Rev Michael Cavanagh +353 (0)858 533 173

Praying Together 17th September 2023

by | Sep 17, 2023 | Pray Together, St Patrick's Church Kenmare News

forgiveness

Collect for Trinity 15

God, who in generous mercy sent the Holy Spirit upon your Church in the burning fire of your love: Grant that your people may be fervent in the fellowship of the gospel; that, always abiding in you, they may be found steadfast in faith and active in service; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 14: 1-12

Matthew 18: 21-35

Forgiveness. Easy word to say. Harder in practice, but not quite in the way you would expect.

Academic Psychologists generally define forgiveness as a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether they actually deserve your forgiveness.

The first slave was forgiven – but refused to forgive in turn, and that gives us a clue into the human condition. It’s not forgiving that is difficult – it’s being forgiven that is the real problem.

If I forgive someone, that’s an end to it, whether they accept their fault or they don’t. I can move on. But being forgiven – that’s difficult. If I don’t accept that I did something wrong, then to accept forgiveness would make it appear that I agree that I did. So you can take your sanctimonious forgiveness and stuff it.

Or, if I do believe I was wrong, do I really trust the person who forgives me – or will they resurrect the issue in the future? In which case am I right in thinking that their forgiveness was insincere and had strings attached?

It gets even more complicated when there are third parties involved, or when the issue is historical. Have I the right to express remorse on behalf on someone else? In turn, can I accept forgiveness from someone who was not party to the fault?

Difficult to understand, all this, and the debate will continue, questions unresolved. In the meanwhile, as a working hypothesis, I shan’t worry about the consequences of my forgiving others, I should just do it anyway. And if someone else feels that I have hurt them and forgives me, I should accept with a good grace.

And when it comes down to it, I will always need forgiveness – as do we all. For all of us have sinned and fallen short. But I know that when I confess it, I can completely trust the One who forgives and redeems me. And He expects me to do the same in turn – not just to say the words, but to mean them.

…forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us…

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