Contra Adorem

Note: This post was written as a comment response to Adora, who complains about the lack of accountability inherent in a liberal doctrine of forgiveness. Read her post first. Credit my title to Contra Apionem

From a Christian perspective, your conclusions arise from three mistaken premises.

1. An underestimation of the gravity of sin. As long as we view our own sins as relatively milder than someone else's, we can't appreciate the meaning of forgiveness. See Luke 18:9-14 and Luke 7:36-50.

2. No amount of work (see your last sentence) can lead to forgiveness. According to Jesus, the only thing upon which forgiveness is conditional is that we forgive others. See Luke 6:37-42.

3. We don't make the rules. Suppose for example that God was an arbitrary, unfair tyrant, and that He decided our fate in the afterlife. Our best response would be to try and please His every senseless whim. In this sense, primitive pagans and animists are more logical than post-modernists. Fortunately, God is only arbitrary and unfair in our favor (see Matthew 20:1-16), and His rules are simple and consistent.

I can't speak for the rabbi, but I think that's a fair summary of the orthodox Christian view.