The Sunflower_ On the Possibilities and - Wiesenthal, Simon copy

in which he or she originally sinned and chooses not to repeat the act. The person still has
the potential to commit that sin again; i.e., his/her strength has not diminished nor has the
capability been lost. Nonetheless, they choose not to repeat it.
Finally, it is important to differentiate between teshuvah, repentance, and kaparah,
atonement. Atonement only comes after one bears the consequences of one's acts. Some
might ask, is not repentance enough? Why is punishment also necessary? Judaism is founded
on the notion that actions have consequences: righteous acts result in blessing, evil acts in
punishment. When King David sinned by scheming to have Bathsheba's husband killed so
that he could have her for his own, he subsequently performed teshuvah. (His genuine
remorse is evident in Psalm 51, written after he committed his heinous crime.) Nonetheless
he was punished for his actions. Only then was his relationship with God returned to its
original place.
The question to be asked is not should the prisoner have forgiven the SS man but could
the prisoner have forgiven him? The prisoner could have told the soldier that he personally
forgave him because he was different from his fellow SS soldiers who had shown no
remorse. But this Jew could not have offered the soldier atonement. The SS man had done
nothing against him specifically. The Jews who had been burned to death by this soldier had
not authorized anyone to forgive on their behalf.
The prisoner's dilemma has contemporary reverberations. Jews are often asked by non-
Jews, “Isn't it time ‘you Jews’ forgave the German perpetrators? Isn't it time you forgot?” (It
is interesting to note that few other people who have suffered the consequences of
persecution, including persecution of a far less heinous nature, are asked this question.)
When asked, I respond that I am yet to encounter a perpetrator who is actually seeking