Forgive and forget

Forgiving and forgetting are two different things. We can forgive but we cannot forget; otherwise, we'd be losing our memory. It does not mean that if we cannot forget, we also do not forgive. The Bible says that we should forgive (not only seven times but seventy times seven) so that our Father in heaven will also forgive us. If we do not forgive, God will not also forgive us. It's really difficult to forgive but it's more difficult not to forgive because we will be nurturing hatred in our hearts and we could not be happy. God says Vengeance is for Me. So even if we do not do anything against those who sin against us (and it is very hard to revenge), God will recompense. Let's just leave that to God.

Yes, to err is human, we are all sinners and we commit sins, knowingly or unknowingly. To forgive is divine because we would be following God's commandment - forgive your brother. But I believe we could not always forget even if we have already forgiven. We have our mind to remember but such remembering does not mean that we still harbor in our hearts the pain created by the sin and we would no longer have the urge to somehow revenge because we have already forgiven.

I think it matters what your forgiving. If something is really terrible and you say you forgive someone, it's always going to be in the back of your mind that it will happen again.

for me i forgive before i forget .. it is simply easy .. but i think that my heart is always ask me to forget about the bad and forgive .

I'm curious .. what is your scripture reference for this quote? hmmmm .. it isn't scripture, is it? It is a folk saying. Do you believe Jesus would command anything that is impossible for us to obey? Especially if He also provided a way for us to obey .. a source of empowerment beyond ourselves? I still can't figure out if you are serious or joking.

Forgiving is a very hard thing to do...forgetting is more diificult. You may forgive a person for hurting you but everytime you remember it the pain comes back...so what do you do? As my friend priest told me...."Everytime you remember, remember with forgiveness".

To forgive and forget is possible but is difficult. Besides, it also depends on the circumstances or issue involved.

Forgiving and forgetting go hand in hand. Yes forgetting is essential to true forgiveness. But to forget is not to erase it in our memory banks but actually to remember the act and then tell ourselves that we are not going to hold this matter against the person anymore. As if it never happened. The model of true forgiveness is exemplified by God when we put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, He forgave us and doensn't hold our sins against us anymore.

Yes according to the bible scriptures it is written clearly and you have to abide by it if an only if you want to succeed in life, remember the ultimate commandment of God is "Love your neighbour as thy self"

Humans are capable of forgiveness but we cannot forget the situation or what happened either good or bad. Even those experiences that we don't want to remember, its still in our mind. These are always stored in our memory and will be there forever. Forgetting is not a big deal as long as we know how to forgive. Because its really impossible to forget things that gives you pain. Memories of it will always remains, but the wounds it created can be healed.

I had several traumatic experiences in the past and I harboured a lot of anger and unforgiveness for many years. Finally, through counselling and after much struggle I learned to forgive but to forget is impossible. However, the memories of those incidents although they still bring some pain and regret doesn't cause me to want to take revenge on those persons. Maybe this is 'forgetting' - not hanging onto it any more.

we don't literally say that when we forgive we forget all the bad things one has done for us. the memory of the pain and hurt is still there. the thing that you need to forget is the hatred or feelings that you feel for the one who hurt you.

I don't think it is ever possible to completely forget about something that happened. It will always be in the back of your mind. May not be a strong memory, but it might be a faint one. Bottom line, you still remember it.

Nups...we can forgive but we cannot forget...its just like you cannot forget all those good memories that you had when you were young...its just that this time, we are talking about bad memories this time....

Only God can truly forget. We can forgive and try to forget but our brains are such that once a fact is impressed upon it that it is always somewhere in there waiting for something to trigger the thought. But we sure as heck can act like we forgot a wrong.

I believe we could forget when we forgive. its just a state of mind! Your mind may not forget the actual situation or the things that made you hurt, but the "forgetting" part actually refers to the pain that we have. We just need to deal with the pain first and foremost. It may be difficult but I have the qualifications to speak on this. I myself used to be bonded with unforgiveness, but I began to learn things and realize the importance and essense of forgiveness. Its possible! ü

not at all times that when we forgive, we do fully forget. Of course you have mind to remember but the thing is, even when you forgive, your trust to someone who caused you will be able to lessen. You can really forgive without forgetting what he/she have caused you. However, it's a matter of how does your heart deals when you forgive.

Well, the ideal meaning of forgiving is to forget or erase the mistake/sin/wrongdoing. So, in short, yes we could fogive and forget when we allow ourselves to.

Maybe for some they can do it but for my opinion it hard to forget even though we forgive them.You can never erase it your mind. Forgivenes doesn't mean forgeting but to move on.