Forgiveness In Vietnam War

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With multiple affairs occurring at once, it is understandable for people to be swept away by war, both literally and figuratively. People are pushed to their limits, sometimes to their breaking points. During the Vietnam War, one soldier, upset at the death of his comrades, slipped explosives into some snacks before leaving them on the path for the children to pick up. Through an act of war, children, including your own, were lost. Personally, I am not yet a parent and have yet experienced great loss; still, I am capable of sympathizing with your pain, of knowing how unfathomable your suffering must be. Nevertheless, it is heavily suggested that you forgive the soldier who committed the horrendous act to your child. Forgiveness is to be able…show more content…
This argument is supported by revered Civil Rights Movement leader Martin Luther King Jr.; included in Strength to Love, a compilation of his greatest sermons is “Loving Your Enemies,” where King asserts that “when we forgive, we forget in the sense that the evil deed is no longer a mental block impeding a relationship. Likewise, we can never say, ‘I will forgive you, but I won’t have anything further to do with you.’ Forgiveness means reconciliation, a coming together again. Without this, no man can love his enemies” (45). However, reconciling with the soldier would be asking too much of you; it is an entirely different level of forgiveness that you do not have to consider because, at this point, taking the first step, or being able to move on from the past, is already exceedingly difficult. Furthermore, this first step is more crucial all because it is the first step. The soldier should not expect more from you; he should be appreciate of your arduous decision in forgiving him. Thus, forgiveness is possible without completely reconciling with your enemy. Perhaps you can eventually become friends with your enemy, but for now, reconciliation is not…show more content…
On the contrary, you benefit by forgiving the solder. For one, thoughts of hate and revenge will only scar yourself. As King once declared, “… we must love our enemies [because] hate scars the soul and distorts the personality” (47). Must you loathe the solider only to further damage yourself? Undeniably, your lost child would not want that for you either. Your child would rather you be the warm, caring parent he or she remembers you being. Forgiving will also help you grow as a person by increasing your capacity to accept, understand, and love. An act of forgiveness requires much strength and cannot be exercised by the weak or cowardly. Through forgiveness, as you end a cycle of hate and violence, and you elevate yourself above your enemy and become

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