Werner became interested in music at a young age and went on to receive a bachelor's degree in voice at the University of Iowa. In 1987, she moved to Philadelphia, and earned a master's degree in voice at Temple University. Werner initially wanted a career in opera, but after seeing a Nanci Griffith performance became inspired and began composing songs of her own on acoustic guitar.
Performing around Philadelphia, Boston, and New York City, Werner began making a name for herself in the folk scene of the early 1990s. She recorded five albums from 1993 to 2001, and in 2001 she moved to Chicago. Her first five albums were all in the folk genre, while her sixth album, "I Can't Be New" (2004), was a substantial departure with original material in the vein of cabaret and early jazz.
Werner's seventh album, The Gospel Truth, was released in March 2007 and addresses themes of religion, faith, social responsibility, as well as religion from an agnostic's point of view.
Her eighth album, Live at Club Passim featured a collection of original songs (gospel, jazz & folk) recorded with Colleen Sexton, Trina Hamlin & bassist Greg Holt. For her ninth album, Classics, she performs pop music from the 1960s and 1970s accompanied by chamber instruments.
Her tenth album, "Kicking the Beehive" (March 2011) was produced by Rodney Crowell and features guest appearances from Vince Gill, Keb' Mo and Paul Franklin. Her album "Hayseed", a concept album about "farms, farmers, and the people who love them", was released in the summer of 2013.
In 2017 Werner released An American In Havana, an EP featuring six songs written during two trips to Cuba in 2015 and 2016.
Forgiveness
Susan Werner Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who never will love you
Who are happy to shove you
Out in front of the train
How do you not hate those
Who would leave you lie bleeding
While they hold their prayer meeting
Who never will love you
Who are so frightened of you
They are calling for war
How do you not hate those
Who have loaded their bibles
And armed their disciples
'cause I don’t know anymore
And I can’t find forgiveness
For them anywhere in this
And with God as my witness
I really have tried
How do you love those
Who never will love you
I think only God knows
and He is not taking sides
I hope one day He shows us
How we can love those
Who never will love us
but who still we must love
The lyrics of Susan Werner's song "Forgiveness" are an exploration of a common struggle that many of us face - how do we love and show compassion towards those who have wronged us, hurt us, or who hold beliefs that are harmful to us or others? In the first verse, Werner asks how we can possibly love those who are willing to hurt us or leave us in a time of need. She acknowledges the difficulty of the task, the frustration of feeling like we are expected to show love to those who refuse to show it to us in return. The second verse takes it a step further, asking how we can possibly show love towards those who we see as actively dangerous, who are calling for war and using religion as justification for their actions.
The chorus brings these questions to a head, with Werner declaring her inability to find forgiveness for these individuals. She suggests that even with God as her witness, she has tried and failed to find a way to love those who have caused harm to herself or others. The final verse provides a glimmer of hope, with Werner expressing a desire for a higher power to guide us towards loving those who we feel are unlovable.
Overall, the song speaks to the universal struggle of finding forgiveness and compassion for those who have hurt us, and the conflict that arises when we are asked to show love towards those who refuse to show it in return. It's a poignant and thought-provoking exploration of a difficult topic.
Line by Line Meaning
How do you love those
How do you find the strength to express affection to those individuals
Who never will love you
Who do not harbor any feelings of fondness for you
Who are happy to shove you
Who take pleasure in pushing you out of the way
Out in front of the train
And leaving you vulnerable
How do you not hate those
How do you manage to not feel extreme animosity towards them
Who would leave you lie bleeding
Those who would abandon you while you're wounded and hurting
While they hold their prayer meeting
And attend to their religious gathering
How do you love those
How do you demonstrate love to those kind of people
Who never will love you
Who are simply not capable of returning love towards you
Who are so frightened of you
Those who fear and dread you
They are calling for war
They are instigating conflict
How do you not hate those
How do you prevent loathing towards them
Who have loaded their bibles
Those who have armed themselves with their religious texts
And armed their disciples
And have urged their followers to be prepared for battle
'cause I don’t know anymore
Because the singer is at a loss for answers
And I can’t find forgiveness
The singer is unable to offer forgiveness
For them anywhere in this
Forgiveness cannot be found
And with God as my witness
As a solemn proclamation
I really have tried
The singer has genuinely attempted forgiveness
How do you love those
How do you express love to those individuals
Who never will love you
Who have no intentions of reciprocating love to you
I think only God knows
The singer believes only God can truly comprehend this
and He is not taking sides
And God is not showing any favoritism or partiality
I hope one day He shows us
The singer hopes that one day God will teach us
How we can love those
How humans can love those individuals
Who never will love us
Who will not reciprocate our love
but who still we must love
But who we must still express love towards
Contributed by Alyssa J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.