Christian Doctrine of Forgiveness: Effective or Irresponsible ?

The Christian doctrine of forgiveness does not preclude justice. To recieve God's forgiveness one must be sincere in their appelation for grace. A thief may not ask forgiveness after robbing a bank and then spend the money. No forgiveness is granted in this instance because the HEART is where forgiveness is judged. If repentance is real then one's actions follow their change of heart. If someone is raped and they forgive their rapist, that's a charitable attitude and required of a Christian, (making true discipleship of Christ literally the hardest lifestyle in any religion,) but they can't forgive them for the rape they will commit against others. A Christian must have more compassion for a future victim of the rapist than for the rapist himself. Its that very compassion that DEMANDS that justice be done. Forgiveness isn't a carte blanche to sin. As a society, we must remove dangerous elements from our population and we must try to rehabilitate those who have become that threat. To do anything else is to knowingly say that crime is okay. Human forgiveness is about eliminating bitterness in your own heart more than mending relationships. Forgiveness is a part of the Christian compassion, but so is the protection of the innocent.

=On one hand the poor men are who usually rape so giving them money would afford them a wife, a date, or at least a hooker. But when money run out - back to raping again?=

Excuse me?

You don't purchase a wife in the same way you purchase a hooker.

In addition, rape isn't about the opportunity to have sex. Rape is a crime of violence. The kids presented in the movie brutalized a completely helpless woman. They *gang raped her*. Rape is a violent assault on a woman, despite what those "other" movies might lead you to believe.

This is just creepy.

Well I don't think rapists rape because they don't have a "date" for the night. They rape because they want to feel powerful. They want to let their anger out. So money wouldn't help them.
I definetly agree that forgiving rapers is irresponsible. Most rapists are likely to rape again, as you mentioned.
So yes, I most certainly agree that the christian doctorine of forgiveness is irresponsible. And it's like telling people "do whatever you like, in the end you can always be fogiven."

Most Christians would agree with you that letting rapists go is irresponsible. The movie doesn't imply that real Christians always forgive and forget things like rape, plus ita a Catholic nun. Many protestants dont consider Catholic Christian.

The nun could have forgiven them inside, but that doesn't excuse the criminal from punishment by the secular law. That is what Christians believe.

i think the point was that Keitel was giving them a chance at redemption something no one else in his situation would do. It probably saved the lieutenant's soul from damnation. that's more of the point then whether they will rape again. They may or they may not but at least Keitel gave them a chance to make up for their sins

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=heuerj88

Not only is it very irresponsible, it is also very stupid, selfish and down right dangerous.

I think the point of the ending is not so much saying that the Lieutenant has done the right thing in Christian terms by freeing them and giving them the money (or to raise questions about what he should have done with the them and the money instead) but by showing that he doesn't understand the very concept of the Christian Doctrine of Forgiveness as he has simply abided by it despite still hating them for their violent act and is barely able to refrain from killing them on the way to the bus station and remains unchanged from how we have previously seen him in the film, howling forth that recurring cry of inner-anguish and torment. Without the personal change needed to truly put forth this doctrine, it didn't matter that he did this for them since a change on a personal level is the only kind we can ever really make in the world as the end goal of it is our own salvation. It gives hope that he has awakened and changed them for the better with his act, though, and this bizarrely enough can actually render him as a Christ figure in that he has sacrificed himself, or more specifically sacrificing his hope of changing and making a better life for himself, in order to atone for their sin and enable them with the change they need, but a large part of the point is that he still doesn't understand how or why the Nun forgives and his blind acceptance of and following her lead makes him not a true Christian at all and will only lead him to remain a lost soul in a purgatorial existence after his death, enforced by the white backdrop of the end credits with the same Schoolly D track (that is unfortunately left out now due to the lawsuit) that was played throughout the film, complimenting this damnation due to his lack of change.

Also, even IF, for argument's sake, after their first offense they do NOT reoffend, don't we think they should STILL be in prison for what they did?