When repentance occurs and the person asks for it, forgiveness MUST be granted.
But there are times that that is not possible, such as when the person has passed on.
In the case of an abusive father, for example, if he is gone, he is no longer around to repent and ask forgiveness, and yet the child victimized by that parent at some point must decide whether they are going to continue to live in unforgiveness and reap the consequences, or forgive him anyways.
It doesn’t change anything for the person who committed the offense, but it is very freeing for the person offended.
Well, you've got a point, MM; but again, I doubt that true forgiveness is possible. Just laying the issue down, leaving it up to the Lord to deal with, and going on without further thought upon it might be more the idea.
In any case, this forgetting without forgiving is probably what we humans do with most of the offenses we experience. But does God forget whern forgiveness is not in order?