Forgiveness
Monday, October 09 2006
Forgiveness
Hours after a disturbed milkman stormed a school, killed five girls and then himself, Amish families were reaching out to the man's family as a gesture of forgiveness. Amish neighbors attended the gunman's funeral. And the killer's wife, Marie Roberts, was invited to the funeral of seven-year-old Naomi Rose Ebersole.
How can a person possibly forgive someone for murdering a loved one? Bud Welch knows the answer first-hand.
On the morning of April 19, 1995, Bud Welch was looking forward to lunch with his daughter Julie at a restaurant across from the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. He wound up instead glued to his television set, sitting by the phone, hoping against hope that she had survived the bombing which took the lives of 168 people. His daughter, Julie, died in the bombing.
When Timothy McVeigh was arrested, Bud didn't even want a trial. He just wanted McVeigh dead.
But after visiting the bomb site every day for months, Bud began to realize his thirst for vengeance was standing in the way of his healing. Slowly, he began speaking out about his daughter (pictured left) and against the death penalty. Years later, he had the chance to meet Timothy McVeigh's father and sister. Astonishingly, they found common ground in the painful realization that their families would forever be linked by the events of that April morning.
- Explore more compelling stories of people who have forgiven others for unspeakable acts.
- Find out more about two organizations that are close to Bud's heart - the Murder Victims Families for Human Rights and September Eleventh Families for a Peaceful Tomorrows.
- Jim from North Carolina suggested this program. Read an excerpt from his e-mail.
TEACHING TOLERANCE
Gerda Weissmann Klein lost everyone in her family but survived six years of Nazi cruelty. She was in labor camps and watched her closest friends die on a death march. Though her experience was horrifying, Gerda also remembers wonderful acts of decency and testaments to the human spirit. Gerda talks to Dick about her story and her own road to healing.
More of Gerda's story is featured in the new tolerance teaching kit called One Survivor Remembers. [Photo: Gerda Klein with Morris Dees, Co-Founder and Richard Cohen, CEO, of the Southern Poverty Law Center]
- Obtain the free educational kit One Survivor Remembers, which includes the Oscar-winning film
- Explore the Teaching Tolerance website, which includes tips for parents on talking to children about tough issues
- Find out more about Gerda Weissmann Klein and the foundation she runs
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