Remorse: Deep regret or guilt for a wrong committed. This is what the dictionary tells me. I look at this definition, and I realize that remorse isn't the garden-variety guilt we get from sneaking cookies into the movie theatre or taking the last parking lot. Regret exists in the context of having committed some wrong.
Remorse, as the definition says, is also deep. No twinge of guilt for picking up the last roll of toilet paper on the shelf. Remorse drops us to our knees. It is heart-rending.
Remorse is necessary. It exists to spur us into action, into remediation, into restitution. It exists to bring us back into community, as we were meant to be.
Remorse is vital to our lives.
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