The Wired Word for 01262025 - CourtneyR.dev's 2nd Brain

The Wired Word for 01/26/2025 ![rw-book-cover](https://readwise-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/static/images/article2.74d541386bbf.png) ## Metadata - Author: [[The Wired Word]] - Full Title: The Wired Word for 01/26/2025 - Category: #articles - Document Note: --- tags: [#ethics, #faith, #forgiveness, #media, #privacy, #right-to-be-forgotten] - #divine-pardon - #reputation-management - #media-ethics Author: Communication Resources Source: The Wired Word Reference: January 26, 2025 Edition date created: 2025-01-26 14:00 --- # 📰 Title: Moving Toward the "Right to Be Forgotten" ## Table of Contents: 1. [📝 Summary](#summary) 2. [📖 Main Content](#main-content) - [🗒️ Notes](#notes) - [🗣️ Paraphrase](#paraphrase) 3. [📰 Newsletter](#newsletter) 4. [✅ Action Items](#action-items) 5. [🧪 Hypotheses](#hypotheses) 6. [📊 Methodology](#methodology) 7. [❓ Questions](#questions) 8. [🔮 Future Research](#future-research) 9. [💡 Implications](#implications) 10. [🧠 Learning Styles Assessment](#learning-styles-assessment) 11. [📊 Accessibility Assessment](#accessibility-assessment) 12. [🌍 DEIB Assessment](#deib-assessment) 13. [✅ Logical Validity](#logical-validity) 14. [🔍 DARVO Analysis](#darvo-analysis) 15. [🔍 SEO Evaluation](#seo-evaluation) 16. [🎯 Conclusion](#conclusion) --- ## 📝 Summary: This article explores the "right to be forgotten" concept, focusing on media ethics regarding outdated minor crime coverage. It highlights cases where old news stories harm individuals who have moved on from their past. It links these issues to divine forgiveness, examining biblical perspectives on sin, regret, and redemption. --- ## 📖 Main Content: ### 🗒️ Notes: - **Key Issue**: Minor crime reports in digital archives continue to harm individuals long after they've atoned for their actions. - Example: Cleveland.com allows people with court-expunged records to request name removal from archived crime stories. - **Media Shift**: - Initiated by Chris Quinn (Cleveland.com). - Adopted by major newspapers (e.g., Boston Globe, Atlanta Journal-Constitution). - New policies minimize mugshots and names for minor crimes. - **Biblical Connection**: - Jeremiah 31:31-34: God promises to forget sins. - Micah 7:18-19: Sin is cast into the sea. - Luke 7:36-50: Jesus forgives a "sinner," contrasting with societal judgment. --- ### 🗣️ Paraphrase: 1. Original: "For many people, a mugshot is the worst photo ever taken of them. Pictures are taken while people are in crisis, often inebriated and usually angry, afraid, or upset." - Paraphrase: Mugshots often capture individuals at their lowest moments—under stress, intoxicated, or emotionally distraught. 2. Original: "Forgiving someone involves forgetting the past wrongdoing and not holding onto it." - Paraphrase: True forgiveness requires letting go of past offenses and refusing to dwell on them. --- ## 📰 Newsletter: 💌 **This Week’s Highlights** **Exploring Forgiveness in a Digital Age**: Modern media ethics align with timeless biblical principles. Read about how news outlets are adopting "right to be forgotten" policies to help people move past their mistakes. Plus, we reflect on divine pardon and practical ways to overcome regret. [Read more here](#). --- ## ✅ Action Items: - **For Developers**: - Create tools to facilitate privacy (e.g., content removal plugins for WordPress). - **For Faith Leaders**: - Use examples from Luke 7 and Micah 7 to teach about forgiveness. - **For Media Advocates**: - Advocate for inclusive practices in reporting minor crimes. --- ## 🧪 Hypotheses: 1. Media outlets adopting "clean slate" policies may see improved trust with marginalized communities. 2. Public support for privacy may grow with broader policy adoption. --- ### 📊 Methodology: - **Survey**: Gauge public opinion on forgiveness and expungement. - **Case Studies**: Analyze success stories of media-led expungements. --- ### ❓ Questions: 1. Can "forgiveness policies" become a legal standard? 2. How does forgetting sin influence personal growth? --- ### 🔮 Future Research: - Study the societal impact of forgiven but not forgotten sins. - Explore parallels between divine forgiveness and secular privacy rights. --- ### 💡 Implications: - Enhancing privacy policies could reduce recidivism. - Applying forgiveness principles may improve media ethics and individual mental health. --- ### 🧠 Learning Styles Assessment: 1. **Visual**: Infographics on crime statistics and expungement trends. 2. **Auditory**: Embed audio summaries or podcasts. 3. **Kinesthetic**: Encourage writing exercises on personal regrets. --- ### 📊 Accessibility Assessment: - **Strengths**: - Semantic HTML aids screen readers. - Well-structured headings. - **Improvements**: - Add alt text for images. - Simplify language for neurodiverse readers. --- ### 🌍 DEIB Assessment: - **Positive**: - Acknowledges racial bias in crime reporting. - **Improvements**: - Highlight restorative justice examples from diverse backgrounds. --- ### ✅ Logical Validity: - **Strengths**: - Strong cause-effect reasoning in media examples. - **Fallacies**: - Potential "false dilemma" in contrasting forgiveness with forgetting. --- ### 🔍 DARVO Analysis: - **Deny**: Media denies harm initially caused by past practices. - **Attack**: Minimal—focuses on reform over blame. - **Reverse Victim-Offender**: Absent; prioritizes healing over deflection. --- ### 🔍 SEO Evaluation: - **Keywords**: "Right to be forgotten," "media ethics." - **Meta Description**: Missing but critical for discoverability. - **Internal Links**: Add related theological articles. --- ## 🎯 Conclusion: The "right to be forgotten" isn't just a media issue; it's a powerful metaphor for divine grace. As we balance forgiveness and accountability, let’s advocate for systems that mirror justice and compassion. - Summary: Published news reports of old minor crimes and misdemeanors are still dogging some people and hampering them going forward. Dear Class Members, Published news reports of old minor crimes and misdemeanors are still dogging some people and hampering them going forward. Now, some news sites and agencies are offering the possibility of having those reports expunged from the news archives so that the stories don't turn up when someone does a global search on the individual's name. One news editor calls this the "right to be forgotten." This news gives us an opening to consider what it means when God declares our sins not only forgiven, but also forgotten. It invites us to think about such things as divine pardon and the power of our regrets. ![](https://www.thewiredword.com/_img/tww_logo_email.jpg) **Moving Toward the 'Right to Be Forgotten'*****The Wired Word*** **for the Week of January 26, 2025** **In the News** In pre-internet days, if you were involved in a minor crime, your photo and information about your misdemeanor might appear in an area newspaper. But after the story ran, the whole affair was largely forgotten by the general public. The only way it might come to light again is if someone were intentionally looking for background information on you and spent time at the local library digging through microfilm, examining past issues of the paper. But the internet changed all that. Now those stories of your long-ago missteps are readily retrievable by anyone with a computer, tablet or smartphone, simply by doing a global search on your name. This is no small issue since more than 70 million Americans -- one in three adults -- have prior arrests or convictions, but many of these people have long since paid for their misdeed and have since then lived decent and honorable lives. Nonetheless, the old offense keeps rising up to deny the person a job or other opportunity -- or to embarrass the person as his or her children or friends learn about the old transgression. Many of these folks have contacted media sources asking to have their names removed from these old minor crime stories or to remove the story altogether, but the news outlets have generally been unwilling to do so. That is now beginning to change, and some newspapers and media sites have set up programs to make it possible for those with good records since the initial offense to have those old stories deleted. This move was initiated in 2018 by Chris Quinn, editor of *Cleveland.com* and the *Plain Dealer* newspaper (the two are separate entities, but both are owned by the same company, Advance Publications). What makes this news today is that according to a January 8, 2025, article in *The Guardian*, the practice has now been adopted by the *Boston Globe*, the *Atlanta Journal-Constitution*, *Maine's Bangor Daily News*, the *Oregonian* and New Jersey's *NJ.com.* Quinn explains that he was regularly contacted by people telling him how long-past crime coverage was harming them currently and pleading with him to delete the old news. Quinn said, "I just got tired of telling people no and standing on tradition instead of being thoughtful." As an example, Quinn mentioned a call from a man who, as a teenager, got drunk and broke a monument in a cemetery. Years later, he had "completely atoned" but was still being turned down for jobs because of the "stupid" thing he did as a kid. Quinn agreed to remove that story. Another example involves a woman who, while working in health care, stole some drugs from her employer. After serving a jail sentence, a judge complimented her for the work she had done to rehabilitate herself. She'd lost her health-care license, but was having difficulty finding new work because Googling her name kept bringing up her crime. After checking all this out, Quinn also dropped her story from the archives. *Cleveland.com* now has an established procedure: It relies on the court process known as expungement, which people use to clear their records. People who have committed nonviolent crimes and who have successfully petitioned the courts to permanently delete all records of their criminal cases can send a request, along with proof of the expungement to *Cleveland.com*, and in most cases, the news site will remove their names from the stories about them, and Google searches of their names will stop finding those stories. The privilege of having one's name and offense expunged from the paper and news site does not, according to Quinn, apply to elected and other officials, celebrities, perpetrators of violent or sex crimes, and certain other stories that the news staff deem important to preserve. The name-and-story expungement policy also led to a rethinking of the use of mugshots on *Cleveland.com* and in the *Plain Dealer*. Quinn explained that in journalism, it has long been "a given that if you wrote a story about an arrest and if a mug shot was available, you published the mugshot." But he started to question that practice. "For many people, a mugshot is the worst photo ever taken of them. The pictures are taken while people are in crisis, often inebriated and usually angry, afraid or upset." He also became concerned about what a mugshot communicates to the audience. "You don't know these people," he said, "so what does it matter if you see what they look like? Because many crimes we cover are borne of poverty, which disproportionately involves African Americans, the mugshots are disproportionately of African Americans." Thus, he concluded that the shots can reinforce racial stereotypes. That also led to consideration of why they even supply the names of the individuals involved in minor crimes. Together those things resulted in another policy change for *Cleveland.com* and the *Plain Dealer*: As Quinn states it, "We will greatly curtail our use of mugshots, restricting them to the most notorious of crimes. Generally, if we believe news value exists in a photo of an accused criminal, we will go to the court appearance and shoot our own photo. ... We will stop naming most people accused of most minor crimes." More on this story can be found at these links: [US Newspapers Are Deleting Old Crime Stories, Offering Subjects a 'Clean Slate.'](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPEd8GTVwWweecsmfy3-2FzHzdwpJyjOQ5mMbLGkzuYibIN6gRorruHDD2yotQw1zyLPGJzGzQqprG8GOatS84NM949wMLxh6gCuZ9P-2FRXHG-2BEHld85_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDDShey-2B183AhoO2SXeescR8RAHWrcdHH0k7412UXPBEMIYPcRJKr6kj9kHXeRpbZn80hQ2vyTXDXVp6ApJ5BiccN-2F0DEw-2BO77wYB5fGZdmZ7jVq895IOF0-2BciQgzFF030J1RXRDhS1132obsObiBUXj3Zff8fp6M4uHiEM9pxzUcXmug2FH3Df-2FJficJw6Op2qqlbEMKdvG6dafxUpMvero-3D)[*The Guardian*](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPEd8GTVwWweecsmfy3-2FzHzdwpJyjOQ5mMbLGkzuYibIN6gRorruHDD2yotQw1zyLPGJzGzQqprG8GOatS84NM949wMLxh6gCuZ9P-2FRXHG-2BEHFkI-_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDNv6m61BcaNHlFlMRQWb-2FYBAaylnsoowGWgwPncb5I-2FwOOzm4NI2os-2FHDSP0ofeyobL3uyJ2q3QbqPpuysiDmgLsb9pmOOQtYGMmc-2Bzf2Um-2FgL52X8ovIn4vmMY-2Fj-2FXsJ43Md68LmQ6hcnau-2BzSnMyHLgNAYp913ZduTLdjJejw0-2BDh5oRNjmZaLEAonj1luxTkmk9ss6bFy-2BGCKzNQ-2BC14-3D)[Right to Be Forgotten: Cleveland.com Rolls Out Process to Remove Mug Shots, Names From Dated Stories About Minor Crimes.](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPHu98bLhOIIExzaQu7fC2kcE7qq8a7eck6m7wzy5pwqYllV6_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDKFsGb-2BRQrwlbhXnwN5tVbuaYF6ZCaqjBUxf8Afe28zlufHl5sG0ZIP1q0Vu44qRDiNQVVnWmGB-2BV5kktyXC-2Bj4GBtHlKk5kgic9ojqb-2F8-2B2AsrnZrpx-2FfxJKSyjL0CzUehwJSD9dQ4WYPduhMK-2FDOtdbIJPJh2rGKtS8-2FBqPBDaSMpe28rRhe-2BBnZQ9-2Bd6-2FsqcLtG4SqJ771YqSCbRt6sY-3D) [*Cleveland.com*](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPHu98bLhOIIExzaQu7fC2kcE7qq8a7eck6m7wzy5pwqYnxyn_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDOCaaGiQW1lhw-2F6nuqZATnNof20rkgAT4cgF35U9yBev5dOdD7uLg0Sj-2B5VJ5JhNWaafgcJCMeZ0hL9nW6jyZVU9LSRGmihtlH5MqH7sdcrg5NZMNtggijS55UZpvbY0DxSx5PzNYNtcZwAeeV9xApARR9CtaiFisdrg7h7X6r3PXQMJgS601M5RQxHyR4a13oUdfVUEwlWHxHsHtnCZBE8-3D) **Applying the News Story** Quinn speaks of these developments as contributing to a person's "right to be forgotten," but it remains questionable how far such an outcome might be honored as a *right* in this age, particularly since data such as your shopping habits has now been monetized and is sold from one company to another. There are services such as Deleteme and OneRep which, for a fee, will scrub personal information about you from the internet, but they are not able to remove stories about you from news sites. In fact, in those cases, those services recommend contacting the news agency directly and requesting the desired deletions. So, short of entering the witness protection program, these voluntary actions by sites such as *Cleveland.com* might be as close as is possible to come to being forgotten, if that is your goal. The Bible nowhere speaks about the matter of being forgotten as an entitlement or right, but it does state God's willingness to not only forgive, but also *forget* our sins. This lesson gives us an opportunity to consider what that means in terms of our lives and how both our regret and God's pardon can help us move forward in God-pleasing ways. **The Big Questions** 1. Do you agree with the new policy from *Cleveland.com* and the other media outlets named in the news section above? Why or why not? 2. Without naming names, can you think of persons who could benefit from having their past forgotten? How might that help? How might it compound a problem? 3. Is the right to have one's past forgotten a Christian concept? Why or why not? In what sense is "a clean slate" a gift of God? 4. How is having one's actions forgiven different from having one's actions forgotten? Where do the two align? 5. How important are regrets to living a life faithful to God and others? What ought we to do with our regrets? **Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope**Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion: **Luke 7:37-39***And a woman in the city who was a sinner, having learned that [Jesus] was eating in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair, kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner."* (For context, read [Luke 7:36-50](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxesYw0FPk-2B79s-2BCbx74LyinC97yBkbWDs2Tn021SXDXZXgz9R0xdtyc7Pkq0msY9RjLjw_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDA8iBVrEZw1tPD69tqiiT4cxVXDlFVNJFlXYlPYDGRWHHzcLkDpQ4NOxTpl5cArKd0t8Yqn4abP97LqBS2ZNxWCltGbpM4n6rb1eJEi-2Ffod9W9q5bHZf6ti5-2FBEjYpZj1lLvnqNfcS1TPagTKeFOHgmpV-2Fcwcx-2FvXsp4ghDe-2BUXfrBwhNZLa-2BbPkqk4jiTsunAfIGq-2FvSwhUd5PkEGcTBq8-3D).) A bad reputation is a hard thing to lug around and some people never let you forget it, as this account from Luke shows. Jesus had accepted an invitation to eat at the house of a Pharisee named Simon. As a group, the Pharisees are often viewed negatively in the Gospels, but there were different schools of thought among the Pharisees, and Jesus would often side with one over the other. Simon wants to learn more. Though at this point in Jesus' public ministry, some Pharisees consider him controversial, Simon is open enough to invite Jesus to dine in his house, and as Simon's later words suggest, he's even willing to consider whether Jesus might be a prophet. But then, a woman of the town enters the house uninvited. Luke tells us she was a sinner, which in the parlance of that time could mean she was someone who didn't observe the religious rules of Judaism, but it could also mean she was a prostitute -- we don't know which, but in terms of the story, it doesn't matter, for either made her a social outcast. When she sees Jesus reclining at the table, she is overcome by her own unworthiness, and begins to cry, her tears falling on Jesus' feet. She dries his feet with her hair, and then anoints his feet with ointment from an alabaster jar, which probably means it was a very expensive substance to be used so lavishly. Simon, seeing what's going on, thinks, "If this man were really a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him." In other words, he's recalling this woman's reputation, and it is not a good one. Regardless of the fact that she is in the process of repenting at that very moment, her past is all that Simon thinks about. Jesus puts a quick question to Simon: Two men are in debt to the same creditor. One owes a little and the other owes a lot, but neither can pay, so the creditor cancels the debts of both men. Which one did Simon suppose would love the creditor the most? Jesus asks. The one who was forgiven the most, the Pharisee answers. Then Jesus says, "Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little" (v. 47). This last was clearly directed to Simon, implying, "You love little because you think you have nothing to repent of." Jesus then turns back to the woman, saying, "Your sins are forgiven ... Your faith has saved you; go in peace" (vv. 48-49). She headed out a new woman, but you can be sure that with neighbors like Simon, it took a long time for her to be considered anything other than a sinner. > **Questions:** What does this gospel story do for the woman's reputation? What does it do for Simon's reputation? In what sense did Jesus give the woman a clean slate? > What's a good strategy for living with a bad reputation that no longer applies to who you are today? What, if anything, helps that reputation to be "forgotten"? **Jeremiah 31:31-34***The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt -- a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another or say to each other, "Know the LORD," for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, **says the LORD, for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more**.* (Emphasis added. No context necessary.) This promise from God came to the people of Judah during the declining days of their kingdom, when they were soon to be marched off into exile in Babylon. They would come to understand their fate as the consequence of failing to keep the covenant God made with the Israelites at Mount Sinai. But now, in these dark days for the Judeans, God announced a new covenant to come, one feature of which would be forgiving and forgetting their sins. Note that the New Testament quotes and comments on this passage in [Hebrews 8:7-13](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxdfaqtL3ZQnVVyFYh30udqqcc-2BuYuaukVUdr6IDs6mEHTFzeMj0aqyqgn-2FVYsDgiQjX1z_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDNabpyi3B0Va3KSqJGkNaXib2YHCaGf7JpeNBB0P-2FxDQeZmi2xQoYlUX0rUuHbZYB-2Fnbf09tTAPQPv4oqyh6TGd1tpY7K8FtULzSqOCs95jgGz047d2MbtCHtwVuE3UDsen3uGHNhXzLiEByxLCv1zkWAk7WAhoUAFGfzKH0kfO-2FJWE-2B9og-2FAwZStToqiVIck8u200eXn3pZDGU-2BmipSlbM-3D). Many Christians understand the coming of Jesus to the world as the fulfillment of that divine promise. > **Questions:** What does divine forgetfulness of our sins mean? If other people can't forget our sins, even if they have forgiven them, how can God forget them? If God has forgotten our sin, should we strive to forget it as well? Why or why not? **Isaiah 43:24-25***You have not bought me sweet cane with money or satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices. Rather, you have burdened me with your sins; you have wearied me with your iniquities.* *I alone am the one who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.* (For context, read [Isaiah 43:1-28](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzx01q-2FDUFHyH4Q-2FNuCp9d7Z3v8oRi-2BXSw-2F93nzjFzWnPtz-2F-2BYuVKUm9AJ7Fa7B-2BxIHvxIa_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDN-2BXqtEY-2BJh0s-2BHcX43-2F2WMT59zVwp4-2FNF8Qm2RbX2Awqyi972WrM3cKCS-2BYGOWis41S4ClfHOuqWx0lQCpQKc2nDPuBLAyNuzMD30STtQ9gW0uXqQp0mfArCyThmReg6jjlt8D4KETseKpUC4evaz7raVn1GntCeBCWorfPJl-2Fo9Ko0aLQN5Tkj9X-2BtF2uQuPxjBBXhS9hzbcIvIG-2BVOjU-3D).) Here God says, "I will not remember your sins." But how can a God who is all knowing have something leave his mind. Some Bible readers who have wrestled with his divine affirmation suggest that it means God will not hold our forgiven sins against us but will not recall them to mind. Other Bible readers affirm God's sovereignty, his all-mightyness, and assert that God, being God, can do whatever he chooses to do. Thus, if he chooses to *literally* forget our sin, he can absolutely do so. > **Questions:** Which of these explanations makes the most sense to you? If, in terms of our relationship with God through Christ, our sins are as if they never happened, does it matter which explanation we accept? **Micah 7:18-19***Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of his possession? He does not retain his anger forever because he delights in showing steadfast love. He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.* (For context, read [Micah 7:18-20](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxbUDNhrkY-2FS9kpVh-2BL1nJqtQkyopiSajBsFTfs2zEKIjUnKpVW-2FDZbKc6-2B4t2CwQMMztD_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDDPPYua3ouYUqmxL1Egimo9fB-2F6dtSNnTRXnmHD-2FAxASrPBq8n5Ry7M1FgObQhwhq32w3i2dSfZL8h7d3x1MXnWaVTZ-2FENH25lkfrP4E0AupXDGyU922VEeZfnClK72-2BO8HsehhEmRD-2B94rUDaOCfQiPEayHzqrIdrMtEkHo7B8Uo5kFyKW2npXRbltfu3yju25nKy7lxEkiwIre51x-2FJGM-3D).) "The depths of the sea." That's where God pitches our sins -- into "depths of the sea." One old preacher elaborated on this by saying, "And then God posts a 'no fishing' sign. That means he won't haul our sins up anymore." But suppose we still regret those sins -- in effect, hauling them up against us ourselves. What can we do then? For one thing, we can move from regret to remorse. Those two words are sometimes used as synonyms but they really are different things. Regret is based in hopelessness and looking backward at the "if onlys." It dwells on what cannot be changed. Remorse is based in hope. It faces squarely one's own complicity in bringing about the regrettable consequences and learns what can be learned from one's wrongdoing. Remorse seeks and accepts God's forgiveness, and then it looks ahead. Remorse does not disregard the "if onlys" but it moves on to the "from now on I will dos." > **Questions:** What does it mean to forgive yourself? What needs to happen before that? What needs to happen after that? **For Further Discussion** 1. Our past does have a way of snapping at us. One TWW team member tells of an incident that occurred as he was getting ready to move to another church appointment: "A new pastor, 'Sam,' had been appointed to replace me. Sam had visited the church and been interviewed by the Pulpit Committee, and everything appeared set. He was coming from another church where he had been the pastor for 10 years, and they were sorry to see him go. He had done an effective job there. "But then, the Pulpit Committee chairman received an unsigned letter, claiming that several years before, Sam, in a previous career where he worked in an office, had embezzled some money, and had pleaded guilty to it. There had been no jail time, but that blemish remained on his record. Fortunately, the chairman was a clear-thinking man and did not spread the story. He consulted with me and we, in turn, decided to privately talk to the denominational rep who helped with pulpit transitions, but when we called him, it turned out that he too had received the letter. "Between us, we decided to simply talk privately with Sam, who explained that the incident had indeed happened, but that he had not taken the money. Because of his placement in the office, suspicion fell on him nonetheless, and finally, when it became too costly to fight the charge, on the advice of his attorney, he accepted a plea bargain and just left the firm. He had later gone into the ministry. "As it turned out, the Pulpit Committee chairman saw no reason to take the story any further, and Sam came to the church, staying there for nine years until he retired, and doing a good job as its pastor. "We never learned the identity of the letter writer, and sending it was a nasty thing to do. Knowing the congregation, I was convinced that Sam could have told them what had happened without it causing him a problem in that church, but he never spoke of it. He really wanted the right for that episode to be forgotten." Do you agree with his decision? Why or why not?. 2. Bruce Hubbell, who describes his occupation as a "packet mover," gave this advice on *Quora* on what to tell young people you are mentoring or discipling: "Tell the younger people what you've learned through your mistakes. I've watched some of my peers tell young people only the high points (which is good), but not tell them about their mistakes. This creates a false sense of seeming perfection that is unattainable. Don't be afraid of telling young people about mistakes, missteps, wipeouts, full-blown crashes and burns and places where you zigged when you should have zagged. Then add the wisdom that you've acquired because of those mistakes to your comments." When has an elder or mentor shared candidly with you about mistakes made in the past, and what did you learn from that? When have you shared what you learned from your mistakes with others, and how did it affect them? 3. Respond to this: Forgetting in general has beneficial effects: It is a normal and important part of memory that helps us move on, make space for new information, and make sound decisions: ● It helps us move on. Forgetting allows us to let go of painful or negative experiences and enjoy the present. ● It makes space for new information and ideas. ● It helps us make decisions. Forgetting helps us use the most relevant parts of our past to understand the present and predict the future. ● It helps us form abstractions. Forgetting helps us form abstract representations of things, like a "generic airport," which allows us to see the similarities between different events. ● It helps us forgive. Forgiving someone involves forgetting the past wrongdoing and not holding onto it. 4. Some say that writing things on paper and then burning it helps to let go, to forgive oneself or others of issues that linger in one's mind. What other options might be a tangible expression of setting oneself free? **Responding to the News** If there is a sin, crime or misdemeanor in your past that keeps popping up, hindering you in some way, consider what Jesus would say to you about that. What action might you take now that could lead to a greater spiritual freedom for you in the future? **Prayer** Forgive us, Lord, for our past misdeeds, mistakes and sins. Help us to learn what you'd like us to learn from them, so that we can live as better people going forward. In Jesus' name. Amen. ****Copyright 2024 Communication Resources**** [Unsubscribe From This List](https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/asm/unsubscribe/?user_id=14323725&data=OW8zZ1uagrRK39OQe77TtnCahxpQjthRbqYKyYOHzlxoMDAwdTAwMKTv9PZCXgLf58kzmBykIoBzEhEyNIr4XtUdS91x9wSzPP0hmY-o30-HTL1K7G-VSTyK3NpmrZ51ywHYYwdkOUeYiKaZAGYqgnIofGUmE98knKa-qm4WPeWxhjcP1ArrCuO7UVGjpz2ANDpK4Kw_Xe9j8QctkJ5T757v-wqiCSqr2yZ6g40eBRn-OsV3ZiO4kDgkRUpBn2zJOAbVwkay1kdqtruT9pjJXXAD42-6UU0jPHlM-cvj-eof-1KTzMgx_Fjk9IbjMEBHfHvZkoD0Sis4uzb4XDTrFgcaRroDhTVBHJ_FDpuojy1eFWynJZ14UswuvbMckr3WcvhJU9C8u75_1d6z3cBS20lUc284fyQEtgnTVCo-dxoanZ0r7D7Ni8oXl-HhUQT_KaA-SSziFwGd36YU3UEhF1fei3MrRCRSLz4pSo21EtYSK8Iw0xgdBdC9OvgZ0WUvmpFClJsvb0qABgoKZIukqcS_97IgPDmKK4L-PmwO8-DxYUxcnB_2U-6D2TmwOiRKtJTHu2_JmGyqTR_za_7T2_Y7SEgArU0b92jmcbgPJndPO94zEC-h5jhUaLileMIhNNr0dr6hSck=) <div>Dear Class Members, Published news reports of old minor crimes and misdemeanors are still dogging some people and hampering them going forward. Now, some news sites and agencies are offering the possibility of having those reports expunged from the news archives so that the stories don't turn up when someone does a global search on the individual's name. One news editor calls this the "right to be forgotten." This news gives us an opening to consider what it means when God declares our sins not only forgiven, but also forgotten. It invites us to think about such things as divine pardon and the power of our regrets. <center><img src="https://www.thewiredword.com/\_img/tww\_logo\_email.jpg"/></center> Moving Toward the 'Right to Be Forgotten' The Wired Word for the Week of January 26, 2025 In the News In pre-internet days, if you were involved in a minor crime, your photo and information about your misdemeanor might appear in an area newspaper. But after the story ran, the whole affair was largely forgotten by the general public. The only way it might come to light again is if someone were intentionally looking for background information on you and spent time at the local library digging through microfilm, examining past issues of the paper. But the internet changed all that. Now those stories of your long-ago missteps are readily retrievable by anyone with a computer, tablet or smartphone, simply by doing a global search on your name. This is no small issue since more than 70 million Americans -- one in three adults -- have prior arrests or convictions, but many of these people have long since paid for their misdeed and have since then lived decent and honorable lives. Nonetheless, the old offense keeps rising up to deny the person a job or other opportunity -- or to embarrass the person as his or her children or friends learn about the old transgression. Many of these folks have contacted media sources asking to have their names removed from these old minor crime stories or to remove the story altogether, but the news outlets have generally been unwilling to do so. That is now beginning to change, and some newspapers and media sites have set up programs to make it possible for those with good records since the initial offense to have those old stories deleted. This move was initiated in 2018 by Chris Quinn, editor of Cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer newspaper (the two are separate entities, but both are owned by the same company, Advance Publications). What makes this news today is that according to a January 8, 2025, article in The Guardian, the practice has now been adopted by the Boston Globe, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Maine's Bangor Daily News, the Oregonian and New Jersey's NJ.com. Quinn explains that he was regularly contacted by people telling him how long-past crime coverage was harming them currently and pleading with him to delete the old news. Quinn said, "I just got tired of telling people no and standing on tradition instead of being thoughtful." As an example, Quinn mentioned a call from a man who, as a teenager, got drunk and broke a monument in a cemetery. Years later, he had "completely atoned" but was still being turned down for jobs because of the "stupid" thing he did as a kid. Quinn agreed to remove that story. Another example involves a woman who, while working in health care, stole some drugs from her employer. After serving a jail sentence, a judge complimented her for the work she had done to rehabilitate herself. She'd lost her health-care license, but was having difficulty finding new work because Googling her name kept bringing up her crime. After checking all this out, Quinn also dropped her story from the archives. Cleveland.com now has an established procedure: It relies on the court process known as expungement, which people use to clear their records. People who have committed nonviolent crimes and who have successfully petitioned the courts to permanently delete all records of their criminal cases can send a request, along with proof of the expungement to Cleveland.com, and in most cases, the news site will remove their names from the stories about them, and Google searches of their names will stop finding those stories. The privilege of having one's name and offense expunged from the paper and news site does not, according to Quinn, apply to elected and other officials, celebrities, perpetrators of violent or sex crimes, and certain other stories that the news staff deem important to preserve. The name-and-story expungement policy also led to a rethinking of the use of mugshots on Cleveland.com and in the Plain Dealer. Quinn explained that in journalism, it has long been "a given that if you wrote a story about an arrest and if a mug shot was available, you published the mugshot." But he started to question that practice. "For many people, a mugshot is the worst photo ever taken of them. The pictures are taken while people are in crisis, often inebriated and usually angry, afraid or upset." He also became concerned about what a mugshot communicates to the audience. "You don't know these people," he said, "so what does it matter if you see what they look like? Because many crimes we cover are borne of poverty, which disproportionately involves African Americans, the mugshots are disproportionately of African Americans." Thus, he concluded that the shots can reinforce racial stereotypes. That also led to consideration of why they even supply the names of the individuals involved in minor crimes. Together those things resulted in another policy change for Cleveland.com and the Plain Dealer: As Quinn states it, "We will greatly curtail our use of mugshots, restricting them to the most notorious of crimes. Generally, if we believe news value exists in a photo of an accused criminal, we will go to the court appearance and shoot our own photo. ... We will stop naming most people accused of most minor crimes." More on this story can be found at these links: <a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPEd8GTVwWweecsmfy3-2FzHzdwpJyjOQ5mMbLGkzuYibIN6gRorruHDD2yotQw1zyLPGJzGzQqprG8GOatS84NM949wMLxh6gCuZ9P-2FRXHG-2BEHld85\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDDShey-2B183AhoO2SXeescR8RAHWrcdHH0k7412UXPBEMIYPcRJKr6kj9kHXeRpbZn80hQ2vyTXDXVp6ApJ5BiccN-2F0DEw-2BO77wYB5fGZdmZ7jVq895IOF0-2BciQgzFF030J1RXRDhS1132obsObiBUXj3Zff8fp6M4uHiEM9pxzUcXmug2FH3Df-2FJficJw6Op2qqlbEMKdvG6dafxUpMvero-3D">US Newspapers Are Deleting Old Crime Stories, Offering Subjects a 'Clean Slate.'</a><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPEd8GTVwWweecsmfy3-2FzHzdwpJyjOQ5mMbLGkzuYibIN6gRorruHDD2yotQw1zyLPGJzGzQqprG8GOatS84NM949wMLxh6gCuZ9P-2FRXHG-2BEHFkI-\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDNv6m61BcaNHlFlMRQWb-2FYBAaylnsoowGWgwPncb5I-2FwOOzm4NI2os-2FHDSP0ofeyobL3uyJ2q3QbqPpuysiDmgLsb9pmOOQtYGMmc-2Bzf2Um-2FgL52X8ovIn4vmMY-2Fj-2FXsJ43Md68LmQ6hcnau-2BzSnMyHLgNAYp913ZduTLdjJejw0-2BDh5oRNjmZaLEAonj1luxTkmk9ss6bFy-2BGCKzNQ-2BC14-3D">The Guardian</a> <a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPHu98bLhOIIExzaQu7fC2kcE7qq8a7eck6m7wzy5pwqYllV6\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDKFsGb-2BRQrwlbhXnwN5tVbuaYF6ZCaqjBUxf8Afe28zlufHl5sG0ZIP1q0Vu44qRDiNQVVnWmGB-2BV5kktyXC-2Bj4GBtHlKk5kgic9ojqb-2F8-2B2AsrnZrpx-2FfxJKSyjL0CzUehwJSD9dQ4WYPduhMK-2FDOtdbIJPJh2rGKtS8-2FBqPBDaSMpe28rRhe-2BBnZQ9-2Bd6-2FsqcLtG4SqJ771YqSCbRt6sY-3D">Right to Be Forgotten: Cleveland.com Rolls Out Process to Remove Mug Shots, Names From Dated Stories About Minor Crimes. </a><a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPHu98bLhOIIExzaQu7fC2kcE7qq8a7eck6m7wzy5pwqYnxyn\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDOCaaGiQW1lhw-2F6nuqZATnNof20rkgAT4cgF35U9yBev5dOdD7uLg0Sj-2B5VJ5JhNWaafgcJCMeZ0hL9nW6jyZVU9LSRGmihtlH5MqH7sdcrg5NZMNtggijS55UZpvbY0DxSx5PzNYNtcZwAeeV9xApARR9CtaiFisdrg7h7X6r3PXQMJgS601M5RQxHyR4a13oUdfVUEwlWHxHsHtnCZBE8-3D">Cleveland.com</a> Applying the News Story Quinn speaks of these developments as contributing to a person's "right to be forgotten," but it remains questionable how far such an outcome might be honored as a right in this age, particularly since data such as your shopping habits has now been monetized and is sold from one company to another. There are services such as Deleteme and OneRep which, for a fee, will scrub personal information about you from the internet, but they are not able to remove stories about you from news sites. In fact, in those cases, those services recommend contacting the news agency directly and requesting the desired deletions. So, short of entering the witness protection program, these voluntary actions by sites such as Cleveland.com might be as close as is possible to come to being forgotten, if that is your goal. The Bible nowhere speaks about the matter of being forgotten as an entitlement or right, but it does state God's willingness to not only forgive, but also forget our sins. This lesson gives us an opportunity to consider what that means in terms of our lives and how both our regret and God's pardon can help us move forward in God-pleasing ways. The Big Questions 1. Do you agree with the new policy from Cleveland.com and the other media outlets named in the news section above? Why or why not? 2. Without naming names, can you think of persons who could benefit from having their past forgotten? How might that help? How might it compound a problem? 3. Is the right to have one's past forgotten a Christian concept? Why or why not? In what sense is "a clean slate" a gift of God? 4. How is having one's actions forgiven different from having one's actions forgotten? Where do the two align? 5. How important are regrets to living a life faithful to God and others? What ought we to do with our regrets? Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion: Luke 7:37-39 And a woman in the city who was a sinner, having learned that [Jesus] was eating in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair, kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him, that she is a sinner." (For context, read <a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxesYw0FPk-2B79s-2BCbx74LyinC97yBkbWDs2Tn021SXDXZXgz9R0xdtyc7Pkq0msY9RjLjw\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDA8iBVrEZw1tPD69tqiiT4cxVXDlFVNJFlXYlPYDGRWHHzcLkDpQ4NOxTpl5cArKd0t8Yqn4abP97LqBS2ZNxWCltGbpM4n6rb1eJEi-2Ffod9W9q5bHZf6ti5-2FBEjYpZj1lLvnqNfcS1TPagTKeFOHgmpV-2Fcwcx-2FvXsp4ghDe-2BUXfrBwhNZLa-2BbPkqk4jiTsunAfIGq-2FvSwhUd5PkEGcTBq8-3D">Luke 7:36-50</a>.) A bad reputation is a hard thing to lug around and some people never let you forget it, as this account from Luke shows. Jesus had accepted an invitation to eat at the house of a Pharisee named Simon. As a group, the Pharisees are often viewed negatively in the Gospels, but there were different schools of thought among the Pharisees, and Jesus would often side with one over the other. Simon wants to learn more. Though at this point in Jesus' public ministry, some Pharisees consider him controversial, Simon is open enough to invite Jesus to dine in his house, and as Simon's later words suggest, he's even willing to consider whether Jesus might be a prophet. But then, a woman of the town enters the house uninvited. Luke tells us she was a sinner, which in the parlance of that time could mean she was someone who didn't observe the religious rules of Judaism, but it could also mean she was a prostitute -- we don't know which, but in terms of the story, it doesn't matter, for either made her a social outcast. When she sees Jesus reclining at the table, she is overcome by her own unworthiness, and begins to cry, her tears falling on Jesus' feet. She dries his feet with her hair, and then anoints his feet with ointment from an alabaster jar, which probably means it was a very expensive substance to be used so lavishly. Simon, seeing what's going on, thinks, "If this man were really a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him." In other words, he's recalling this woman's reputation, and it is not a good one. Regardless of the fact that she is in the process of repenting at that very moment, her past is all that Simon thinks about. Jesus puts a quick question to Simon: Two men are in debt to the same creditor. One owes a little and the other owes a lot, but neither can pay, so the creditor cancels the debts of both men. Which one did Simon suppose would love the creditor the most? Jesus asks. The one who was forgiven the most, the Pharisee answers. Then Jesus says, "Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little" (v. 47). This last was clearly directed to Simon, implying, "You love little because you think you have nothing to repent of." Jesus then turns back to the woman, saying, "Your sins are forgiven ... Your faith has saved you; go in peace" (vv. 48-49). She headed out a new woman, but you can be sure that with neighbors like Simon, it took a long time for her to be considered anything other than a sinner. <blockquote> Questions: What does this gospel story do for the woman's reputation? What does it do for Simon's reputation? In what sense did Jesus give the woman a clean slate? What's a good strategy for living with a bad reputation that no longer applies to who you are today? What, if anything, helps that reputation to be "forgotten"? </blockquote> Jeremiah 31:31-34 The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt -- a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another or say to each other, "Know the LORD," for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD, for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more. (Emphasis added. No context necessary.) This promise from God came to the people of Judah during the declining days of their kingdom, when they were soon to be marched off into exile in Babylon. They would come to understand their fate as the consequence of failing to keep the covenant God made with the Israelites at Mount Sinai. But now, in these dark days for the Judeans, God announced a new covenant to come, one feature of which would be forgiving and forgetting their sins. Note that the New Testament quotes and comments on this passage in <a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxdfaqtL3ZQnVVyFYh30udqqcc-2BuYuaukVUdr6IDs6mEHTFzeMj0aqyqgn-2FVYsDgiQjX1z\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDNabpyi3B0Va3KSqJGkNaXib2YHCaGf7JpeNBB0P-2FxDQeZmi2xQoYlUX0rUuHbZYB-2Fnbf09tTAPQPv4oqyh6TGd1tpY7K8FtULzSqOCs95jgGz047d2MbtCHtwVuE3UDsen3uGHNhXzLiEByxLCv1zkWAk7WAhoUAFGfzKH0kfO-2FJWE-2B9og-2FAwZStToqiVIck8u200eXn3pZDGU-2BmipSlbM-3D">Hebrews 8:7-13</a>. Many Christians understand the coming of Jesus to the world as the fulfillment of that divine promise. <blockquote> Questions: What does divine forgetfulness of our sins mean? If other people can't forget our sins, even if they have forgiven them, how can God forget them? If God has forgotten our sin, should we strive to forget it as well? Why or why not? </blockquote> Isaiah 43:24-25 You have not bought me sweet cane with money or satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices. Rather, you have burdened me with your sins; you have wearied me with your iniquities. I alone am the one who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins. (For context, read <a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzx01q-2FDUFHyH4Q-2FNuCp9d7Z3v8oRi-2BXSw-2F93nzjFzWnPtz-2F-2BYuVKUm9AJ7Fa7B-2BxIHvxIa\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDN-2BXqtEY-2BJh0s-2BHcX43-2F2WMT59zVwp4-2FNF8Qm2RbX2Awqyi972WrM3cKCS-2BYGOWis41S4ClfHOuqWx0lQCpQKc2nDPuBLAyNuzMD30STtQ9gW0uXqQp0mfArCyThmReg6jjlt8D4KETseKpUC4evaz7raVn1GntCeBCWorfPJl-2Fo9Ko0aLQN5Tkj9X-2BtF2uQuPxjBBXhS9hzbcIvIG-2BVOjU-3D">Isaiah 43:1-28</a>.) Here God says, "I will not remember your sins." But how can a God who is all knowing have something leave his mind. Some Bible readers who have wrestled with his divine affirmation suggest that it means God will not hold our forgiven sins against us but will not recall them to mind. Other Bible readers affirm God's sovereignty, his all-mightyness, and assert that God, being God, can do whatever he chooses to do. Thus, if he chooses to literally forget our sin, he can absolutely do so. <blockquote> Questions: Which of these explanations makes the most sense to you? If, in terms of our relationship with God through Christ, our sins are as if they never happened, does it matter which explanation we accept? </blockquote> Micah 7:18-19 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of his possession? He does not retain his anger forever because he delights in showing steadfast love. He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. (For context, read <a href="https://u14323725.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=u001.kR2s0BHA4IMM0a9cQYZVPIPMr3QdAndcnhgARhLxPRBMJBYCTolkbvW-2F0TosyGzxbUDNhrkY-2FS9kpVh-2BL1nJqtQkyopiSajBsFTfs2zEKIjUnKpVW-2FDZbKc6-2B4t2CwQMMztD\_-2FDMt8DmC0b3MPPPEfxHbnxzgfJsbXDNMpwCP9nNwhUmwW6wkyKFLFNgtWOsfoWlqzJWknYznvBlIhQrMvSLcaZdhhbJIKGm-2F5qmCcYPIpJSn2obb9skqJf4MgaypxrLi7oLPa8a7eS7JtzjOXCCX8BHD-2F4cv9wFI-2FUH-2BL75pc25Hbh6RKf8EPZebHASiEu2b1aGXbOqJQ3Dnm6HAk92YmS76YnvZBw0Zq7QLEyww-2BUUIxAo8Udc5MmscXozjvhB6oXIzKT3T2Qr-2FDSDblN4DDDPPYua3ouYUqmxL1Egimo9fB-2F6dtSNnTRXnmHD-2FAxASrPBq8n5Ry7M1FgObQhwhq32w3i2dSfZL8h7d3x1MXnWaVTZ-2FENH25lkfrP4E0AupXDGyU922VEeZfnClK72-2BO8HsehhEmRD-2B94rUDaOCfQiPEayHzqrIdrMtEkHo7B8Uo5kFyKW2npXRbltfu3yju25nKy7lxEkiwIre51x-2FJGM-3D">Micah 7:18-20</a>.) "The depths of the sea." That's where God pitches our sins -- into "depths of the sea." One old preacher elaborated on this by saying, "And then God posts a 'no fishing' sign. That means he won't haul our sins up anymore." But suppose we still regret those sins -- in effect, hauling them up against us ourselves. What can we do then? For one thing, we can move from regret to remorse. Those two words are sometimes used as synonyms but they really are different things. Regret is based in hopelessness and looking backward at the "if onlys." It dwells on what cannot be changed. Remorse is based in hope. It faces squarely one's own complicity in bringing about the regrettable consequences and learns what can be learned from one's wrongdoing. Remorse seeks and accepts God's forgiveness, and then it looks ahead. Remorse does not disregard the "if onlys" but it moves on to the "from now on I will dos." <blockquote> Questions: What does it mean to forgive yourself? What needs to happen before that? What needs to happen after that? </blockquote> For Further Discussion 1. Our past does have a way of snapping at us. One TWW team member tells of an incident that occurred as he was getting ready to move to another church appointment: "A new pastor, 'Sam,' had been appointed to replace me. Sam had visited the church and been interviewed by the Pulpit Committee, and everything appeared set. He was coming from another church where he had been the pastor for 10 years, and they were sorry to see him go. He had done an effective job there. "But then, the Pulpit Committee chairman received an unsigned letter, claiming that several years before, Sam, in a previous career where he worked in an office, had embezzled some money, and had pleaded guilty to it. There had been no jail time, but that blemish remained on his record. Fortunately, the chairman was a clear-thinking man and did not spread the story. He consulted with me and we, in turn, decided to privately talk to the denominational rep who helped with pulpit transitions, but when we called him, it turned out that he too had received the letter. "Between us, we decided to simply talk privately with Sam, who explained that the incident had indeed happened, but that he had not taken the money. Because of his placement in the office, suspicion fell on him nonetheless, and finally, when it became too costly to fight the charge, on the advice of his attorney, he accepted a plea bargain and just left the firm. He had later gone into the ministry. "As it turned out, the Pulpit Committee chairman saw no reason to take the story any further, and Sam came to the church, staying there for nine years until he retired, and doing a good job as its pastor. "We never learned the identity of the letter writer, and sending it was a nasty thing to do. Knowing the congregation, I was convinced that Sam could have told them what had happened without it causing him a problem in that church, but he never spoke of it. He really wanted the right for that episode to be forgotten." Do you agree with his decision? Why or why not?. 2. Bruce Hubbell, who describes his occupation as a "packet mover," gave this advice on Quora on what to tell young people you are mentoring or discipling: "Tell the younger people what you've learned through your mistakes. I've watched some of my peers tell young people only the high points (which is good), but not tell them about their mistakes. This creates a false sense of seeming perfection that is unattainable. Don't be afraid of telling young people about mistakes, missteps, wipeouts, full-blown crashes and burns and places where you zigged when you should have zagged. Then add the wisdom that you've acquired because of those mistakes to your comments." When has an elder or mentor shared candidly with you about mistakes made in the past, and what did you learn from that? When have you shared what you learned from your mistakes with others, and how did it affect them? 3. Respond to this: Forgetting in general has beneficial effects: It is a normal and important part of memory that helps us move on, make space for new information, and make sound decisions: ● It helps us move on. Forgetting allows us to let go of painful or negative experiences and enjoy the present. ● It makes space for new information and ideas. ● It helps us make decisions. Forgetting helps us use the most relevant parts of our past to understand the present and predict the future. ● It helps us form abstractions. Forgetting helps us form abstract representations of things, like a "generic airport," which allows us to see the similarities between different events. ● It helps us forgive. Forgiving someone involves forgetting the past wrongdoing and not holding onto it. 4. Some say that writing things on paper and then burning it helps to let go, to forgive oneself or others of issues that linger in one's mind. What other options might be a tangible expression of setting oneself free? Responding to the News If there is a sin, crime or misdemeanor in your past that keeps popping up, hindering you in some way, consider what Jesus would say to you about that. What action might you take now that could lead to a greater spiritual freedom for you in the future? Prayer Forgive us, Lord, for our past misdeeds, mistakes and sins. Help us to learn what you'd like us to learn from them, so that we can live as better people going forward. In Jesus' name. Amen. 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