Nelson Mandela

There are very few people in the world whose names can be called using one word and everyone will immediately know who you are talking about. Nelson Mandela was such a person. 

  

Mr. Mandela left a legacy of faith, forgiveness, leadership, and humility when he passed away last week.  He was the modern equivalent to Joseph (of Biblical fame), who despite being held captive, rose to become president of the country that imprisoned him for 27 years. Mandela chose to forgive his captors and explained in a CBS interview that he had to forgive because if he did not, he would still be a prisoner (mentally).  In an interview with Larry King in May 2000, when asked whether he hated his captors, Mr. Mandela said, "No, because one has to take into account that many people in the situation in which we were -- a promotion to higher position depended on the extent to which you supported apartheid and, therefore, good people would have the attitude -- had the attitude -- a forced attitude of saying, "I want promotion. Therefore, I must do what my superiors want me to do."

  

Mandela's aide, in a recent interview also expressed the same view by saying, "The first lesson is forgiveness, " he said. "You must not allow hate to fester in your brain. You can never allow racism, hatred, and bitterness to rent space in your head."

  

The best example of forgiveness is one that is shown through our behavior rather than spoken. Mandela showed the world how to rise above unimaginable circumstances of bigotry and hatred, to become an icon for peace, and justice. 

  

Nelson Mandela was not only the leader of South Africa; he was a leader of the world, a global statesman, and an icon for human rights and social equality.