Forgiveness Is the Key to Open Heaven

Today, through a beautiful parable, Jesus is highlighting why a Christian should be repeatedly forgiving the offenses done to him. The parable starts by saying “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king.” This king is enormously rich. “A huge amount” in v. 24 is literally translated as “ten thousand talents,” which is equal to seven hundred and fifty-five thousand pounds of gold! This servant is pleading for more time to pay back the loan. V.27 says, “Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan.” The loan of such an enormous amount is written off! This resembles the mercy of our Heavenly Father. He writes off all our sins and offenses!

“A much smaller amount” in V.28 is literally translated as “a hundred denarii.” A denarius was the normal daily wage of a laborer. Therefore, a hundred denarii when compared to 755,000 pounds of gold is nothing! The mercy of God is without any limits. He forgives all our sins. And so, a Christian has to forgive all the offenses done to him. At the end of the story, we see the servant in prison and being tortured for NOT forgiving! If you don’t forgive, then you will find yourself in prison/in bondage and being tortured!

Offenses leave us with inner wounds. Inner wounds are more painful and will take more time to heal. But still, let us keep in mind that there is no wound that God cannot heal. Inner healing needs more time and so we need more time to forgive the offenders. Let us take strong willful decisions that we will forgive, and then in due time we will be able to forgive the other.

If we can forgive unconditionally, then we will enjoy absolute freedom as children of God. It is these forgiving and loving deeds of mercy that help us to be blessed and to enjoy peace.

Forgiveness is a heavenly gift that God has already put into our hearts. It is also a sacred duty. Always take these gifts and put them into practice towards our brethren. Don’t think that when you forgive others you become less before others; you become greater! Forgiveness is the key to open heaven. That’s how Jesus opened heaven for us. When He was crucified, He looked down and saw his offenders and Jesus prayed to His Heavenly Father to forgive them, “because they do not know what they are doing.” We shall ask the Good Lord to give us a heart like His to forgive others unconditionally. Make our hearts like Thine. Be blessed and always be a blessing to others.

With love and prayers,

Fr. Charley

If your brother sins against you…

A MESSAGE FROM FR. CHARLEY

As Seen in the Bulletin

September 10, 2023

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If your brother sins against you...

Today's first reading is from The Book of Ezekiel. The Lord makes it clear that the prophet should be the guide of the people of Israel. If the prophet fails to warn a sinner, then he will be held responsible for that sinner.

In today's second reading, the Letter to the Romans, Saint Paul concludes that love is the fulfillment of the law. He makes it very clear that one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

Today, we should take all the three readings as one single unit. Jesus made it clear that he has come not to call the righteous but the sinners (Matthew 9:13). In fact, in Matthew 18:14 Jesus says, "It is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost."

Today's message could very well be derived from the prominent question and answer in the very first book of the Bible, Genesis 4:9, "Then the Lord asked Cain, 'where is your brother Abel?' He answered, 'I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?'"

Yes... I am my brother's keeper! I should be responsible for his life. Today’s Gospel is all about how to bring back the lost brethren. Jesus is trying to tell us that our brother must not be lost by us anytime but always to bring him back to a love relationship.

Jesus came into this world to bring back the lost one, not looking for the righteous ones or good ones.

We are here to express our relationship to God, but God is concerned about our relationships with each other. Matt.18:20 says "When two or three are gathered for my sake, there am I in the midst of them." When we are mutually connected, God is there. Therefore, God’s relationship with us and our relationships with others are interconnected.

According to St. Augustine of Hippo, "If someone has done you injury and you have suffered, what should be done?" You have heard the answer already in today's scripture: "If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone." If you fail to do so, you are worse than he is. He has done someone harm, and by doing harm he has stricken himself with a grievous wound. Will you then completely disregard your brother's wound? Will you simply watch him stumble and fall down? Will you disregard his predicament? If so, you are worse in your silence than he in his abuse. Therefore, when any one sins against us, let us take great care, but not merely for ourselves. For it is a glorious thing to forget injuries. Just set aside your own injury, but do not neglect your brother's wound. Therefore "'go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone,' intent upon his amendment but sparing his sense of shame" (Excerpt from Sermon 82.7).

Love and prayers,

Fr. Charley