+ In our gospel passage today Jesus
shows his complete understanding of human nature: he knows that it is a very
difficult thing for people to get along with one another; that is, people who
are still very much “slaves of the concupiscence of sin” – there just seems to
be something inborn that is antagonistic and antisocial. This is exactly the
state of being human that Jesus came to redeem, renew and transform (at the
price of his own death on a Cross). And
so, in the passage, he commands us to be kind to one another, thoughtful of one
another and forgiving with one another - as we try to live productive lives.
But for us, this must be taken one step further. We are the redeemed, we are
the forgiven, we are the transformed
and so because of our baptism and sacramental membership in the one body of
Christ (the Church) it ought to be really
unthinkable for us not to forgive one another and love one another and be the
instrumental cause of transforming one another into the very holiness of
God!
Jesus says then in the passage
forgive your brothers and sisters – from
the heart – as many times as they sin against you (just as God forgives you
the same way); and then do not hold their
transgressions against them (as God does not hold yours against you). This
is difficult for humans, because part of the brokenness that still endures in
us, is our not-so-envious ability to remember every tiny, insignificant detail
– when it pertains to something done against us! But just as God casts our sins into the depths of the
ocean and forgets about them; so we must do the same for one another – we
must pray for the grace of “forgetting.”
Be
patient with us Lord, as we continue to try to deal compassionately
and lovingly with one another, after your own example!
Remember your mercies, O Lord.
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