"The Master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan"
Matthew 18: 21-35
Albert Einstein famously said: “Insanity is doing the
same thing over and over again while expecting different results.” For a man of
his reputation or for any inventor or scientist, who seemingly try variations
on the same thing over and over again in order to test a theory, the results
eventually may be constant failure or a sudden unexpected success. Penicillin and its healing properties was
unexpectedly discovered through the observed action of mold in a petri dish. Yet, sooner or later we may feel a new
approach is needed.
However, in the case of what we hear in this Sunday
Gospel from Matthew, Jesus and Peter engage in an interesting dialogue about
forgiveness. Peter surely noticed Jesus’
compassion and words of mercy toward the “sinner.” The other apostles likewise must have been
moved by Jesus’ non-judgmental and inclusive words. So Peter poses a logical question to Jesus:
“Lord, if my brother (sister) sins against me, how often must I forgive: As
many as seven times?” In other words, what are the limits of forgiveness
towards another and what situations might be so grievous that forgiveness would
not be possible or even deserved considering the offense?
Jesus responds to Peter with another set of numbers: “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven
times.” Peter’s numbers game is challenged by Jesus who implies that
forgiveness is not meant to be a game of keeping score but a process of
infinite reconciliation and mercy.
The old saying: “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me
twice, shame on me” is more based in retribution than in forgiveness. Yet, most of us may find the tendency to feel
that a kind of score card approach is better than doing the same thing over and
over again while expecting the other to be changed: that is forgiving endlessly. How often can I forgive you? How often can I say, “I forgive you for what
you’ve done to me.” Isn’t that just
taking advantage of a kind of forgiveness bank account with unlimited funds?
In order to drive the point home, that we must be people
of forgiveness who reflect the infinite, 70 x 7 mercy of God, he tells Peter a
parable with another set of exaggerated numbers - that of the forgiven,
unforgiving, and punished servant.
Jesus begins with a favorite phrase: “That is why the
kingdom of heaven may be likened to . . .” This favorite of Jesus image about a
kingdom applies to those who live by his Gospel values. In the “kingdom,” this
is how people will live together, how society will structure itself according
to God’s desire and moral interaction.
A debtor comes before a king who demands repayment for a
debt so enormous that it is beyond what anyone could repay: “a huge amount”
equal to his own freedom, his wife and children, and all his property. What would be left? Nothing – every loved one, every bit of
material possession and security he has in this world; everything! The image is
so extraordinary that it would be impossible to imagine how anyone could run up
that kind of obligation. Yet, this story
makes a point about anything we may bring to God that would need to be forgiven
or that we might imagine others need to be forgiven for.
That king is moved by compassion towards the pleading of
the pitiful servant: “Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in
full.” Knowing this servant could never
do so, he forgives the entire debt and lets him go! One extreme to the other indeed but the
compassion of the king was more than the servant owed: “70 x 7 …”
Yet a turn of events takes place and that now released
servant encounters a fellow servant who owes him much, much less. He pleads for forgiveness in the same words
that his fellow servant did but receives a cold, unforgiving heart
instead. The one forgiven was not
changed by the compassion he was given.
The king hears of this sad affair, calls in his former
servant and furiously says: “I forgave you your entire debt . . . should you
not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?” The moral is clear and undeniable: As God has done for us, so must we do no
less, the same towards one another. The
King in the story is God and we are the servants. In this case the lesson of
the story is crystal clear.
Think for a moment about some person, some incident or
event in your life that caused you pain, anger, disappointment and a desire to
fight back with equal fury. Sadly, I can
think of more than one on my life. How
you reacted then is now in the past.
More importantly how have you reacted since or in light of this Gospel,
how will you now react?
The book of Sirach (Wisdom) is our first reading and
begins: “Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them
tight.” Forgiveness is not an easy
process sometimes. Not only we were hurt
but we also experienced a great injustice.
I want to repair that injustice by some sort of equal hurt inflicted
upon them. So, we may be holding on tight
to past hurts. How do I forgive or
better yet should I forgive? As a disciple of the Lord, do I temper justice
with mercy?
If I find that my feelings won’t let me do that easily,
then I must take the event, the person to prayer. How long will I stay angry about whatever was
done – 5 years, 10 years, 30, 40? Sadly
some people, when hurt, never forgive.
They will simply write off that person for the rest of their life and be
perpetually resentful and angry. That
isn’t forgiveness of what Jesus speaks of today. For our own mental and
spiritual health we must reach out to forgive from our heart. For my own peace of mind if nothing else and
come to a point, as C.S. Lewis reminds us: “To wish no harm to the other.”
So much of what we need to ask forgiveness for is
miniscule in comparison to the example Jesus used in the Gospel. The point is
that as God extends his mercy to us – we can do no less towards each
other. How many times have you gone to
confession for example and confessed the same sins over and over again? Is God tired of hearing that? Apparently not since Jesus states we must
forgive, thereby God forgives – 70 x 7 times.
Forgive from your heart so that you will find peace in
your heart. You may never see the person
again but at least you wish them no harm and have remembered them before God. As
God has done for me so must I do for my brother/sister.
As our responsorial psalm reminds us this week: “The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to
anger, and rich in compassion.” We pray
for it all the time: “. . . forgive us
our trespasses as we have forgiven those who trespass against us . . .” Another
version states: “Forgive us our debts as we have forgiven our debtors.”
Einstein felt doing the same thing over and over again
and expecting different results was insane.
Yet, Jesus’ forgiveness over and over again only makes us more like him.
For you do not cease to spur us on
to possess a more abundant life
and being rich in mercy,
you offer pardon
and call on sinners
to trust in your forgiveness alone.
(From Preface: Eucharistic Prayer for Reconciliation I)
No comments:
Post a Comment