'Forgive or Forget' Taps Into Our Universal Yearnings
Mother Love preaches the power of forgiveness
March-April 1999
by Andy Steiner
Forgiveness Section: Apology Not Accepted
When the pain goes deep, the road to forgiveness is long Mother Knows Best
Mother Love's talk show taps our universal yearnings What do Murderers Deserve?
In a responsible society, vengeance has its virtues The Victim's Dilemma
If forgiveness is divine, then why does revenge feel so sweet? To Hell and Back
To break the cycle of revenge, countries must look beyond the law The Decade of Atonement
National apology is all the rage |
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If wishes came true, Mother Love, host of the daytime talk show Forgive or Forget, would introduce one very special guest to her studio audience. This guest, sporting a hangdog expression, would confess his sins (cheating on his wife, getting caught, and then lying to everyone about it) and ask sincerely for forgiveness.
Continuing the fantasy, the audience's attention would then be focused on the enormous door that dominates the Forgive or Forget set. The door, as it always does, would slowly open, and if this man's wife forgave him, she'd be behind the door. If she didn't, the open door would reveal a gaping void.
“Of course I'd love to have the president on my show,” says Mother Love, who never reveals her given name. “I even sent a letter to the White House inviting him, but they wrote back saying he wouldn't be able to do it.”
If he did appear, Bill Clinton would find himself among friends, says Love. Her year-old program, produced by Stuart Krasnow, perhaps best known for his work on Ricki Lake, fills a unique niche in the daytime talk show market. While most of the genre—the kinder, gentler Oprah Winfrey Show is an exception—has disintegrated into Jerry Springer–style brawls, Forgive or Forget focuses on peacemaking.
“You've got to get off my president,” exhorts Love. “Forgive the man. Let's get on with it. When we elected him the first time, we knew he was a trollop, and we still voted for him. Of course he lied. Any man caught with his pants down lies. It's human nature. He's gonna lie quicker than a cat covering up crap.”