The Need Of Forgiveness
Sermon
We Walk By Faith
Gospel Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost (Middle Third)
From the beginning, it seemed, Ludovicio Gadda was destined for greatness. He was born in a small Italian town, like many of the popes, all from Italy, who have occupied the Chair of Saint Peter since the time of the Council of Trent in the sixteenth century. It seemed that Ludovico was destined for ministry and priesthood from his earliest days. He was ordained and lived a very traditional life as a parish priest. He lived by the canons and doctrines of the Faith. Ludovico was good at what he did. Thus, he was made bishop of the diocese. Later he was moved to a larger metropolitan area and appointed archbishop. Later still he was made a cardinal and finally he was elected Pope. The people in Ludovico's hometown were not that surprised by the course of events.
Upon assuming the Chair of Peter, Ludovico, who took the name of Leo XIV, was invested with much power and authority. The power he held was beneficial to some, but it was highly detrimental to others. Like all of us, the Pope had an agenda. He took a course of action; he held certain attitudes and opinions. The problem was that he never reflected on his actions and attitudes. He never considered the possibility that he was hurting others by what he did or thought. His life was out of balance, out of equilibrium, because he thought of himself and little of those around him.
What would it take for him to change? For Ludovico it would be a bout with serious illness. Chest pains landed the Pope in the hospital. Doctors told him he needed heart bypass surgery. The thought of such major surgery placed the Pope in a more reflective mood. He began to think about his life and what he had done. He began to realize that he might have hurt others. He knew that he needed to change, to find healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation. He began to realize that he needed some balance in his life, to think of others as much as he thought of himself. But for Pope Leo XIV it would be too late. His inability to look into his heart and judge himself honestly would prove fatal. He was assassinated by the very people he had hurt before he had the opportunity to change his ways.
Morris West's novel Lazarus, the third in his trilogy of stories of faith, describes the tragedy of a life out of balance, a life where equilibrium could not be found. Today's Gospel suggests our need to seek balance in the journey of reconciliation; we must forgive others if we want to be forgiven.
Our world is in need of healing. One can pick up the newspaper any day and read all about it on the front page. Such a world condition poses a question for all of us: Can the world, that is, nations, governments, and individuals, recognize when they are out of balance, when error exists, or wrong has been done? History provides positive answers to this question. It took nearly 100 years after the United States gained its independence, but finally in 1863, through the thirteenth amendment to the Constitution, slavery was declared an evil and inherently wrong. It took less time, but I am sure it was equally stressful to the mind, for Germany to admit its complicity in the Holocaust of World War II.
The world is in need of healing and reconciliation and so, too, are we as individuals. Today's Gospel personalizes our need for forgiveness and the challenge we face to forgive others. In the parable the master is, of course, an image for God. God stands ready to forgive the servant, that is, you or me, an infinite amount of times, the proverbial seventy times seven times. There is a catch, a condition, however. We must be ready and willing to forgive our fellow servant, that is, one another. In other words we must be willing to search into our hearts and see if wrong has been done. We must seek balance through knowledge of our strengths and weaknesses as well as our need to forgive and be forgiven. If we find that we are out of balance, we must be forthright and admit our problem; we can no longer make rationalizations. If we cannot forgive others, then the mercy of God, which is always present in infinite measure, will be taken away.
Reconciliation is one of the most important journeys we will ever travel in our life. The road less traveled is absolutely necessary for us to discover God's mercy and our need for healing within our own person and with others. The process of reconciliation initially requires no effort on our part; we need only accept the fact that God loves us and will leave no stone unturned in a diligent search to bring us to our spiritual homes. God only wants the best for His children and thus, like the Hound of Heaven in Francis Thompson's immortal poem, will never cease to search so that His love and mercy can be manifest to us. The parable of the fig tree (Luke 13:6-9) describes God's never-wavering care for us. The gardener asks for more time so the tree may bear fruit. God will give us the second, third, the hundredth chance in life. All God asks is for us to accept His infinite love.
Once we accept God's love and mercy, then the journey of reconciliation continues with our need to seek actively forgiveness of ourselves, others, and God. The parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-24) beautifully and powerfully describes these three integral steps. The young prodigal is destitute and is not sure where to turn, but once he is able to forgive himself and make the decision to return home his future becomes bright.
The elder son demonstrates the second active step, our need to forgive others and be forgiven, the theme of today's Gospel, in a negative way. His inability to forgive his brother stunts his process of reconciliation. Like the weak link in a chain which when broken destroys the whole, so the elder son's failure to love and forgive keeps him from achieving the reconciliation he needs. An ancient Asian proverb says it well: "Those who cannot forgive others break the bridge over which they themselves must pass."
The third active aspect of reconciliation is reunion with God. The forgiving father in the parable represents God in His ever faithful wait for us to return home. The son is still at a distance when the father spies him and reconciliation then occurs. All the father needs to know is that the son is ready to be forgiven. It is then that reconciliation with God takes place.
Once we have accepted the fact that God loves us and will never stop searching for us and then move through the three important steps of active reconciliation, there is one more essential move -- to forget the past and continue forward. Isaiah the prophet wrote to the Hebrews, who may have thought because of their exile in Babylon that God had abandoned them: "Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" (Isaiah 43:18-19). Saint John's Gospel has additional confirmation of our need to let go of the past. When Jesus encountered the woman caught in the act of adultery, he did not condemn her, but rather said, "Go your way, and from now on do not sin again" (John 8:11).
I am certain that very few people intentionally hurt others. We do what we do and we hold certain beliefs because we have the conviction that they are correct. I am equally sure, however, that few of us ever take the time to reflect and ask the question: Does error exist in my life; am I doing things in the wrong way? Is my life directed too much in one way; am I out of balance? It is very easy to see when someone wrongs us; we feel it immediately. But how difficult it is for us to see the opposite, the reality that we ourselves at times are in error. When we look into our own hearts and search our own minds, then the process of healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation of which today's Gospel speaks can begin.
The world is in need of healing; it needs to change. Nations and organizations have the task of working for systemic change in our society. We begin by looking to see if God's law has been broken. If it has then we need to rectify it and seek reconciliation. History tells us that this can be done.
The ultimate solution to the need for reconciliation in our world, however, is not found outside in the macro; it is found inside in the micro. Paul Hanley Furfey, longtime professor of sociology at The Catholic University of America, a friend of the social justice advocate Dorothy Day, and the principal exponent behind the philosophy of personalism, often commented on the need for world reconciliation. He believed that the papal encyclicals and works of Catholic Action, such as the Catholic Worker movement, do many good things and at times do effect change and healing. But until each person looks into his or her heart and asks if wrong has been done and seeks reconciliation, a permanent solution to the problems of the world will not be found.
Let us not wait until is it too late, as did Pope Leo XIV in Morris West's novel. Let us look into our hearts today; let us achieve balance and right any wrongs that exist. Let us seek reconciliation, healing, and forgiveness, and in the process find eternal life as well.
Upon assuming the Chair of Peter, Ludovico, who took the name of Leo XIV, was invested with much power and authority. The power he held was beneficial to some, but it was highly detrimental to others. Like all of us, the Pope had an agenda. He took a course of action; he held certain attitudes and opinions. The problem was that he never reflected on his actions and attitudes. He never considered the possibility that he was hurting others by what he did or thought. His life was out of balance, out of equilibrium, because he thought of himself and little of those around him.
What would it take for him to change? For Ludovico it would be a bout with serious illness. Chest pains landed the Pope in the hospital. Doctors told him he needed heart bypass surgery. The thought of such major surgery placed the Pope in a more reflective mood. He began to think about his life and what he had done. He began to realize that he might have hurt others. He knew that he needed to change, to find healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation. He began to realize that he needed some balance in his life, to think of others as much as he thought of himself. But for Pope Leo XIV it would be too late. His inability to look into his heart and judge himself honestly would prove fatal. He was assassinated by the very people he had hurt before he had the opportunity to change his ways.
Morris West's novel Lazarus, the third in his trilogy of stories of faith, describes the tragedy of a life out of balance, a life where equilibrium could not be found. Today's Gospel suggests our need to seek balance in the journey of reconciliation; we must forgive others if we want to be forgiven.
Our world is in need of healing. One can pick up the newspaper any day and read all about it on the front page. Such a world condition poses a question for all of us: Can the world, that is, nations, governments, and individuals, recognize when they are out of balance, when error exists, or wrong has been done? History provides positive answers to this question. It took nearly 100 years after the United States gained its independence, but finally in 1863, through the thirteenth amendment to the Constitution, slavery was declared an evil and inherently wrong. It took less time, but I am sure it was equally stressful to the mind, for Germany to admit its complicity in the Holocaust of World War II.
The world is in need of healing and reconciliation and so, too, are we as individuals. Today's Gospel personalizes our need for forgiveness and the challenge we face to forgive others. In the parable the master is, of course, an image for God. God stands ready to forgive the servant, that is, you or me, an infinite amount of times, the proverbial seventy times seven times. There is a catch, a condition, however. We must be ready and willing to forgive our fellow servant, that is, one another. In other words we must be willing to search into our hearts and see if wrong has been done. We must seek balance through knowledge of our strengths and weaknesses as well as our need to forgive and be forgiven. If we find that we are out of balance, we must be forthright and admit our problem; we can no longer make rationalizations. If we cannot forgive others, then the mercy of God, which is always present in infinite measure, will be taken away.
Reconciliation is one of the most important journeys we will ever travel in our life. The road less traveled is absolutely necessary for us to discover God's mercy and our need for healing within our own person and with others. The process of reconciliation initially requires no effort on our part; we need only accept the fact that God loves us and will leave no stone unturned in a diligent search to bring us to our spiritual homes. God only wants the best for His children and thus, like the Hound of Heaven in Francis Thompson's immortal poem, will never cease to search so that His love and mercy can be manifest to us. The parable of the fig tree (Luke 13:6-9) describes God's never-wavering care for us. The gardener asks for more time so the tree may bear fruit. God will give us the second, third, the hundredth chance in life. All God asks is for us to accept His infinite love.
Once we accept God's love and mercy, then the journey of reconciliation continues with our need to seek actively forgiveness of ourselves, others, and God. The parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-24) beautifully and powerfully describes these three integral steps. The young prodigal is destitute and is not sure where to turn, but once he is able to forgive himself and make the decision to return home his future becomes bright.
The elder son demonstrates the second active step, our need to forgive others and be forgiven, the theme of today's Gospel, in a negative way. His inability to forgive his brother stunts his process of reconciliation. Like the weak link in a chain which when broken destroys the whole, so the elder son's failure to love and forgive keeps him from achieving the reconciliation he needs. An ancient Asian proverb says it well: "Those who cannot forgive others break the bridge over which they themselves must pass."
The third active aspect of reconciliation is reunion with God. The forgiving father in the parable represents God in His ever faithful wait for us to return home. The son is still at a distance when the father spies him and reconciliation then occurs. All the father needs to know is that the son is ready to be forgiven. It is then that reconciliation with God takes place.
Once we have accepted the fact that God loves us and will never stop searching for us and then move through the three important steps of active reconciliation, there is one more essential move -- to forget the past and continue forward. Isaiah the prophet wrote to the Hebrews, who may have thought because of their exile in Babylon that God had abandoned them: "Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" (Isaiah 43:18-19). Saint John's Gospel has additional confirmation of our need to let go of the past. When Jesus encountered the woman caught in the act of adultery, he did not condemn her, but rather said, "Go your way, and from now on do not sin again" (John 8:11).
I am certain that very few people intentionally hurt others. We do what we do and we hold certain beliefs because we have the conviction that they are correct. I am equally sure, however, that few of us ever take the time to reflect and ask the question: Does error exist in my life; am I doing things in the wrong way? Is my life directed too much in one way; am I out of balance? It is very easy to see when someone wrongs us; we feel it immediately. But how difficult it is for us to see the opposite, the reality that we ourselves at times are in error. When we look into our own hearts and search our own minds, then the process of healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation of which today's Gospel speaks can begin.
The world is in need of healing; it needs to change. Nations and organizations have the task of working for systemic change in our society. We begin by looking to see if God's law has been broken. If it has then we need to rectify it and seek reconciliation. History tells us that this can be done.
The ultimate solution to the need for reconciliation in our world, however, is not found outside in the macro; it is found inside in the micro. Paul Hanley Furfey, longtime professor of sociology at The Catholic University of America, a friend of the social justice advocate Dorothy Day, and the principal exponent behind the philosophy of personalism, often commented on the need for world reconciliation. He believed that the papal encyclicals and works of Catholic Action, such as the Catholic Worker movement, do many good things and at times do effect change and healing. But until each person looks into his or her heart and asks if wrong has been done and seeks reconciliation, a permanent solution to the problems of the world will not be found.
Let us not wait until is it too late, as did Pope Leo XIV in Morris West's novel. Let us look into our hearts today; let us achieve balance and right any wrongs that exist. Let us seek reconciliation, healing, and forgiveness, and in the process find eternal life as well.
