Forgiveness of Island Sins

I was trying to explain the concept of "forgiveness of sins" and some aspects of Christianity to some non-Christians the other day.

There were a few easy matters, for example, the Easter idea, mentioned in the creed that Jesus "is seated at the right hand of God". That is metaphorical language, and a local example would be to say that a "high-up official" in Jersey would not necessarily be found on the top floor of Cyril Le Marquand House!

Forgiveness of sins, however, is a very strange idea. How can one person somehow take away the sins of many others? There is no definite understanding of that in history, only various people's attempts to come up with analogies which help to point the way. For what it is worth, here is a modern one, which is presented in a dialogue.

What has happened in Australia recently?

The Prime Minister has issued an apology on behalf of the Australian government and people, for the policies that were in practice against the aboriginal peoples.

How has this been received?

For the most part, with satisfaction that something has at last been done.

Is the Prime Minister guilty of any of these practices?

No, and he was probably also born after they were dismantled.

So he is completely innocent of these offences?

Yes

How then, can he offer apologies to the aboriginal peoples? He is just one man.

Because of who he is, because of the unique position he has, as Prime Minister, he can take on this role, and offer apologies on behalf of others.

Has everyone been happy with this?

No, a few have rejected his apology.

That, in a nutshell, is one way of looking at forgiveness of sins, how one individual can stand in for many, even though innocent himself. Of course, the analogy should not be pushed too far, but it does supply a good way of looking at things, without any convoluted religious terminology.

Why have I headed this blog, forgiveness of Island Sins?

Because, curiously, what has happened in Australia, that kind of model, does not seem to apply to Jersey over the child abuse case at Haut de la Garenne. Time and again those in a position to offer an apology, the Chief Minister, the Bailiff, have said that it is not necessary, that it is not needed, that there is no need to apologise. They are innocent.

All the more reason, perhaps, why they are in the best position to give such an apology?

Healing Wounded History

Reported in the Guardian: at a press conference yesterday Senator Walker rejected the suggestion that the States of Jersey owed an apology to the victims of child abuse on the island.

Compare that with some quotes below. If Jersey is to achieve closure, it must begin with an apology to the victims for the appalling negligence on the part of the Jersey goverment in the past for the fact that these homes could be set up and operated in such a way, without safeguards. How many years will the victims of abuse have to wait before such old wounds are addressed? Part of the process of healing wounded history is for representatives in the present to take responsibility for the past, and that is the step that still needs to be taken towards reconciling peoples and healing places.

"We have waited nine hundred years for this, ten more minutes won't make much difference." These were the words of a rabbi from a synagogue in Bosnia Herzegovina. My friend John Presdee and his wife Yvonne, having been gripped by the power of apology, were leading a walk of reconciliation down the Crusader route on its 900 anniversary. They had been called by the Lord to visit mosques, synagogues and orthodox churches to confess and apologise for the murder and destruction they had received by Western Christians during those times of appalling suffering. Of course they were not apologizing for Jesus, only for what Christians had done in his name. However, when they met the rabbi, John had forgotten to bring his written apology and so he asked the rabbi to excuse him while he went and fetched it from his hotel room. That was when the rabbi reminded John that his community had been waiting for so long for this to happen.

The Australian government has made a formal apology for the past wrongs caused by successive governments on the indigenous Aboriginal population. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologised in parliament to all Aborigines for laws and policies that "inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss".

On 9 December 1999 Liverpool City Council passed a formal motion apologising for the City's part in the slave trade. It was unanimously agreed that Liverpool acknowledges its responsibility for its involvement in three centuries of the slave trade. The City Council has made an unreserved apology for Liverpool's involvement and the continual effect of slavery on Liverpool's black communities.

TONY BLAIR has moved to heal one of the greatest wounds in Anglo-Irish history by criticising Britain for allowing a million people to die in the Great Famine. In the strongest statement by any Prime Minister on the disaster, Mr Blair said that the Government of the time "failed their people" while the famine ravaged Ireland between 1845 and 1850. His statement, read out to a weekend concert in Co Cork marking the 150th anniversary of the tragedy, was hailed last night by John Bruton, the Irish Prime Minister.Mr Bruton said: "While the statement confronts the past honestly, it does so in a way that heals for the future. The Prime Minister is to be complimented for the thought and care shown in this statement."

George Carey, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in a service in Limerick Cathedral, apologized for 800 years of English domination in Ireland. His words were received with applause because his congregation recognized that an old wound was being addressed.

Book of the Blog:

Russ Parker - Healing Wounded History