It was quite a list of people to pardon or grant clemency to that the former president compiled. According to press statements, “A pardon forgives a federal crime and a commutation, by contrast, makes a punishment milder without wiping out the underlying conviction. Both are forms of presidential clemency.”
Looking at the names and crimes, it disturbed me greatly when we all know of cases where low-income individuals are imprisoned for “petty” crimes such as having an ounce or two of marijuana in their possession and are spending an amazing number of years imprisoned.
Obviously, for many of us in the Jewish community, the names of Torah-observant prisoners popped out at us. In one case, 83 years for a sentence seemed like an enormous amount of time until I saw the crimes committed. Another exonerated shomer Shabbat prisoner, who spent eight years in prison, is not being welcomed back to Lakewood by his many neighbors who can no longer afford many of the luxuries they took for granted, such as sleepaway camp, school tuition etc., as a result of being swindled by him in schemes in which they lost everything they owned.
We all know that no matter the control that the president of the United States has on our lives through his decisions, our ultimate decision maker is Hashem. In whatever form these former inmates are able to return to their everyday lives, they will have to live each day with their relationship to Hashem needing major repairs.
We as a people can read of these stories and be shocked at what crimes have been committed. Perhaps there are those of us who realize that we are also committing crimes each day that would not be considered by some as serious as those of these pardonees. Yet, can we walk freely, knowing that we have cheated the government on taxes; planned not to enforce rules of quarantine within our own family; talked about a school policy negatively in front of our children; neglected to be in touch with family members for minor, ridiculous reasons; or, of course much worse, committed infidelity or stole from individuals in ways that they are not aware?
These are crimes that the President will never know about, but I can assure you that these crimes are known by the Almighty, and it is to him that we must ask to be forgiven. These crimes are much more serious, in a sense, than the long list that we heard about last week with the presidential pardon. I would be much more worried about how we, the little people, would be granted forgiveness. Until it is recognized that the crimes have been committed, there is no way for the process of teshuva to begin.
By Nina Glick
