Instrument to manipulate and pass suture

A surgical instrument can manipulate and pass suture through tissue. The device can easily pass suture through tissue with the suture fixed to the mechanism or where 5 the suture is captured by the mechanism and allowed to slide. Along with this ability to control suture in one of two ways is a feature to provide a large amount of suture on the other side of the tissue that will be relatively easy for the surgeon to grab and pull out of the arthroscopic portal. The device includes a handle with a hollow shaft extending therefrom and a set of fingers movable into and out of the shaft. The fingers can be 10 designed to capture suture, permit the suture to slide while captured, and optionally hold the suture in the device.