This sensitive and thoughtful meditation on the horrific events of October 2, 2006, reflects on the response of the Amish community of Nickel Mines, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where a gunman killed himself, five school children, and wounded five others. The tragic crime evoked expressions of shock and sympathy worldwide. But even many Christians were stunned when the Amish community, in the midst of its grieving, offered words of forgiveness toward the dead killer and his family. John L. Ruth considers that extraordinary forgiveness as the legacy of that heartbreaking day.

"John Landis Ruth's 'Forgiveness: A Legacy of the West Nickel Mines Amish School' honors Amish society while explaining its concept of forgiveness."
—Jack Brubaker, Lancaster New Era

"On October 2, 2006, a disillusioned young man named Charlie Roberts entered an Amish school in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and ruthlessly killed five innocent school children and wounded five others before killing himself. In a thoughtful meditation, John Ruth reflects on the remarkable ensuing forgiveness of the Amish community extended to the dead killer and his family. Ruth, a Mennonite minister, author and film-maker, retells this story and considers the extraordinary and gracious resolve of this community to embrace the paradigm of the cross as normative, not simply forensic, optional or theoretic. He points to Anabaptist readings of the Sermon on the Mount not as an unattainable ideal, but a revelational command to be obeyed. He reflects upon precedent in Anabaptist history pulling from stories such as the 17th century Martyrs Mirror as well as countless hymns that 'sing forgiveness.' Finally, Ruth examines the everyday role of a supportive community and the logic of 'shunning' providing corporate pre-commitment to an attitude of forgiveness made possible beyond individual determination. In sum, forgiveness is modeled on the life and teaching of Christ. In light of other senseless killings at Virginia Tech, Darfur, and Baghad, Ruth furnishes an invaluable meditation on genuine possibilities for a theology of forgiveness. While uncomfortable with the worldwide media frenzy, this small Amish community provided a fresh paradigm for a world filled with consistent revenge. This reflection should serve colleges and seminaries as a contemplative supplement in courses such as the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew, Life of Christ, Soteriology, Ethics, Hymnody, and Anabaptist history/theology. "
—Martin William Mittelstadt, Religious Studies Review