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At an event in 1995 commemorating the 50th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the notorious World War II death camp, keynote speaker Elie Wiesel -- himself a death camp survivor and Nobel laureate -- gave an impassioned speech imploring God not to forgive those responsible for the savagery unleashed on the Jewish people during the Second World War.

His words are heartfelt and unforgettable. "God of forgiveness," he cried, "do not forgive those murderers of Jewish children here [at Auschwitz]."

As Christians, we may shudder at a prayer that seems to be bereft of mercy and a need for reconciliation some 50 years later. But, in view of the festering wounds he suffered as a child in the camp, one can certainly appreciate his anger and distress.

We may all concede that it is a challenge to forgive those who hurt us. All that is required of us is to observe a moment of silence in memory of those whose lives were shattered nearly three quarters of a century ago.

As Holy Week nears, we are reminded of the crucifixion of our blessed Lord. Surely, it is not without significance that Jesus died praying. As His life was ebbing away, He showed a remarkable preference for the psalms. We dare not pass judgment on Him!

In the Divine Office of readings for Friday of the third week of Lent, Pope St. Gregory the Great asks a profound question: "Is it possible to offer, or even imagine, a purer kind of prayer than that which shows mercy to one's torturers by making intercession for them?"

He then remarks: "It was thanks to this kind of prayer that the frenzied persecutors who shed the blood of our redeemer drank it afterward in faith and proclaimed Him to be the Son of God."

The first of Jesus' words from the cross is an earnest plea for the forgiveness of those who cruelly mistreat Him: "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Lk 23:34). Our divine Lord puts into practice what He had preached in His charter for the kingdom, the Sermon on the Mount: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Mt.5:7). Simply amazing!

The Roman poet Seneca wrote that those who were crucified cursed the day of their birth, the executioners and their mothers, and even spat on those who looked upon them with disdain. Another prominent Roman writer, Cicero, recorded that at times it was necessary to cut out the tongues of those who were crucified to stop their terrible blasphemies.

Not our Lord! He knows no hatred. He is not moved by bitterness. He does not call down the wrath of God on his executioners. He does not call for revenge. No! He prays for forgiveness for those who nail Him to the cross and warrants His plea by adding, "They know not what they do."

As Pope Benedict XVI put it, "The Lord makes their ignorance the motive for His plea for forgiveness: He sees it as a door that can open us to forgiveness."

One of the infamous figures of the German Third Reich was Rudolf Hess. As the war neared an end after untold mayhem and suffering, he had reached a point in his life when he recognized the enormity of his past crimes against humanity. Truth to tell, he was a broken man, a pitiable figure who was without a realistic prospect of hope.

Conscious of his sins, he was plunged into despair. He was in a dark place. When a Polish priest assured him that forgiveness and mercy were indeed available to him in one of the sacraments of the Church, he made a sincere confession. He died reconciled to God.

As for being reconciled to all those he tormented in his life, that remains to be seen. We can only hope for peaceful reconciliation in the hereafter.

Many Christians are accustomed to praying the Lord's Prayer daily. One wonders if we pause to reflect on the words, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." In truth, there is no greater gift we can give to another than the unexpected, unmerited gift of forgiveness.

Finally, let us bear in mind that we were also somehow present in our Lord's prayer of forgiveness. He died for us. Our sins were nailed to the cross. In view of Jesus' first words from the cross, we can fully understand why it is only the hands of Mel Gibson we see in his epic film, "The Passion of the Christ," driving the nails into the feet of Jesus.

"Father, forgive them for they know not what they do!"

(Father Yanas is pastor of Sacred Heart parish in Troy.)[[In-content Ad]]

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