Niebuhr and the issue of forgiveness

Believe it or not, I have wrestled with the questions of God, Love, and Forgiveness all my life. Some individuals may laugh at my struggle and fancy that they are  more "mature" and "stronger" (and they did say so to my face! I don't know which one suffers more from high folly: the one who unabashedly admits and confesses constantly and publicly that he is "immature" and "weak" or the one who publicly admonished the other for being "immature" and "weak". I humbly believe that truly mature and strong humans don't go around scolding others) because they have already come to terms with these subjects. Forgiveness reflects strength. Maybe I am not strong enough. Maybe I am cursed with having a long memory and pain seems to stay with me and refuses to go away.

Regardless of what we conceive and perceive as worthy of our time and effort to carry it out, I think we must attach a degree of urgency to it and try to accomplish it in our lifetime. 

As for forgiveness, defined as the final form of love by Niebuhr, we all talk about it and know what it means, but rarely do it as it runs counter to instincts. That does not say that all instincts are good. Man is the only animal that routinely can transcend instincts if he so chooses. However, I submit that a measure of stature of a person hinges on his ability to really forgive those who have done him wrong, and to move on with his life, instead of being mired in the misery of memories and to plot of revenge. What one does at a personal level can have national implications. If all the anti-VC aspiring leaders temper their rhetoric and advocate a true spirit of forgiveness and cooperation and love for Vietnam, a more harmonious change in Vietnam might take place. I think the VC know in their hearts that they have been wrong in their conduct, but are reluctant and fearful of cooperating with the non-VC people because of selfishness, greed, and fear of retribution. All Viet leaders must learn from the leadership mode of Nelson Mandela. More than twenty seven years of being imprisoned and a lifetime of witnessing injustice being inflicted  on his black people did not instill an abiding hatred in his hearts for all the whites. He hates injustice, but he loves South Africa more.  And to strengthen South Africa he must allow room for the whites who are also part of South Africa, with their privileges and former power. Change must come in the form of the betterment of the blacks and the colored, and not necessarily on the backs of the sufferings of the whites. In other words, retribution and revenge are out, and in cooperation and love. We must learn to hate the sin, but not the sinners. Hate brings defenses on the part of those being hated.  Love opens up the hearts and strengthens the minds of all concerned parties.


Of course, one can only forgive when one is in a position of forgiving. Forgiving is an act of empowerment, not only from the standpoint of the forgiver, but also from the perspective of the forgiven. It says to the forgiven that I think of the future, and am not burdened by the past. I am not obsessed by settling scores and demanding justice and punishment even though legally and logically it is the right thing to do. What I am interested is for you to acknowledge that what you have done was wrong and that now you are so sorry and want to rejoin the decent folks who are interested in cleaning up the mess you have created. Punishing you and screaming for your blood may be emotionally therapeutic, but economically unproductive. Vietnam needs all the hands, including those of former but now repentant VC.

I think if the anti-VC leaders fight the VC with this enlightened, clear-sighted framework, they would attract more followers and could perhaps weaken the VC more effectively instead of having the same hard-hearted attitude as the VC. Sometimes it is necessary to fight fire with fire. In other circumstances, it is far better to fight evil with love. By appearing unyielding and resolute and hard, the anti-VC resistance movement makes the task more difficult than it already is. We must project a clear image that we are the forces of good, of love, of forgiveness. We can be firm. Indeed, we must be, but we don't have to be doctrinaire, inflexible, hate-inspired, and revenge-obsessed, like the VC. Only by being so, can we attract the fence-sitters to our side. Vietnam is ripe for a change. The leaders for change must be indeed people with vision and heart. They must put the interests of the people above their own. They must perform their duties in the name of love, and not pursuing personal power for power's sake. The power must be used to serve all Vietnamese. Vietnam is bigger than any and all leaders combined.

Now let us follow the example of the people of Tunisia and get into the streets and demand a change. It can be done. If millions of people in Saigon, Hanoi, Hue, Da Nang, and Can Tho all demonstrate and demand change, the regime must respond. Fear and apathy are what hold the people back in Vietnam. Fear and apathy and lack of love are what have accounted for the silence and pitiful sophistical reasonings that have appeared in the MC forum. We can put up pseudo arguments. We can all pretend who we are not. But facts and truths always make their presence known. I invariably feel nauseous when I read a self-serving "advice" from certain elements that we must stay away from topics of politics in the interest of preserving harmony of "friendship".  Assiduous avoidance of discussions of politics in this current environment in Vietnam when our country is in danger of collapsing into the arms of the Chinese is an act of sticking one's head in the muck, in the sand, in the quagmire of stupidity and cowardice and irresponsibility. The VC and their closet, covert, implicit supporters naturally don't want to engage in any discussions about politics because discussions will inevitably expose the necessity of change of leadership and regime. They don't want change. They want the status quo to remain as it is.