beginnings of any good. Men are the saviours of men by their faith in
men.



THE LAW OF FORGIVENESS

A silly interpretation often leads to the utter rejection of a law.
Sentimentalists have caused men of sense to pronounce Christ's law of
forgiveness an impractical one. Yet we indorse it every time we utter
the Lord's prayer, and still we hope to be forgiven whether we find it
possible to forgive or not. If this law means the mental flabbiness
that sends bouquets to bloody criminals and petitions the pardon of
murderers and the release of the foes of humanity, we must reject it as
the utterance of one unacquainted with the rugged facts of life.

But forgiveness and pardon are two different things; forgiveness is
between man and man; pardon is a matter of executive power. You can
forgive a child and still punish him. The forgiveness that does away
with consequences would make this an immoral world. No greater wrong
can be done to a man than to protect him from the deserts of his evil
deeds. This is as unjust as to withhold the rewards of the right.

The difference between the law of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a
tooth and the law of the great Teacher lies largely in the spirit of
dealing with the offenses. The old spirit was that of getting even
with the wrongdoer. His act was largely regarded from the personal
standpoint; a crime was individual and not social. Revenge followed
wrongdoing.