Meditation
for the Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
(Sirach
27:30-28:7; Rm 14:7-9; Mt 18:21-35)
In our meditation today we reflect on the root and
consequences of forgiveness. The readings testify that forgiveness is a divine
mandate, which will affect our relationship with God. To understand and embrace
the divine root of forgiveness is an important step in forgiving others.
Forgiveness is one of the most challenging spiritual exercises. The human
person will always want to base forgiveness within himself or around his hurt
and feelings. This is one of the reasons it is difficult to forgive, and the
reason Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and
I forgive him? As many as seven times?”
Sooner or later, the human person realizes that his good
will and capacity to forgive are not sustainable enough without divine grace.
Then, anger, bitterness, grudge, enmity will begin to manifest. The first
reading says, “Anger and wrath, these are abominations, and the sinful man will
possess them.” These negative energies can make one seek vengeance on his neighbor.
But he that takes vengeance will suffer vengeance from the Lord. In other
words, forgiveness is a sign indicating the kind of relationship we have with
God. That is why the unforgiving servant in the gospel parable was sent to the
jailers till he should pay all his debt because that was how he treated his
fellow servant. And the first reading asked, “Does a man harbor anger against
another, and yet seek for healing from the Lord? Does he have no mercy toward a
man like himself, and yet pray for his own sins”
Hence, in answering Peter’s question Jesus made us to
understand that forgiveness is not centered on the human person, nor does it flow
from the hurt one received. Forgiveness is not numbered; it is an example we
learn from God, and a gift we receive from Him. As we meditate on the parable
of the unforgiving servant, it becomes obvious that those who are indebted to
us by their misdeeds or offences remind us that we are all debtors before God,
who blesses us with unmerited forgiveness. That means to forgive others is to share
with them in joyful celebration and gratitude the mercy of God; it becomes an
acknowledgment and witnessing to the divine love that wipes away our debts.
In the words of the second reading, to forgive others
becomes our concrete demonstration that we do not live for ourselves, and none
of us dies to himself. We belong to Jesus, we live and die for Jesus, and not
to anyone or to any hurt others must have cause us. That is why forgiveness cannot
be numbered nor based on trespasses. But forgiveness is a demonstration of
how much we have allowed Jesus to be Lord over us, and thus, count every other
thing as loss. In this way, forgiveness becomes our constant witnessing, and
great proclamation of God’s mercy and compassion. Amen.
Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Ojo, Lagos.
Sunday September 17th, 2023.
No comments:
Post a Comment