Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Năm Tuần thứ 19 Thường Niên

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Năm Tuần thứ 19 Thường Niên

Qua bài Tin Mừng hôm nay Chúa Giêsu đã dạy cho chúng ta về việc cần thiết cho việc tha thứ cho nhau, "không phải là bảy lần mà thôi, nhưng phải bảy mươi lần bảy”. Bởi vì chúng ta cần nên phải có lòng thương xót và đại lượng với lòng từ bi như Chúa Cha của chúng ta trên trời.

Trong cuộc sống hiện tại, chúng ta có thể không thấy quá khó để tha thứ cho những người mà chúng ta yêu thích. Nhưng chúng ta lại cảm thấy rất khó để tha thứ cho những người mà chúng ta không ưa (thích) hay là những người đã làm tổn thương cho chúng ta về thân xác lẫn tinh thần.

Chắc chắn là chúng ta cần phải có ân sủng của Thiên Chúa để đánh động và cải hoá trái tim của chúng ta, để chúng ta có thể nhìn xa hơn về những tội phản nghịch và chống lại chúng ta, và để chúng ta có thể hiểu được và thông cảm với những người đã chống lại hay phản nghịch với chúng ta. Và từ đó, chúng ta mới có thể nhận ra rằng những người phản nghịch với chúng ta có thể thật sự là không biết những gì mà họ đã làm hay các hành vi của họ thực sự không có gì là đáng kể, hay là chúng ta có thể đã phóng đại những sự thiệt hại mà họ đã gây ra cho chúng ta. Điều quan trọng hơn là ân sủng của Thiên Chúa sẽ nhắc nhở chúng ta về lòng thương xót và sự tha thứ của Thiên Chúa đối với chúng ta trong những hành vi tội lỗi của chúng ta và Thiên Chúa luôn luôn tha thứ cho chúng ta, nhưng chúng ta cũng phải biết tha thứ cho những người còn mắc nợ chúng ta.

Reflection:

The Gospel reading speaks of the necessity that we forgive one another, "not seven times, but seventy-seven times" because we should be merciful and compassionate as our heavenly Father.

We may find not so hard to forgive those we like. But it is not easy to forgive those whom we do not like or who have gravely injured us. .

It takes God's grace to soften our hearts, to look beyond the offense committed against us, and to understand the offender. Then we may realize that the offender may not really know what he/she has done or that the offense is really not that great or that we may have over-stated the harm done to us.

More important, God's grace will remind us of God's mercy and forgiveness to us for our own many offenses and that God will forgive us as we forgive those who trespass against us.

Opening Prayer: 

Lord, bless me as I ponder your words today in Scripture. Help me to conform my heart more closely to yours.

Encountering Christ:

· Brothers: In Biblical terms, the number seven reflects perfection. We may take Christ’s words, as no doubt his hearers did, not to mean the literal 539 times (though that in itself would be quite a high standard!), but as a reflection of God’s own perfect forgiveness, that is, limitless. Peter approached Jesus with this question about his brother. What squabble had he and Andrew just had, that Peter would ask this? Whatever the answer, it’s a hopeful question, because it expresses Peter’s desire to forgive, even if at the moment, he may not have felt like it. While Christ doesn't hold back in presenting the standard of his own heart regarding forgiveness, he does know our human condition and doesn’t demand that we deliver with perfection, but that we never cease trying, in love.

· The Kingdom of Heaven: It’s interesting that Jesus uses this passage to illustrate what the kingdom of heaven is like. It seems to deal with very unheavenly matters–stewards, material responsibilities, money, prisons, and debt–all less than spiritual things. But perhaps it actually enlightens essential aspects of God’s kingdom among us. God makes his kingdom present even now, in this, our world; it is not an abstract, unreal ephemeral place, nor is it utterly beyond our reach. He himself has come to bring his kingdom, to make present the mystery of his very Person within our world, sanctifying it. It’s a kingdom in which how we live, forgive, and accept mercy matters, as if these are the very passageway between the kingdom as we know it here and the fullness of that kingdom which we will one day know in heaven.

· Forgiveness as God-like Love: “Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?” This last question of the king toward his steward should also give us pause. Forgiveness, compassion, mercy: whether in life’s most dire or daily moments, these can be among the most difficult virtues to live. Yet God does not ask of us anything which he himself has not first done for us. Forgiveness is perhaps the greatest act of love, for it comes from a place of hurt—is this not a small form of redemption, taking flesh in the Christian life? What more God-like love could exist than this? What is a surer route to union with his heart or making present the mystery of his kingdom in our own lives and the world than this?

Conversing with Christ: Lord, Jesus, remind me of your goodness toward me and let this be the source of forgiveness and compassion that you ask me to extend to others. As I look outward to others, let me daily experience your loving gaze toward me.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will strive to forgive from the heart the little or great wrongs that have been done to me.

Thursday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Peter approached Jesus and asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” Matthew 18:21–22

Saint John Chrysostom, in commenting upon this passage, explains that “seventy-seven times” was a way of saying “always.” In other words, Jesus was not giving a specific number to the times we must forgive, He was saying that forgiveness must be offered forever and always, without limit. This is the depth of forgiveness offered to us.

This passage also shows the contrast between the human tendency towards forgiveness and God’s. Peter, no doubt, must have thought that he was being generous by asking if he should forgive his brother as many as seven times. Perhaps he thought Jesus would be impressed by this apparently generous suggestion. But the infinite mercy of God can never be outdone. There is simply no limit to the mercy of God, and, therefore, there must be no limit to the mercy we offer others.

What is your personal practice when it comes to seeking the forgiveness of God in your life? And what is your practice in regard to offering forgiveness to another? This line quoted above introduces the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. In that parable, the servant owed his king a “huge amount.” In mercy, the king forgave the debt just as God is willing to forgive us no matter what. But forgiveness does have one price. The price is that we must also forgive others to the same extent. Thus, when the servant who was forgiven a huge amount later sees one of his servants who owed him a much smaller amount, he demands the debt be paid in full. The result is that the king hears of this and withdraws his mercy, requiring the servant to pay him back in full.

This tells us that forgiveness is not an option unless we are perfect and owe no debt to God. Of course, if anyone thinks that, then they are not living in reality. As we read in the letter to the Romans, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). As a result, it is essential that we offer forgiveness always and everywhere, without condition, without limit and without hesitation. How easily do you do this? How fully do you forgive?

One of the hardest persons to forgive is the one who has no sorrow for their sin. When this happens, it is easy to justify our condemnation of them. One thing that might be helpful to reflect upon if you are currently withholding forgiveness from another and remain angry, bitter or hurt, is that your lack of forgiveness does more damage to your own soul than to theirs. By refusing to forgive, you do immeasurable damage to your soul and to your relationship with God. Remaining angry and hurt only leads to more anger and hurt. It leads to vengeful thinking and even acting. And that is a sin for which you will be held accountable.

Reflect, today, upon the infinite depth of mercy and forgiveness you are called to offer to each and every person who has or will hurt you. To forgive is certainly not to excuse. On the contrary, the act of forgiveness acknowledges the sin. But mercy must be offered no matter what. Always, everywhere, unending and without any conditions, it must be offered. If this is difficult to do, do it anyway and do not stop. Doing so will not only help the sinner, it will also open the gates of mercy from God in your life.

My forgiving Lord, Your mercy is infinite and unfathomable. You desire to forgive every sin in my life and to restore me completely to a life of perfect union with You. I accept this gift of forgiveness in my life, dear Lord, and I freely choose to offer this same depth of mercy to everyone who ever has or ever will sin against me. I forgive as completely as I can. Please help me to imitate Your unending mercy. Jesus, I trust in You.

Reflection

Someone once said, ‘the only way to be able to forgive others without limits is to live in the grateful awareness of the Father’s infinite love and forgiveness we have already received!

Our “debt” to the Father is immeasurable in comparison with our neighbour’s “debt” to us. How can we pass on God’s Forgiveness to those who have wronged us? Praying for them: Thinking first about whether we’ve done anything wrong ourselves; dropping the issue and letting them know it’s past history; looking for ways to show kindness to them. Forgiveness must come from the heart! It must be profound and absolute! v27. “The servant’s master felt so sorry for him that he let him go and cancelled the debt, altogether!” The servant received extravagant mercy from the king, but responded to another with extravagant mercilessness! I forgive but I cannot forget, is not truly Christian.

Father, forgive them for they know not what they do!

Reflection

Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you? (Matthew 18:33).

Science has suggested that humans use only 10 percent of their brains. Moving from this idea, some people have suggested that if we could access the other 90 percent, we would be able to solve so many problems like poverty and world hunger. There may be some merit in this speculation, but we should also acknowledge that much of the problem lies in our hearts and not just in our brains.

Imagine what could happen if we were able to access more of our hearts! What would this world look like if we could love more, forgive more, have more empathy, and look at ourselves and each other the way God does?

Today’s Gospel tells the story of a man who was given the opportunity to do just that but who refused. Having received the pardon of an immense debt from his master, he turned around and acted out of a stingy heart instead. Somehow, even though he had been given a huge gift, he remained as hard-hearted and ungenerous as before. And so it was not the master’s decree but the servant’s own ingratitude that landed him in prison. He excluded himself from the forgiveness his master had offered him.

As far as Jesus is concerned, anyone who has been forgiven much should be so touched by this forgiveness that he or she is moved to love much. But that will happen only as we allow our hearts to be melted by the mercy given to us. Again, it’s a heart issue as well as a brain issue.

Jesus gave all he possibly could when he died on the cross. Don’t take this gift lightly. There’s no way you could possibly repay him for what he has done for you. The only real response; the response of the heart; is to embrace his love and let it make you into a more merciful person. It’s only if we close our hearts to God’s mercy that our love shrinks, allowing criticism and harshness to creep in. So stay mindful of all that you have been given, and you’ll find your capacity to love expanding day by day!

“Thank you, Father, for treating me with so much love! May that love overflow in me, touching every person I encounter today.”