Compassion comes out of a deep experience of solidarity, in which one recognizes that the evil, sin and violence which one sees in the world and in the other, are deeply rooted in one’s own heart. Only when you want to confess this and want to rely on the merciful  God who can bring good out of evil are you in a position to receive forgiveness and also to give it to other men and women who threaten you with violence.

—Thomas Merton: Contemplative Critic

Nouwen hits on a profound truth about forgiveness. It is what enabled Paul to write Timothy that, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners–of whom I am the worst” (1 Timothy 1: 15b). We cannot really forgive others until we realize that we are just like them. Neither do we really need a Savior if we honestly believe we do not need saved.