— Maria Edgeworth"Surely it is much more generous to forgive and remember, than to forgive and forget."
Forgiveness Quotes
133 verified quotations
In the vast tapestry of human experience, forgiveness stands not as a passive surrender to injustice, but as the ultimate reclamation of personal agency. As the philosopher Hannah Arendt observed, forgiveness is the singular human action that breaks the relentless chain of cause and effect, liberating us from the automatic consequences of past transgressions. When Alexander Pope famously declared that "to err is human; to forgive, divine," he gestured toward a profound existential truth: to nurture resentment is to allow a past injury to dictate our present reality. True forgiveness is an act of moral courage—an active refusal to let yesterday’s tragedy define tomorrow’s identity. It is the unburdening of the soul from debts that can never truly be repaid, transforming an inescapable sentence of suffering into an invitation toward personal freedom.
Psychologically, the act of pardoning another is fundamentally a profound process of self-healing. Carl Jung posited that what we resist persists, and nowhere is this more evident than in the neurosis of nurtured grievances. Resentment acts as a psychological anchor, binding the self to the transgressor in a toxic, unconscious symbiosis. By engaging in the radical work of forgiveness, we integrate the shadow of our pain, shifting our inner narrative from passive victimhood to active transcendence. Modern psychological science affirms what ancient wisdom has long proclaimed: relinquishing malice reconfigures our cognitive landscape, dissolving the chronic stress born of betrayal. Forgiveness does not require the erasure of memory; rather, it represents a profound reconfiguration of meaning—the deliberate choice to remember the past without re-experiencing its agony.
Ultimately, literature and human history remind us that mercy is a generative force that ennobles the human spirit. As Shakespeare wrote, mercy "blesseth him that gives and him that takes," acting as a gentle rain upon the parched earth of human conflict. In addressing the wounds of history, Archbishop Desmond Tutu succinctly noted that there is "no future without forgiveness." To pardon is to extend grace into the unknown, choosing hope over vengeance and wholeness over perpetual rupture. It is the supreme art of unclenching one’s fist so that the heart may once again be open to receive joy, connection, and peace. Through forgiveness, we do not alter the past; we liberate the future, stepping boldly into a life no longer defined by what we have suffered, but by our capacity to heal.
Prominent Thinkers on Forgiveness
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What Are the Most Memorable Short Forgiveness Quotes?
Short Forgiveness quotes distill complex human experience into concise, memorable aphorisms suitable for daily focus, reflection, and sharing.
— Lewis B. Smedes"Nothing enables us to forgive like knowing in our hearts that we have been forgiven."
— Les Brown"Forgive those who have hurt you."
— La Rochefoucauld"We often forgive those who bore us, but never those whom we bore."
— Joseph Campbell"Computers are like Old Testament gods; lots of rules and no mercy."
— Jimmy Cannon"Fishing, with me, has always been an excuse to drink in the daytime."
— Jimi Hendrix"Excuse me while I kiss the sky."
— Jeanne Calment"Excuse me if I'm clinging on to life, but my parents wove me from tight thread."
— George Washington"It is better to offer no excuse than a bad one."
— Francis of Assisi"Where there is injury let me sow pardon."
— Euripides"Forgive, son; men are men; they needs must err."
— Elizabeth I"God forgive you, but I never can."
— Dave Attell"When I was a kid, I really loved Indians. Native Americans. Pardon. Me."
— Bob Dylan"People seldom do what they believe in. They do what is convenient, then repent."
— Bill Copeland"How strange to use 'You only live once' as an excuse to throw it away."
— Arthur Balfour"I never forgive, but I always forget."
— Anselm of Canterbury"Spare me through your mercy, do not punish me through your justice."
— Alexander Pope"To err is human; to forgive, divine."
— Aesop"Any excuse will serve a tyrant."
— Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn"A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic tyranny."
— Ken Kesey"The truth doesn't have to do with cruelty, the truth has to do with mercy."
What Philosophical Perspectives Shape Forgiveness?
These longer philosophical passages explore nuanced moral insights, character development, and the historical evolution of thoughts surrounding Forgiveness.
— Michele Bachmann"Certainly people make mistakes in their life. I'm no different, I've made mistakes. When people mess up, we forgive them. When I mess up, I ask for forgiveness."
— Mary Garden"My biggest excuse to others and myself was that I had writer's block, as if it was some kind of illness."
— Marvin Hagler"Sitting here now today, I can forgive a lot of the English people because it only takes a hand full of bad people to do something stupid like that and it can make the whole country look bad."
— Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach"Parents forgive their children least readily for the faults they themselves instilled in them."
— Liane Balaban"I've learned over the years that the best way to develop as an artist is to make things. So I tell young artists it's not enough to be an actor anymore, you have to be a filmmaker/writer/director. There's no excuse for waiting around for a job. You have to be active and make things."
— Lewis B. Smedes"When we forgive evil we do not excuse it, we do not tolerate it, we do not smother it. We look the evil full in the face, call it what it is, let its horror shock and stun and enrage us, and only then do we forgive it."
— Ken Ham"While the Bible's account of the flood is one of judgment, it is also one of mercy and salvation."
— Jurgen Habermas"From a moral point of view, there is no excuse for terrorist acts, regardless of the motive or the situation under which they are carried out."
— Joseph Gatt"When I first met my girlfriend, Mercy Malick, she asked me if there was anything I should tell her that could put her off me if she found out later. So I told her that I was a total 'Star Wars' geek and had boxes of 'Star Wars' toys in storage."
— John Selden"Ignorance of the law excuses no man; not that all men know the law, but because 'tis an excuse every man will plead, and no man can tell how to confute him."
— Jesse Jackson"If there are occasions when my grape turned into a raisin and my joy bell lost its resonance, please forgive me. Charge it to my head and not to my heart."
— Jason Isbell"I think a lot of people are scared, and I know I was scared to get sober, at least using this as an excuse; 'I don't want to be one of those sober people.' And I don't think you have to be. I think you can be one of those people who happens to be sober."
— Jane Austen"You ought certainly to forgive them as a Christian, but never to admit them in your sight, or allow their names to be mentioned in yourhearing."
— Jack Canfield"Remember, you and you alone are responsible for maintaining your energy. Give up blaming, complaining and excuse making, and keep taking action in the direction of your goals - however mundane or lofty they may be."
— Jack Abramoff"I am much chastened and profoundly remorseful. I can only hope that the Almighty and those whom I have wronged will forgive me my trespasses."
— Hunter S. Thompson"March is a month without mercy for rabid basketball fans. There is no such thing as a 'gentleman gambler' when the Big Dance rolls around. All sheep will be fleeced, all fools will be punished severely... There are no Rules when the deal goes down in the final weeks of March. Even your good friends will turn into monsters."
— Hale Irwin"Feeling tired should almost never be an excuse, because your body has huge reserves of energy. But if you eat badly, stay out late, drink too much, and so on, you'll pay a price on the course."
— Gilbert K. Chesterton"A stiff apology is a second insult... The injured party does not want to be compensated because he has been wronged; he wants to be healed because he has been hurt."
— Gerry Adams"If I didn't forgive the people who took me into the barracks and beat me unconscious over a period of days during the period when the British state was indicted for inhuman and degrading treatment in 1971-72, or even the guys who shot me, if you don't forgive them, you end up with unnecessary baggage."
— George Hamilton"I've gone to skin doctors and they'll say to you, 'We should remove this because it's pre-cancerous,' and I'll say, 'Explain pre-cancerous to me.' I'll listen for about twenty minutes and I'll say excuse me, 'Is pre-cancerous like pre-dead? So you're saying it could turn into cancer but it's not cancer?'"
— Francois Fenelon"Children are excellent observers, and will often perceive your slightest defects. In general, those who govern children, forgive nothing in them, but everything in themselves."
— Boutros Boutros-Ghali"When you have an accident, they will save their own people, and those who have worked with you or with the NGOs are left. Unfortunately, this happens always. It is not an excuse at all."
— Bethany Hamilton"It's easy to look at the things of this world to solve our challenges and obstacles in life, but when we submit our lives to Christ, His grace, mercy, peace and love will bring true fulfillment to our lives."
— Antonio Banderas"I remember in 'Law of Desire,' where I played a homosexual, that people were more upset that I kissed a man on the mouth than I killed a man. It's interesting to see how people can pardon you for murdering a man, but they can't pardon you for kissing one."
— Amy Adams"I'd love to be a diva. But I'd then have to send so many apology notes for my abhorrent behaviour."
— Alexander Pope"Teach me to feel another's woe, to hide the fault I see, that mercy I to others show, that mercy show to me."
— Fran Lebowitz"Being a woman is of special interest only to aspiring male transsexuals. To actual women, it is simply a good excuse not to play football."
— Rachel McAdams"I use filming as an excuse to take classes. I got my certification in sailing for 'Wedding Crashers,' and now I can handle a 26-foot boat. I played a seamstress once, so I took sewing classes. I love dipping into these other lives."
— William Tecumseh Sherman"I would make this war as severe as possible, and show no symptoms of tiring till the South begs for mercy."
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Forgiveness quotes so enduring across generations?
Quotes about Forgiveness endure because they address universal aspects of human nature. Throughout literature and philosophy, thinkers distill complex emotional and social realities into concise, memorable truths that help people reflect, recalibrate their focus, and make more intentional life choices.
How can I apply Forgiveness quotes to daily personal growth?
You can select one meaningful Forgiveness quote each morning to serve as an anchor thought or journaling prompt. Using our built-in image generator, you can also download square (1:1) or vertical (9:16) graphics to set as smartphone wallpapers or share with colleagues.
Are the quotations in this Forgiveness collection verified?
Yes. ShortQuote's editorial team curates and fact-checks each quotation against historical records and primary publications in accordance with our transparent Editorial Policy.