The WORD
today (see http://usccb.org/bible/readings/091717.cfm)
reminds me that God wants me to forgive others, just as he forgives
me.
It is not always easy to
forgive. When people hurt us, when people say bad things about us, when we are
abused or exploited, when we are treated unjustly, and when people break our
trust, we get hurt. And we are badly hurt, it is very hard to forgive. However,
if we take a look at these reasons, they are all dependent on us. They are
based on how we feel. They are caused by what happened to us. This is why it is
very hard to forgive.
It is hard
to forgive when we love ourselves more than we love others.
In
the gospel, Jesus tells us that we should always forgive others - more than the
prescribed times in their laws back then. He further explains this with the
parable of the unforgiving servant. The master forgave him for all his debts,
yet he was unwilling to forgive someone who owed him a tiny portion of what he
owed the master. So he was punished.
We all sin. We all hurt God. In
a big way. Yet he still forgives us always. However, we are not as forgiving to
others, even if God forgives our great sins. We love ourselves too much. We love ourselves more than we love God
and others so we find it hard to forgive. We ignore God's
goodness and command, and instead focus on
ourselves - our hurts and pains, our feelings, that's why we find it hard to
forgive others. And as we wallow in these negative things, our
hearts are hardened and turned
away from the loving presence of God. As we harbor ill feelings and hurts in our
hearts, they occupy space that could have
been taken by God - space that God could have filled with love, joy and peace.
In
the last part of the gospel, we see that God will not forgive us if we do not
forgive others - not because his forgiveness is conditional, but because he cannot forgive those who are not asking for
forgiveness. If we focus on ourselves and our hurts, and not forgive
the sins of others, then we are denying our sins before God. We are focusing on
ourselves, not on asking forgiveness from God. So we cannot be forgiven.
May we be encouraged to focus
on God's love and forgive others just as God freely forgives us.
Father God,
Thank you for
today. Thank you for another day to live. Thank you for another Sunday. Thank
you for another chance to love you. Thank you for the reminder. Thank you for
your love that always forgives me. Sorry for the times I find it hard to
forgive others. Sorry for the times I focus on myself, my hurts, and not on
you. Sorry for loving myself more than I love you. Help me be always ready and
willing to forgive others. As I feel your love and mercy and forgiveness, may
it break the hardness of my heart and enable me to forgive others, no matter
what they have done to me. Amen.
Blessed
Sunday!
In
Christ,
-g-
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
September 17, 2017
Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 130
Reading 1SIR 27:30—28:7
yet the sinner hugs them tight.
The vengeful will suffer the LORD's vengeance,
for he remembers their sins in detail.
Forgive your neighbor's injustice;
then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven.
Could anyone nourish anger against another
and expect healing from the LORD?
Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself,
can he seek pardon for his own sins?
If one who is but flesh cherishes wrath,
who will forgive his sins?
Remember your last days, set enmity aside;
remember death and decay, and cease from sin!
Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor;
remember the Most High's covenant, and overlook faults.
Responsorial PsalmPS 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
He pardons all your iniquities,
heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
He will not always chide,
nor does he keep his wrath forever.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he put our transgressions from us.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
Reading 2ROM 14:7-9
None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself.
For if we live, we live for the Lord,
and if we die, we die for the Lord;
so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.
For this is why Christ died and came to life,
that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
AlleluiaJN 13:34
I give you a new commandment, says the Lord;
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelMT 18:21-35
"Lord, if my brother sins against me,
how often must I forgive?
As many as seven times?"
Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.
That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king
who decided to settle accounts with his servants.
When he began the accounting,
a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount.
Since he had no way of paying it back,
his master ordered him to be sold,
along with his wife, his children, and all his property,
in payment of the debt.
At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said,
'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.'
Moved with compassion the master of that servant
let him go and forgave him the loan.
When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants
who owed him a much smaller amount.
He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,
'Pay back what you owe.'
Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,
'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'
But he refused.
Instead, he had the fellow servant put in prison
until he paid back the debt.
Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,
they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master
and reported the whole affair.
His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant!
I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.
Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,
as I had pity on you?'
Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers
until he should pay back the whole debt.
So will my heavenly Father do to you,
unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart."
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