20220322 FORGIVENESS RECEIVED FROM GOD MUST BE GIVEN TO OTHERS
22 March, 2022, Tuesday, 3rd Week of Lent
First reading |
Daniel 3:25,34-43 © |
Let our sacrifice to you today be a contrite soul and humbled spirit
Azariah stood in the heart of the fire, and he began to pray:
Oh! Do not abandon us for ever,
for the sake of your name;
do not repudiate your covenant,
do not withdraw your favour from us,
for the sake of Abraham, your friend,
of Isaac your servant,
and of Israel your holy one,
to whom you promised descendants as countless as the stars of heaven
and as the grains of sand on the seashore.
Lord, now we are the least of all the nations,
now we are despised throughout the world, today, because of our sins.
We have at this time no leader, no prophet, no prince,
no holocaust, no sacrifice, no oblation, no incense,
no place where we can offer you the first-fruits
and win your favour.
But may the contrite soul, the humbled spirit be as acceptable to you
as holocausts of rams and bullocks,
as thousands of fattened lambs:
such let our sacrifice be to you today,
and may it be your will that we follow you wholeheartedly,
since those who put their trust in you will not be disappointed.
And now we put our whole heart into following you,
into fearing you and seeking your face once more.
Do not disappoint us;
treat us gently, as you yourself are gentle
and very merciful.
Grant us deliverance worthy of your wonderful deeds,
let your name win glory, Lord.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 24(25):4-6,7a-9 © |
Remember your mercy, Lord.
Lord, make me know your ways.
Lord, teach me your paths.
Make me walk in your truth, and teach me:
for you are God my saviour.
Remember your mercy, Lord.
In you I hope all day long
because of your goodness, O Lord.
Remember your mercy, Lord,
and the love you have shown from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth.
In your love remember me.
Remember your mercy, Lord.
The Lord is good and upright.
He shows the path to those who stray,
He guides the humble in the right path,
He teaches his way to the poor.
Remember your mercy, Lord.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Lk8:15 |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Blessed are those who,
with a noble and generous heart,
take the word of God to themselves
and yield a harvest through their perseverance.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Or: | Joel2:12-13 |
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks –
come back to me with all your heart,
for I am all tenderness and compassion.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
Gospel |
Matthew 18:21-35 © |
To be forgiven, you must forgive
Peter went up to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, how often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me? As often as seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.
‘And so the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who decided to settle his accounts with his servants. When the reckoning began, they brought him a man who owed ten thousand talents; but he had no means of paying, so his master gave orders that he should be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, to meet the debt. At this, the servant threw himself down at his master’s feet. “Give me time” he said “and I will pay the whole sum.” And the servant’s master felt so sorry for him that he let him go and cancelled the debt. Now as this servant went out, he happened to meet a fellow servant who owed him one hundred denarii; and he seized him by the throat and began to throttle him. “Pay what you owe me” he said. His fellow servant fell at his feet and implored him, saying, “Give me time and I will pay you.” But the other would not agree; on the contrary, he had him thrown into prison till he should pay the debt. His fellow servants were deeply distressed when they saw what had happened, and they went to their master and reported the whole affair to him. Then the master sent for him. “You wicked servant,” he said “I cancelled all that debt of yours when you appealed to me. Were you not bound, then, to have pity on your fellow servant just as I had pity on you?” And in his anger the master handed him over to the torturers till he should pay all his debt. And that is how my heavenly Father will deal with you unless you each forgive your brother from your heart.’
FORGIVENESS RECEIVED FROM GOD MUST BE GIVEN TO OTHERS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Daniel 3:25-43; Ps 25:4-9; Matthew 18:21-35]
We all need forgiveness from God and from each other. This is a fact because we are weaklings and sinners. No one is perfect. But the irony of life is that we want to receive forgiveness but we are not so willing to render forgiveness. Hence, the question of Peter is also our question. He said, “Lord, how often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me? As often as seven times?” In suggesting seven times, Peter thought he was already being over magnanimous to his offenders. But Jesus answered, “Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.” Seven for the Jews is already a complete number. To ask for seventy times seven is simply asking that forgiveness must be limitless. In other words, we must forgive always, every time and all the time. Not in one instance can we say that I will not forgive.
So how can we forgive again and again? Where can we find the strength to keep on forgiving those who have wronged us, hurt us, defamed our name, cheated us, betrayed us and injured us? The answer lies not in us but in God. Only God can forgive in this manner. The parable of the unforgiving servant speaks of the master who forgave the debt of his servant who owed him 10,000 talents which in today’s terms is equivalent to billions of dollars since a day’s wage was 1 denarius and one talent is equal to 6000 denari. This means the servant owed the master 60 million denari. The amount is equivalent to 160,000 years of salary for an ordinary worker. How could anyone repay the master that amount? Clearly, it is impossible. Precisely! That is the point. We cannot forgive in such a way.
Only God can cancel the debt. That was what the master did. He forgave the servant completely. God too forgives us completely for all the sins we have committed, not just against Him but most of all it cost the life of His only Son who suffered and died for us. None of us can pay back the life of His Son. Only His forgiveness can cancel the debt we owe to Him. Indeed, this is the heart of God’s love and mercy. This is what the psalmist declares. “Remember your mercy, Lord, and the love you have shown from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth because of your goodness, O Lord. The Lord is good and upright. He shows the path to those who stray. He guides the humble in the right path; he teaches his way to the poor.”
But God’s forgiveness is not complete without our cooperation. He always forgives. This is undoubtedly true. We never have to doubt God’s forgiveness. So why do people doubt God’s forgiveness especially in the sacrament of reconciliation? Why is it that even after the sacrament of reconciliation, they are still not healed? What are the reasons that prevent the full healing grace of God that comes from His forgiveness?
The primary obstacle in receiving God’s forgiveness is the lack of contrition. This was the case of the unforgiving servant. He was not converted by the master’s forgiveness because he was not sorry for what he did. He was simply acting out of fear of punishment because the master “gave orders that he should be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, to meet the debt.” So it was out of distress and privation that he cried out to the master for forgiveness. But he did not come to full realization of his sin and the implications of what he did. There was no real conversion of heart. Indeed, many go to confession for the same reasons. They do it out of fear, of what people might say if they do not receive communion, or fear of being punished by God or be sent to hell. When we confess our sins out of fear, we will not be changed at all. The moment we forget the fear or when the fear is taken away, we fall back into sin because there is no real conviction in our hearts that we are hurting ourselves or those whom we love.
Conversely, we find in the prayer of Daniel in the first reading how God listened to his prayer for his nation because of his contrite heart. Right from the outset, he admitted his sins and that of the nation’s without blaming God or others. “Lord, now we are the least of all the nations, now we are despised throughout the world, today, because of our sins.” Indeed, they deserved to face the consequences of their sins. He did not make excuses for their sins, unlike many of us when we go for confession. We always blame others for the sins we committed instead of simply and humbly admitting our failures without excuse. When we do that, we will never change because we do not see our failures as our problem. Until we realize that we are in the wrong, how can we ever desire to change?
Secondly, he prayed not out of fear of punishment but out of sorrow for the sins of his people and desire to live a righteous life. He said, “may the contrite soul, the humbled spirit be as acceptable to you as holocausts of rams and bullocks, as thousands of fattened lambs: such let our sacrifice be to you today.” Indeed, it was out of sorrow that brought about real conversion of heart. He was not only sorrowful but prayed for the resolve to change their lives as well. “May it be your will that we follow you wholeheartedly, since those who put their trust in you will not be disappointed. And now we put our whole heart into following you, into fearing you and seeking your face once more. Do not disappoint us; treat us gently, as you yourself are gentle and very merciful.”
Thirdly, this sorrow was also caused by God’s absence by the fact that they no longer had a temple to worship God. “We have at this time no leader, no prophet, no prince, no holocaust, no sacrifice, no oblation, no incense, no place where we can offer you the first-fruits and win your favour.” So it was not simply a sorrow that was born out of self-love but for the love of God. Truly, many repent more out of self-love rather than out of love for God and for their fellowmen. He repented because He desired God to be in his life. So too, we stop sinning only because we miss the love and union we have with our loved ones and friends; or when we miss the presence of God in our lives. Love is the sole and the most powerful motive for change.
But what caused the change of heart? When he reflected on the gracious love and mercy of God! He was contrite because of God’s love for Israel. Indeed, the reason he gave to God for forgiving them was His love and fidelity to Israel. “Oh! Do not abandon us for ever, for the sake of your name; do not repudiate your covenant, do not withdraw your favour from us, for the sake of Abraham, your friend, of Isaac your servant, and of Israel your holy one. Grant us deliverance worthy of your wonderful deeds, let your name win glory.”
Gratitude is always the cause of conversion. The lack of gratitude means that we have not really appreciated the love and forgiveness given to us. We take them for granted because we have not reflected on our unworthiness to receive the gifts given to us. This was the case of the unforgiving servant. He did not reflect on his sin and hence was not grateful. Thus, immediately after he was forgiven, he took revenge on his fellow servant who owed him just a hundred days’ wages. He could not forgive him simply because in truth, whilst he had been forgiven by his master, he did not truly receive and experience that forgiveness within himself. This explains why he could not forgive his debtor. This is true of those who never prepared for their confession. Hence, they do not feel God’s mercy and therefore the forgiveness does not change their hearts.
The truth of today’s scripture lessons is clear. God wants us to be free, to be liberated from our past and to free ourselves from the bondage of our enemies and those who have hurt us. Unless we set ourselves free from our past mistakes and the sins of our enemies, we cannot find peace or real healing. Instead, as Jesus warns us, we will only put ourselves into our self-created prison. “And in his anger the master handed him over to the torturers till he should pay all his debt. And that is how my heavenly Father will deal with you unless you each forgive your brother from your heart.”
So we must forgive not just rationally but forgive from our heart! How can we do this unless we reflect on God’s love and mercy for us? God forgives us from His heart. Unless we experience this forgiveness from Him, we have no power to forgive since only through and in God’s strength and forgiveness, can we forgive. God forgives us so that we can have the capacity to forgive ourselves and others. What others have done against us cannot be compared to how much we have hurt God by our sins. Knowing this in our heart will give us the capacity to let go, to forgive and be set free for love and peace.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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