Theme: Forgive and you will be forgiven
Sirach 27:30 - 28:9
Psalm 102
Romans 14:7-9
Matthew 18:21-35
Dear friends, last week, Jesus challenged all
Christians to condemn sin and, with love, correct those who do evil wherever
they are found. In the readings of this Sunday, he gives us a beautiful theme
for the building up of every Christian community; a theme that will show the
difference between those who belong to Christ and those who do not belong to
Him. It is the theme of forgiveness. The readings remind us that if we want to
have a true Christian life, that is, enjoy a true relationship with God, have a
good relationship with human beings and live a healthy life, we must walk the
path of forgiveness, mercy and reconciliation.
Some people are always happy when they carry
out revenge. Some say they feel relaxed whenever they avenge for the evil done
to them. Some feel happy when they are called ‘cross and die’. One of the
Nigerian musicians summed it up in his song saying, “if you do me I do you, man
no go vex; touch me I touch you, man no go vex.” But, dear friends, the first reading of today
did not welcome this feeling. It says those who revenge, will suffer revenge
from God. According to it, revenge is a product of unforgiveness, then, unforgiveness,
which is caused by anger, hatred, rancor, and wrath, destroys our relationship
with God. The author of the first reading says it is contradictory to ask God
for forgiveness when we have refused to forgive the sins committed against us
by a brother or a sister. This is true. If you want mercy from God, then, you
must show mercy.
Anger, rancor, and hatred, which are the roots
of unforgiveness, have both physical and spiritual disadvantages. Physically,
thy cause sleepless nights and unrest. In fact, Psychologists and physiologists
say that when one is angry, his body releases a lot of adrenaline, which hurts
his entire physical composition and causes sicknesses. Stomach ulcers are
traceable to moments of anger and unrest. Spiritually, the first reading tells
us that anger, rancor, hatred, and resentment make us not to forgive others,
and, as such, they destroy our relationship with God. It went to the extent of
calling them abominations. When we refuse to forgive others, God will not
forgive us. Let us remember that it is practically impossible for a Christian
to be at peace with God if he is not at peace with his fellow Christians. The
forgiveness we offer to others opens our hearts to receive forgiveness from
God; in short, it is an indispensable condition for the reception of forgiveness
and healing from God. Friends, lack of forgiveness makes us prisoners of our
unhappy past, but forgiveness liberates us, helping us to be at peace with our
memories. When we withhold forgiveness, we remain perpetual victims, but when
we offer forgiveness, we regain our well-being.
At the end, the first reading urges us to
remember the shortness of our lives and, then, stop hating and revenging. We
must eschew anger, hatred, rancor, and resentment, and, then, forgive offenders,
if we want to remain healthy and enjoy good relationship with God as well.
The gospel of today, with the parable of the
unforgiving servant, gives us a deeper understanding of the first reading. The
question of Peter and the response of Christ have a lesson for us. The question
of Peter was suggesting a limit to forgiveness. Actually, the Hebrew culture
and religion (cf. Amos 2:6) put it that one can retaliate after forgiving for
three times. By pushing it to seven times, a biblical perfect number, Peter was
asking if there is an extent one can endure and, then, have a legitimate access
to vengeance. But, dear friends, the response from Christ, which says seventy-seven
times seven, suggests that, for Christians, there should be no limit to our
forgiveness. Every Christian has the duty to forgive without giving conditions
to offenders.
The reason why we should not have limit nor
give conditions in our forgiveness is because God’s forgiveness to us is
without limits and conditions. We should realize that what we are required to
forgive cannot be compared to the innumerable grave sins which God forgives in
our lives every day. This is the lesson of the parable of the gospel of today.
A hundred denarii, which the second servant owed the first servant, cannot be
compared to the ten thousand talents, which the first servant owed to the
master. A Hundred denarii is less than one percent of ten thousand talents. So,
if the master cancelled such big amount of money for the first servant, it was
expected of that first servant, out of joy and gratitude, to cancel the small
amount which the second servant owed him. But he refused. His action can only
be explained as ungrateful. Friends, this is how we appear in the presence of
God when we refuse to forgive evil done against us. We become ingrates to God’s
loving heart whenever we refuse to forgive others.
Finally, the Lord’s prayer, which we pray every
day, tells us, “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespassed
against us.” And Jesus added something at the end of the only prayer he taught
us, he said, “Yes, if you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will
forgive you yours; but if you do not forgive others, your heavenly Father will not
forgive your sins either.” (cf. Mt. 6:14-15) So, if we have not been forgiving
others, it implicitly means that all the sins we have confessed have not been
forgiven by God. We will be fooling ourselves if we pray the ‘Our Father’ and,
yet, refuse to forgive others. Sirach 28:2 said, “Pardon your neighbour any
wrongs done to you and when you pray, your sins will be forgiven.”
Therefore, dearest friends, let us go home
today, search our hearts, discover all those who offended us and do for them
what Jesus has done for us on the cross of calvary and what he keeps doing for
us at confession. Let us stop keeping a list of those who offended you.
Fr. Isaac Chima
Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome.
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