Embracing Guilt and Forgiveness: The Path to Redemption

At some point in every person’s life, there comes a moment when one must look their mistakes in the eye and accept responsibility for their actions. Recognizing personal guilt leads to an understanding of how one’s choices and inaction contribute to the spread of evil and the abandonment of higher moral principles. Admitting a mistake becomes the first step toward transformation, as a person begins to understand that even if evil manifests not only through active deeds but also through silent consent, true responsibility always lies with us.

In this context, the internal sense of guilt plays a crucial role, as it allows one to feel complicit in that which was once considered unacceptable. This experience of responsibility not only forces the realization of personal involvement in moral decline but also generates a need for redemption. Forgiveness, in turn, goes beyond mere formal rituals—it arises as a genuine acceptance of another person without prior demands or conditions. The true act of forgiveness begins with a deep inner transformation of both the guilty and the one daring enough to accept them as they are. This is an act of trust, an opportunity to reset relationships and even change the course of events, bringing a ray of hope into life’s darkest moments.

Thus, when a person becomes aware of their guilt and accepts responsibility for their behavior, they open a pathway to transformation. Conversely, the ability to accept and forgive another becomes an expression of the highest moral choice—a gift of mercy that transcends the stereotypes of punishment. This effort not only changes people but also restores faith in the possibility of redemption, reminding us that atonement is possible if we are willing to acknowledge our mistakes and accept each other in all the complexity of human nature.

Under what circumstances does a person bear responsibility for the evil they have committed, and when does forgiveness become possible?

The central idea is that a person takes responsibility for evil when they become aware of their inner guilt and their participation in straying from higher moral ideals, and that forgiveness becomes possible when the guilty acknowledge their mistake and when another is willing to accept them as they are.

On one hand, responsibility for wrongdoings lies in the individual’s choices. As noted in one source, true understanding of the origin of evil is linked to the experience of one’s own guilt:
"God as a reality is all that is not 'Himself'. ... There is only one singular possibility, within the living specificity, to perceive the unfathomable 'origin' of evil: this possibility lies in the consciousness of my guilt, in the very experience of culpability. That is why the true meaning of the question about the 'origin' of evil is in fact a question of 'responsibility' for it..." (source: link ).

Furthermore, responsibility for committed evil becomes apparent when a person—by either inaction or by a conscious avoidance of opposing aggressive evil—intervenes in the course of events. One text provides an example: when a person, convinced of the righteousness of their moral principles, allows evil to spread through passivity, they eventually realize:
"To respond to violence with violence, to suppress within oneself the revulsion toward this act, to judge, punish, wage war, and execute; when he feels his soul wounded by all this ... he will realize that he himself bears responsibility for it all and that there is no way to evade this responsibility." (source: link ).

On the other hand, forgiveness becomes possible when the wrongdoer is accepted without conditions or preliminary demands for change. Here, the inner transformation of both the offender and the offended is vital. Forgiveness is not merely a formal erasure of sins; it begins with the personal act of accepting another:
"Forgiveness begins much earlier—it wouldn’t hold if it were simply about 'crossing something out.' Forgiveness begins the moment one accepts the person who, with all their burden, cruelty, and irresponsibility, has crushed us ... we say: 'I accept you as you are'..." (source: link ).

Moreover, forgiveness is seen as an unconditional gift, where even one who deserves punishment can be pardoned if they embrace the act of grace:
"Yes, Jesus went that far: one can forgive, forgive endlessly, seventy-seven times. ... The sinner, who has deserved every conceivable punishment, is pardoned: they need only acknowledge the act of grace." (source: link ).

Thus, responsibility for evil arises when a person consciously—or through inaction—allows a deviation from the highest moral truth, a deviation revealed through profound feelings of guilt. Forgiveness, however, begins to take effect when there is personal acceptance of the guilty party, when the true necessity for a merciful attitude is acknowledged, and when there is a willingness to "shoulder" the other as a sign of immense trust and redemption.

Supporting citation(s):
"God as a reality is all that is not 'Himself'. ... There is only one singular possibility, within the living specificity, to perceive the unfathomable 'origin' of evil: this possibility lies in the consciousness of my guilt, in the very experience of culpability. That is why the true meaning of the question about the 'origin' of evil is in fact a question of 'responsibility' for it..." (source: link )

"Forgiveness begins much earlier—it wouldn’t hold if it were simply about 'crossing something out.' Forgiveness begins the moment I accept the wrongdoer, asking nothing in return..." (source: link )

"Yes, Jesus went that far: one can forgive, forgive endlessly, seventy-seven times. ... The sinner, who has deserved every conceivable punishment, is pardoned: they need only acknowledge the act of grace." (source: link )