May the Lord grant you grace, peace and health in the Holy Spirit.
It is 11th August 2022. We celebrate the memorial of St Clare, the founder of the Poor Clares.
A Signboard at the entrance of a factory read like this: “To err is human, to forgive is not company policy.”
Are we tired of forgiving people? Or are we obliged to forgive our neighbour? God and Christ are not. So why not us? One of the psychiatrists in the leading hospital in London made a comment: “If the people here only knew what it means to be forgiven, I could dismiss half of them at once.” Most of our physiological illnesses are closely related to our unforgiving attitudes, and grudges we hold against others.
Mercy and forgiveness of God are there for everyone. God tames us never tarnishes us. God wants the people of Israel to learn a life lesson from the symbolic action of the prophet Ezekiel in the first reading. God offers a period of grace to think and pray and that is the moment of forgiveness.
Are we prepared, and ready to forgive those who have inflicted us with pain with a purpose, suffering with senselessness, and hurts with heartlessness?
Jesus does not have any condition whatsoever to forgive. Jesus advocates forgiveness to resolve human divisions and fights.
Seventy times seven (Mt.18:22) means always. When we forgive others, we give what is due for others. Retaliation, revenge, and vengeances are the reactions and rhetoric of the day in the absence of love, affection, and mercy.
God forgives us whenever we repent and return to God in sincerity and humility. God forgives us repeatedly so that we change for good. God forgives us out of God’s abundant love for us.
Forgiveness is a sign of maturity. Forgiveness is the basic requirement to be a Christian. Forgiveness is the reciprocity of the amnesty we enjoy from God. Forgiveness is the only expression and proof of God’s love and mercy we ourselves have experienced. The uniqueness of our Christian life only is seen in the way we forgive. As God’s forgiveness is unconditional, unlimited, and boundless, so let us have the courage to forgive the other. “My Father will treat you in the same way, unless you forgive each other from your heart.” May God bless you.