Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent 2020

The old axiom holds true, “We want justice for others, but mercy for ourselves.”

Scripture tells us again and again that God is merciful. Scripture also holds that we are made in God’s image and we are to be merciful as our Father in Heaven is merciful. And yet, so often we want others to be held accountable, but we do not want the same kind of accountability.

In religious life, as well as family life, this challenge to Christian living becomes apparent. Once, after a particularly bad fight in our family, my father reminded me that, “In families, we judge others for their actions, and we judge ourselves for our intentions,” – justice for others, mercy for myself.

Jesus tells us today that we are to be merciful. We are to be a people marked by forgiveness. Forgiveness doesn’t mean that we have not learned a lesson, or that we must go spend time with the perpetrator. It does not mean that I have to go and make the same mistake again. Instead, forgiveness is the awareness that one mistake, one sin, does not define a person. It is the earnest awareness and hope that a person who has wronged us has dignity and was made for the Kingdom of Heaven.

So, let us forgive seventy-seven times – and let us seek forgiveness again and again. And may we be reminded of the words of Pope Francis, “God never tires of forgiving us; we are the ones who tire of seeking his mercy.” Go and do likewise.