I've spent a lot of time the last few days thinking about Simon Wiesenthal's The Sunflower. The substance of the book is a series of reflections on whether Wiesenthal ought to have forgiven a dying Nazi concentration camp guard who asked his forgiveness. https://twitter.com/DanielleWenner/status/1325506917893099527

There are many great responses in the book; by and large the response of Jewish contributors (AJ Heschel, Harold Kushner, Herbert Marcuse) is not to forgive. Some of these responses turn on the specialness of offense; Heschel's does not, and is the most interesting.

Heschel tells a story. In the story, a man is playing a game of cards and takes issue with a stranger. He wrongs that stranger, assaulting him and throwing him off of the train. The stranger is a famed rabbi. When the man discovers this, he asks for forgiveness.

The rabbi does not forgive the man. When the rabbi is asked why he refuses to forgive, the rabbi responds something like, "he wronged me as a common man, but he asked my forgiveness as a rabbi. He should ask forgiveness of a common man."

Trump supporters are asking for forgiveness or patience or kindness of those in a position of political power. They are coming to us after learning the results of the election. But for the outcome, they would not ask these thinggs. And that is wrong, and show insincerity.

They are not asking forgiveness from those they have wronged; they are not asking for kindness or sensitivity as they would give it.

Judaism also values acts. It is important that one make amends (or at least try), and this we have not seen either, but even that is secondary.

Asking of those in political power shows self-interest and moral vacuousness. Ask of those who you caused to suffer, of the children in foster care after separation or abused by CBP and ICE officers. Ask of those who lost family to COVID, who could not comfort dying loved ones.