Not seven but seventy-seven times

Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year A

Collect

Look upon us, O God, Creator and ruler of all things, and, that we may feel the working of your mercy, grant that we may serve you with all our heart. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen. 

Forgive your neighbour the hurt he does you, and when you pray, your sins will be forgiven.
Sir 27:30–28:7

A reading from the Book of Ecclesiasticus

Resentment and anger, these are foul things,
  and both are found with the sinner.
He who exacts vengeance will experience the vengeance of the Lord,
  who keeps strict account of sin.
Forgive your neighbour the hurt he does you,
  and when you pray, your sins will be forgiven.
If a man nurses anger against another,
  can he then demand compassion from the Lord?
Showing no pity for a man like himself,
  can he then plead for his own sins?
Mere creature of flesh, he cherishes resentment;
  who will forgive him his sins?
Remember the last things, and stop hating,
  remember dissolution and death, and live by the commandments.
Remember the commandments, and do not bear your neighbour ill-will;
  remember the covenant of the Most High, and overlook the offence.

The Word of the Lord.
℟. Thanks be to God.

Psalm 102 (103), 1-2. 3-4. 9-10. 11-12

℟: The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy.

My soul, give thanks to the Lord
  all my being, bless his holy name.
My soul, give thanks to the Lord
  and never forget all his blessings. ℟.

It is he who forgives all your guilt,
  who heals every one of your ills,
who redeems your life from the grave,
  who crowns you with love and compassion. ℟.

His wrath will come to an end;
  he will not be angry for ever.
He does not treat us according to our sins
  nor repay us according to our faults. ℟.

For as the heavens are high above the earth
  so strong is his love for those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west
  so far does he remove our sins. ℟.

Alive or dead we belong to the Lord.
Rom 14:7-9

A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Romans

The life and death of each of us has its influence on others; if we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord, so that alive or dead we belong to the Lord. This explains why Christ both died and came to life: it was so that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.

The Word of the Lord.
℟. Thanks be to God.

Gospel Acclamation
Jn 13:34

Alleluia. ℟. Alleluia.
I give you a new commandment: love one another,
just as I have loved you, says the Lord.
℟. Alleluia.

Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.
Mt 18:21-35

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

Peter went up to Jesus and said, ‘Lord, how often must I forgive my brother if he wrongs me? As often as seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘Not seven, I tell you, but seventy-seven times.  

‘And so the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who decided to settle his accounts with his servants. When the reckoning began, they brought him a man who owed ten thousand talents; but he had no means of paying, so his master gave orders that he should be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, to meet the debt. At this, the servant threw himself down at his master’s feet. “Give me time” he said “and I will pay the whole sum.” And the servant’s master felt so sorry for him that he let him go and cancelled the debt. Now as this servant went out, he happened to meet a fellow servant who owed him one hundred denarii; and he seized him by the throat and began to throttle him. “Pay what you owe me” he said. His fellow servant fell at his feet and implored him, saying, “Give me time and I will pay you.” But the other would not agree; on the contrary, he had him thrown into prison till he should pay the debt. His fellow servants were deeply distressed when they saw what had happened, and they went to their master and reported the whole affair to him. Then the master sent for him. “You wicked servant,” he said “I cancelled all that debt of yours when you appealed to me. Were you not bound, then, to have pity on your fellow servant just as I had pity on you?” And in his anger the master handed him over to the torturers till he should pay all his debt. And that is how my heavenly Father will deal with you unless you each forgive your brother from your heart.’

The Gospel of the Lord.
℟. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Reflection

“Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” (Mt 18:21). Peter is looking for a clear boundary, a limit to how often he should forgive. Seven times may seem like a great deal, because we know that, as weak human beings, even forgiving someone twice can be difficult—especially when we have been hurt by something that leaves a deep and lasting mark on us. Yet the Lord Jesus insists that we are to forgive not merely seven times, “but seventy-seven times” (v. 22)—in other words, without limit.

Through the king in the parable, Jesus gives us a glimpse of God, rich in mercy, whose hands are always open, ready to forgive us and restore us to friendship with Him. Through the servant, on the other hand, Jesus shows us how destructive a hardened heart can become.

Although the king forgave the servant’s entire debt, the servant was unwilling to forgive his fellow servant the much smaller debt he owed him. The debt owed to the king was so great that the servant could never have repaid it. Yet, despite having received such extraordinary mercy, he refused to show mercy to another. The wicked servant not only refused to forgive his fellow servant but “put him in prison until he should pay the debt” (v. 30).

Here we see two very different realities: freedom and slavery. Forgiveness sets us free to move forward and brings peace to our hearts, both when we receive forgiveness and when we offer it. By contrast, we can find ourselves enslaved when we hold on to resentment and refuse to forgive, but also when we ask for forgiveness and are unable to receive it.

As Christians, we are called to love without conditions. Forgiveness is a gift of love that we freely choose to give, without expecting anything in return. We do not even forgive on the condition that the other person will change, soften their heart, or never repeat what they have done. We forgive because we ourselves have received mercy.

The strength to forgive comes when we become truly aware of the Lord’s love and mercy towards us. The Lord forgives the whole of our debt whenever we turn to Him with humility, and He asks us to extend that same mercy to others by forgiving those who have wronged us.

This is what we pray in the Lord’s Prayer: “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” How, then, can we ask the Lord to forgive us if we are unwilling to forgive others?

Is there someone in your life whom you are finding difficult to forgive? Pray for that person.

Is there someone who is unwilling to forgive you? Pray for that person.

Prayer draws us closer to the Lord, who alone has the power to soften hardened hearts.

Forgive: “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times” (v. 22).

Prayer

The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,
and all your saints shall bless you!
They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom
and tell of your power.  

Psalm 145:8, 10-12

 

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