Black Urine And Black Stool

Repentance is not a fashion natural to

Repentance occupies the news. In the expression of some clergymen. And most importantly, pending the victims of pedophilia.

That said, this is not the news that I want here but a controversy arose from a non-news.

A law student complained recently in the newspaper Le Soir, the attitude of former Khmer Rouge sympathizers Belgian, Francois Rigaux in particular. Professor of international law, it has never acknowledged its error and expressed regret about his commitment to the regime of Pol Pot in the second half of '70 (Rigaux was president of the Association Belgium -Kampuchea between 1975 and 1978). And the young to score his surprise at the lack of repentance.

few days later, two university professors, JB and Anne Morelli, rose to stand against the impetuous, a carte blanche diatribe characteristic of the "little left" academic (LS, Friday, April 2).

"Repentance is in fashion: Pope repent the fact that one of his predecessors had condemned the theories of Galileo, the bourgmmestre Liege repents because one of its predecessors has actively participated in the persecution of Catholics and Jews ... Repentance is a very Christian concept. It admittedly essential to obtain the forgiveness of sins and absolution. He obviously does not change anything in the objective situation but conditioned his return to the fisherman in the right way. "

So much for their introduction sententious. I summarize: "repent, it is something related to our Christian culture of guilt that does not change nothing in itself to objective reality."

surprising that people expected, due to their function, understand the complexity of things, can hold a speech at this point reducer.

A first observation: I'm not sure that repentance is the essence of Christian culture. Japan-which is far from Christian conceptions and practice of public apology in a quasi-ritual.

A second observation, which does not always touch the heart of the matter, but it seems worth noting in terms of the argument: the student did not ask for Rigaux justification for positions taken by its predecessors, but for hers. Than the conduct complained of is from him who is called to account, the easier it is to mock the request for recognition of fault. Benedict XVI recognizes the error of the Church over the roundness of the Earth, it can make people laugh. The choice of this example is not innocent.

More fundamentally, Morelli and Bricmont are wrong in trying to reduce the question of repentance to a problem of conscience of its author. In society, acknowledge his mistake or his fault is a prerequisite to rebuild trust, restore its credibility. Whether in the head a person or institution. Whatsoever in respect of the victim or society in general.

There is in the process of repentance an essential social function, whose value need not be validated by whatever religious or moral motive whatsoever .

How the student can extend credit to a speech on human rights held by a person who casts doubt and ambiguity about its past symppathies ?

How is the victim of abuse or harm can he trust the perpetrator if he does not acknowledge publicly his fault? The practice of traditional courts set up in Rwanda following the genocide of 1994 if it so everything is crazy to?

How will you continue to do business with a partner if he cheated and that you do not recognize?

More wide, why the Jewish community at'elle awaited recognition by Jacques Chirac in 1995 during the commemoration of the Vel d'Hiv roundup, the responsibility of the State frainçais - should read the speech of Chirac? Why the leaders of the Movement for the rehabilitation of historical memory in Spain, descendants of victims of Franco, they claim recognition by the authorities of the Iberian responsibility of the State address disappearances anonymous? Why, this Wednesday, April 7, Poles welcomed Putin's speech on the occasion of the commemoration of the Katyn massacre?

claim that repentance does not change the objective conditions is to refuse to see the real impact engendered by the recognition of fault to the injured party or, as appropriate, members of a community . As if that was not within the objective conditions.

The recognition of fault, at any level whatsoever, it's like politeness and courtesy rules: without it, no social cohesion, without which a society of distrust and constant tension.

I am sure that both teachers beyond their mockery, apply this rule in everyday life and I do not suspect to do so in order to wash away their sins. They simply seek to maintain the cohesion of their social environment.

But not to recognize his mistake is tantamount to assuming that his behavior was not really a mistake .... In this sense, the criticism that Ms. Morelli and Mr. Bricmont states against repentance seems rather cyclical. Would they be mounted baricades if the student had asked the French officials and Americans to recognize the evils of colonialism and military intervention in the former Indochina?

Behind this criticism somewhat dismissive of repentance is among the authors of the white card, the belief that Rigaux & co were not really wrong: "As for" Friends "Belgian Khmer Rouge, they have obviously not endorse the Khmer Rouge as they appear today but as they appeared at the time. Their real mistake was to indulge in an easy rhetoric of "support" for the remote and poorly understood causes rather than focus on a review of actual companies and Western policies ... ".

So. Rigaux & Co have been led by a romantic image of the Khmer Rouge. Their real mistake: being distracted from their main task: the critique of the Western world, capitalist and imperialist. And again, "he obvious they were unaware of the realities in the country at the time ".

What is at stake, in the reproach that is made Rigaux This is not so much the extent of his knowledge of the genocide when its support, but his credulity, his lack of critical reservation vis-à-vis a revolutionary power violent and undemocratic ... Late 70, intellectuals had time to become aware of the inherently totalitarian communist regimes.

The lack of repentance Rigaux as the arguments of his two fellow academics based on the underlying idea, at home, that supports and criticisms are valid, that their purpose is a totalitarian regime or an imperfect democracy.

assimilation is that I never will. Probably take me back there one day on this conviction, even if it seems obvious to me. But it is certainly the reason I am unable to give any credit whatsoever to the three professors.