FORGIVENESS BRINGS HEALING

Two important things echo in the readings of today: anger and forgiveness. How well have we been able to manage our anger, and how often do we forgive? Do we allow our anger to leave us with grudge and bitterness, which eventually result in unforgiveness and vengeance?  

Sirach, also known as Ecclesiasticus, raises some fundamental questions for our reflection. These questions remind us of the famous adage, “To err is human and to forgive is divine.” That is, man by his very nature is sinful; that is why David in Psalm 51:3 says, “My sin is always before me...” On the other hand, it is in God’s nature to forgive. The reading condemns wrath and anger, urging forgiveness and overlooking faults by remembering human mortality, which can lead to humility and empathy, recognizing that human life is fleeting and that holding unto anger is futile. 

In view of this, the psalmist of today tells us, “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in mercy (Psalm 103:8).” As the reading centers on forgiveness, it reminds us that to have effective prayers, we must forgive our neighbors as God has forgiven us in Christ Jesus. 

In today’s gospel, Peter asked, “How often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Perhaps Peter thought he was generous and merciful enough to forgive up to seven times, but Christ made him understand that forgiveness does not have limits. We are called to be like God, who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in mercy. Christ also responded to the question of Peter with a parable about the kingdom of heaven compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. 

In this parable, the king portrays the image of a compassionate and gracious God who forgave the first servant who owed him ten thousand talents and demanded the same measure of forgiveness to be shown to others. The ten thousand talents indicates an irredeemable debt, which the servant cannot pay completely, even if he and his family are sold, for the top price of a slave fetched only about one talent. Yet the king showed mercy to him. In return, he could not show mercy to his fellow servant that owed him a hundred denarii, which made him receive the title of a wicked servant. Exactly what Sirach addresses in the first reading, “Does a man harbor anger against another and seek for healing…? 

Oftentimes we act like the wicked servant, constantly praying for God’s mercy, favor and healing, and not ready to show a little of it to our neighbors. It does not work that way. When we do not forgive our neighbors, the bitterness in us destroys our relationship with God and with others; it destroys our prayer life; it instills unnecessary hatred in us that even the sight of our neighbors triggers our anger; it throws us into self-isolation, and every action of our neighbors appears as evil to us. We too must be like Christ, slow to anger and rich in mercy.

Let us reflect on occasions when anger and vengeance have controlled us. How did this affect our relationship with God and others? How can we work to overcome these emotions in the future? What is it that someone has done to you or will do to you that you cannot forgive? Must you always revenge? Or is your name vengeance? We should always have it in mind that forgiveness liberates the offender and heals the forgiver. It is a pill for every ill. When we are offended, we become ill with anger and need the pill of forgiveness to get healed. When we forgive, we become like God. To err is human; to forgive is divine. Let us take it as our responsibility today to reconcile with those who have offended us, or whom we have offended. May God help us through Christ our Lord. Amen!

Fr. Ken Dogbo, OSJ