Atonement: Why Was Jesus Punished?  In my book I argue that
there is no coherent understanding of the atonement. Here are
some questions for those who accept the penal substitutionary
view:  In order for someone to be forgiven why must there be
punishment at all? We know of victims who have forgiven their
assailants even though they have never been punished, and we
know of other victims who won't forgive their assailants even
after they have been punished. To forgive someone doesn't mean
that you must first punish the offender at all. Forgiveness
doesn't really depend upon the remorse of the offender, either,
although it does help quite a bit. At this point it's not up to
the offender at all, but the victim who must find a way to
forgive.  To forgive means bearing the suffering of what that
person has done to you without retaliation. If I stole something
from you, then forgiveness means bearing the loss without
recompense. If I slandered you, forgiving means bearing the
humiliation without retaliating. If the