Mt 18:21-35
Peter approached Jesus and asked him,
"Lord, if my brother sins against me,
how often must I forgive him?
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 him 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."
Father Kirk's Daily Lenten Reflection
Tuesday of the 3rd Week of Lent, March 14, 2023
Peter’s question is not unlike the question a child would ask of his parents: “How many times do I have to forgive my brother when he punches me?” The answer presumably is, “As many times as it takes.” Or as Jesus told Peter, “Seventy times seven times.” That’s a lot.
The fact is that Jesus demands that we forgive our transgressors from the heart. Even if and especially if they haven’t asked for it. Even if and especially if we know that they will never ask for it. The grace of forgiveness offered to another from the heart far outweighs the negativity of vengefulness and resentment. It really doesn’t matter if our transgressor knows that we have forgiven them what matters is that God knows that we have.
Jesus said: “Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.