24th Sunday of Ordinary Times

Readings for:24th Sunday of Ordinary Times, Year A

Reading 1     Sirach 27:30—28:7 

Psalm            Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12 

Reading 2     Romans 14:7-9 

Gospel         Matthew 18:21-35 

REFLECTIONS:… from Father Daniel     

Theme of the Sunday: Forgiveness without Limit. The Gospel of today is from the last part of chapter 18 which, as we saw last Sunday, deals with the problems of Matthew’s communities. Today it emphasises forgiveness. How should Christians deal with those who offend them? Should they retaliate? Not even once? Both the Gospel passage and the first reading say clearly that the only possible Christian attitude is one of forgiveness. The second reading is connected to this; it recommends patience in dealing with those who hold opinions different from ours.

Forgiveness can be difficult. It hurts our pride to have to forgive. Sometimes the pain goes so deep that it takes a long time to be set free of the hurt that a person has experienced? Probably, we may have heard the story of St. Maria Goretti before. She was stabbed to death at the age of 12, by a young man named Alexander Serenelli. Alexander was put into prison, and he was released after 27 years. His first act of freedom was to seek forgiveness from Maria Gorett’s mother. She could not believe what he was asking. She paused for a long time. It was very difficult for her. Then she invited him into the house. It was Christmas Eve. Later that evening at the Midnight Mass they both received Holy Communion together side by side at the Communion rail. Many of the people in the church were shocked. Some expressed horror. They asked: How could she possibly forgive him? The Mother of Maria Goretti thought carefully. Then she gave a simple reply. She said, “I looked to Jesus who forgave His murderers from the cross. I followed His example.”

When St. Peter asked Jesus, “how often must I forgive- seven times?” Jesus’ answer was really not an answer because he was saying there is no limit- we always have to be forgiving. Because that’s the way God has been toward all of us. C.S. Lewis wrote, “ Forgiveness is a beautiful word, until you have something to forgive.” It is easy to proclaim the virtue of forgiveness, but reality is another matter. Remember, forgiveness does not change the past, it changes you. When you forgive, you heal. When you let go, you grow.