The road to forgiveness

Some words stay with you. I heard a speaker once who said:   We spend the first half of our lives going out, creating, building exploring being reckless. The Challenge of the second half of our lives is to forgive and to live with gratitude.
What in God’s name was wrong with the unforgiving servant? In the Sunday Gospel (Matthew Ch. 18;21-35) How could a man who was forgiven so much be so unforgiving about so little.  A talent was the biggest unit of currency in the Middle East. If you had ten thousand of them, you’d be a billionaire. On the other hand, a denarius, was a labours wage for a day. Even if you had a hundred of them, you’d be going nowhere. Your biggest problem would be staying alive.
 
Why do we find it so difficult to forgive? We know that we have all been graced because of the forgiveness of another. We know too that forgiveness does not come easy. It can take a life time to forgive and accept forgiveness.  The words of forgiveness have to take root in us. We need to accept, believe and live out of the forgiveness we have experienced. For many of us that is a daily challenge.  Why?  Could it be that we can’t believe that God really loves us, loves me. Could it be that we find it hard to believe some people just aren’t worthy of forgiveness. That’s why we need the grace of God.  Jesus asks us to forgive seventy times seventy. Don’t be tempted to do the maths. It’s not the point. We demand incessantly from our fellow sisters and brothers what we think they owe us, without giving a moment’s thought to the immensity of the debt we owe God. Look in the mirror do you see a person worth forgiving.
 
I hope that when I reach the end of my earthly pilgrimage I will have lived gratefully and forgiven much. I have a long way to go.
 
Breaking news: With parishioners wearing face coverings   and sitting a metre + apart we can now accommodate more parishioners at Mass. Please do book in to let us know you are coming and help us moderate the numbers…