my view toward the soldier was softened. I think that hearing about his life humanizes this murderer.
I do not believe that I would have been able to forgive the soldier that day, but I do hope that I would have at least been able to reach peace on the subject and I hope that Wiesenthal was able to find peace as well.
If placed in Wiesenthal’s situation, I believe I would have reacted the same at the time the soldier asked for forgiveness however my actions towards Nazi soldiers down the road would differ from those of Wiesenthal’s. Because of the initial shock of the situation, I do not think the soldier could expect Wiesenthal to give him an honest apology at that time. All that the soldier could hope for would be that Wiesenthal would walk away with the story and with time his hate towards the Nazis would heal and he would forgive the soldier. I hope that this is the course of action I would take; that with the apology from the dying soldier I could find some understanding in the actions of the Nazi soldiers and then find peace within myself. Without this peace I do not think I could live the rest of my life happily focused on the future, rather than on the terrible past.
ReplyDeleteFor some reason I have the idea that by forgiving someone I am saying that the person’s action was okay, when in reality this is not what forgiveness is. By forgiving the soldier I would not be condoning his action, but rather simply understanding it. I have also always been taught that an essential component of apologizing and asking for forgiveness is that the wrong doer promises never to do the same thing again. This part is so important to me. To me it shows that the soldier really was genuine in his apology, despite being on his death bed, because I believe he would have chosen never to commit the same crimes again if he had another 100 years to live. Because of this I think he was worth being forgiven, even though his actions were horrifying.
In this case I don’t believe whether or not Wiesenthal had the right to forgive the soldier not is the question. While I do not think he could offer the soldier peace in his dying time from the entire Jewish community, I do believe he could offer forgiveness from himself to the Nazi community as a whole, including the dying soldier. In a situation such as the Holocaust Jews had been abused by many Nazis, not just one. It would not be reasonable to believe that every one of those Nazis would ask for forgiveness, but to see that one had would restore some of my hope in the world.
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ReplyDeleteI would like to say that I would have been able to console the dying soldier by giving him the forgiveness which he so longingly desired, but I cannot say this. My first opinion on the forgiveness of the dying soldier was that I would have done the same thing that Wiesenthal did, and even after reading the vastly different opinions of Josek, Bolek, and Arthur I hold strong to my belief that I could not have given the SS soldier the forgiveness he desired.
ReplyDeleteBefore our class discussion, I figured my opinion would be swayed by one of my fellow classmates who stood on the opposite side of the room from me, but afterwards my reasons had only grown stronger. I truly believe Wiesenthal made the right decision. I believe he found the medium between lashing out at the soldier and forgiving him of his crimes against the Jews. By staying silent, Wiesenthal allowed the soldier to relieve himself by telling his story and confessing his crimes, and maybe that was all the soldier needed. Maybe the soldier was only looking to tell his story so that he could die in peace.
I do not think there was anything else Wiesenthal could have done. I believe the soldier was asking for too much if he was expecting immediate forgiveness. I don’t think there was any way for Wiesenthal to offer sincere forgiveness immediately to the Nazi soldier, especially while still being in a concentration camp and continuously seeing the horrors committed by other Nazi soldiers every day. I don’t think Wiesenthal could have offered sincere forgiveness without thinking and considering the confession of the soldier for some time.
Although the soldier could not have asked forgiveness from the Jews in Dnepropetrovsk, I still find it slightly insulting that he sent for a Jew at random to tell his story to and ask forgiveness from. I believe this put an overwhelming weight on Wiesenthal, and we see that this is true because his experience with the SS soldier follows him for the rest of his life. I also find it demeaning that the soldier could expect Wiesenthal to forgive him on the part of the whole Jewish population. Like Josek said, “I feared at first, that you might have really forgiven him. You would have no right to do this in the name of people who had not authorized you to do so. What people have done to yourself, you can, if you like, forgive and forget. That is your own affair. But it would have been a terrible sin to burden your conscience with other people’s sufferings” (65). I agree with Josek, I do not think Wiesenthal could have offered forgiveness on behalf of the Jewish population, and I think he might have felt guilty if he had done this, because he doesn't know what any other Jew would do in this situation.
ReplyDeleteI would have done the exact same thing as Wiesenthal. By not saying anything, he gave the soldier the opportunity to tell his story. I think he made the right decision by not yelling at or scolding the soldier, but I don’t think he could have done anything else on the spot. I might be able to forgive the soldier in time after contemplating the situation, but Wiesenthal was not able to offer forgiveness immediately, and I wouldn’t have been able to either.
From Annie...
ReplyDeleteIf I were in Wiesenthal’s place, honestly, I think I would have forgiven him. Could I have done it right after the conversation? Definitely not. Whenever the Nazi was telling Wiesenthal of his atrocities he committed during his life time, and that he felt he needed to repent and receive forgiveness, I think it was appropriate to do what Wiesenthal did; walk away. At that moment, I would still be immersed in the problems causes by the Nazi’s. Wiesenthal literally walks out of the hospital room back into the torture he had been facing caused by the Nazi soldiers. To be able to say I forgave the man would be ridiculous and false forgiveness because to my hatred for the Nazi’s would still be too strong for me to be able to truly forgive him. I don’t think I would have lashed out, and I think that it was good that Wiesenthal did not lash out against him despite the things the Nazi had done to his people. However, in the later years to come, I would forgive the man and all Nazi’s for their obvious confusion thinking that it was okay to persecute the Jew’s like they did. Many of the children who chose to join the Nazi’s were simply sad and needed a place to fit in. With the mob mentality of the Nazi commanders who were trained to brainwash teenagers into thinking they were doing the wrong thing, it would be hard for most regular people to hold themselves back from following the crowd. If you think of any war, any mob, the civil rights movements, the KKK, and many other patterns in history show that whenever a person is in a group, they feel more comfortable doing that the group has told them to do and often follow the group whether or not they have correct morals and judgments of their own. I hope to God that years later I would be able to recognize that this and most other Nazi soldiers were just confused and out of fear followed what their commanders told them to.
The Nazi soldier was obviously repentant and trying to get forgiveness which would also show me that he did feel sorry for what he had done. No matter the reason of asking for forgiveness, those who ask should receive. I do not believe that there should be a level to human grace and forgiveness. I don’t think that at the time of the conversation I would be able to recognize that we are all humans who deserve forgiveness, but in later years to come I hope that I would see that we all are flawed and make mistakes that deserve a second chance. I don’t think that forgiveness should be something is required to be given right away. After someone asks for forgiveness, they should realize that this is all that they can do and that they have done their part. The person forgiving should then forgive the one asking for forgiveness on their own time after much thought whenever they can truly say that they have forgiveness for that person. God knows that whenever we ask for forgiveness and whenever we give forgiveness and this should be what truly matters. Therefore, I think that not forgiving the Nazi soldier immediately whenever he asked for it was what Wiesenthal, and I, should/ would have done. Giving false forgiveness is never what the one asking for forgiveness wants, so if Wiesenthal had given the Nazi soldier false forgiveness, this would not be what the soldier truly is wanting. I would forgive the soldier whenever I truly felt forgiveness and compassion for him because that is what I feel is right, even if the soldier does not get to die knowing he is forgiven.
If I was put in the position of Simon Wiesenthal, as a Christian, I would like to think that I would have forgiven him. But as a human being, I'm not exactly sure what I would have done.
ReplyDeleteMy first instinct when reading this story is that everyone deserves forgiveness. God forgives all of my sins when I ask, so how can I justify not forgiving a man who asks.
For what reason do we ask for forgiveness anyways? I believe we seek forgiveness out of remorse. When the request for forgiveness is sincere, the remorse stems from not only wishing that something had not happened, but admitting that you were wrong in doing it and have changed since then. I believe the soldier was sincere in his request. The reason he was dying in the hospital in the first place is because he decided that he did not want to continue killing. He never said that he regretted making this decision to change what he felt bad about doing. If he did not truly regret his actions, would he have really asked for forgiveness? What need would he have for a Jewish man to listen to his story? If it was strictly because he wanted to "confess" before death and there was no priest around, was the nurse not sufficient for that purpose?
If given a sincere request for forgiveness, I may have still felt the grudge inside myself, but I believe that with time, forgiveness would be possible. Unlike Wiesenthal, I would have acknowledged his request. I would have told him that I do see that he is regretful for what he did and I understand that he is sincere, but that forgiveness would take time. I would let him know that I understand that he is dying and wants peace of mind before he goes and that I will allow him to have it. But that as long as I am in the concentration camp that it will be hard to forgive someone for the wrong that is done to me every day.
In Wiesenthal's situation, I would have to recognize my own impending death. Being surrounded by death and destruction would take some of the fear out of it, but I would still fear that I would not be at peace with myself and God before I died. Reading a remark from the soldier about his friend who died really stuck out to me. "Poor Peter. He died with the memory of the most dreadful experience of his life."(50) As Wiesenthal, I would not want to die with regret as the soldier's friend did. I would want to feel at peace with myself and the decisions I had made. The decision to forgive the soldier would be difficult and painful, but not forgiving him would have haunted me until I died, however soon or far away my death might have been. Forgiveness may take time but there is not always time left so it would be a difficult decision.