24th Week in Ordinary Time
17th September 2023 (Sunday) Readings and Reflection
Psalter: Week 4
Reading of the Day
First Reading: Sirach 27:30-28:7
Anger and wrath, these also are abominations, and the sinful man will hold them fast. The one who seeks vengeance will be paid vengeance from the Lord, and he who keeps a record will have his own sins recorded. Forgive your neighbour the wrong he has done, and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray. Does one person harbour anger against another and yet seek for healing from the Lord? Does he have no mercy towards someone like himself and yet pray concerning his own sins? If he himself, being flesh, maintains wrath, who will make atonement for his sins? Remember the end of your life and cease from enmity, remember destruction and death and be true to the commandments. Remember the commandments and do not be angry with your neighbour; remember the covenant of the Most High and overlook error.
Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12 (R. 8)
R/. The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in mercy.
Second Reading: Romans 14:7-9
Brethren: None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
Alleluia
V/. Alleluia R/. Alleluia
V/. A new commandment I give to you, says the Lord, that you love one another: just as I have loved you.
R/. Alleluia
Gospel : Matthew 18:21-35
At that time: Peter came up and said to Jesus, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began to settle, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. And since he could not pay, his master ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But when that same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him, he began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay what you owe.’ So his fellow servant fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ He refused and went and put him in prison until he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their master all that had taken place. Then his master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his master delivered him to the jailers, until he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
Daily Gospel Reflection
Highlight: To Forgive - the only way!
Guidlines: To live is to love, to love is to give and to give is to forgive; one who does not forgive, does not know how to give and will not himself receive forgiveness{alertSuccess}
1. “If my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive?” This is the question of Peter to Jesus in the gospel, and the same question is quite valid and relevant, even now, much more than before.
2. It is because we are living through times which are so low in the spirit of forgiveness. Instead, there is so much spirit of anger and impatience, grudge and resentment, revenge and retaliation, vengeance and vendetta, aggression and violence.
3. What is more sad and disturbing is that forbearance, forgiveness and reconciliation are considered weaknesses and fury and retaliation are glorified as signs of manliness and courage, and as safeguards and expressions of self-respect and self-dignity.
4. This spirit is rampant at every level and aspect of life, be it between individuals, within families, between the families, between regions, between languages, religions, cultures, and countries.
5. It is in this context, that the Word of God very clearly denounces anger and lack of forgiveness and also strongly cautions against the evil effects of failure to forgive. Anger and unforgiveness are abominable and detestable in the sight of God, and they fail to obtain the mercy and forgiveness of God. Those who refuse to forgive others will stand in the danger of God’s judgment and condemnation. An unforgiving heart will lose all its appeal for God’s mercy.
6. It is a contradiction to seek forgiveness from God while not forgiving others. It is nothing but duplicity of faith, applying double standards – one for oneself, and the other for the other.
7. In this context, it is worthwhile to recall the wise words of St Francis de Sales: We are eager to accuse others even for the slightest mistake, while we are eager to excuse ourselves even for the greatest blunder; we clamour for justice in the neighbour’s house while we plead for mercy in our own house; we want to buy cheap but want to sell dear.
8. The refusal to forgive is in fact not a simple thing as it may appear to be. It shows the failure of the person on different counts, such as the emotional, psychological, relational or interpersonal, ethical, and spiritual.
9. It clearly shows that a person is not able to control and overcome one’s negative emotions, not able to cultivate and nurture a sane and serene interior, not able to sustain an adequate equilibrium and maturity, not able to humble his inflated ego and pride, not able to maintain a healthy and cordial relationship, not able to be morally sound and sober, and not able to connect his faith and spirituality to a concrete life of charity and integrity.
10. For any believer, unforgiveness and grudge are contradictions to his very religious spirit, whatever the religion; because no religion or god will advocate violence and harm against others; no true religion can instigate one against fraternity and charity. If one takes to retaliation and violence in the name of religion, he has not really understood his religion, and he is a false religious person.
11. It is so sad and even a disgrace that the so-called faithful adherents of religion or religious life, can live and foster a spirit and ambience of so much resentment and animosity in the ambits of their respective places of worship or communities.
12. When will the realization dawn on humans that unforgiveness is a heavyweight and as long as one carries it, he is only pressed down? When will people realise that it is foolish and inhuman to nurture a spirit of hostility and revenge? When will the believers allow the insight that refusal to forgive ruins one’s own self as well as others? When will the religious communities become the abodes of a little more pardon and reconciliation and thus avoid the mockery of their very consecration and the scandal against their very faith?
Practice: In true forgiveness, there is no question of how many times should I forgive, because any true forgiveness is prompted and driven by authentic love and true love is always without measure{alertSuccess}