Prayer

Lord as we ponder your words open our hearts that we may understand and know you. Amen 

Sermon    

 The “Mission”  came out in 1986   Robert De Niro as Captain Rodrigo Mendoza and Jeremy Irons as Father Gabriel a priest.  The movie is set in the Amazon and we see in the beginning of the movie Captain Rodrigo caring a great burden of his armor and weapons as a self imposed penance.   Struggling he is confronted by one of the Indigenous people who cuts the burden and it falls.  The weight of guilt is released and with it the anger that caused it. 

Anger a very powerful emotion. It  can be used for Good, but also for evil. It is very destructive and easily accessed.   Anger leads to resentment, and that leads to the slow black bitterness of the soul.

At one point in time it was believed that for the body to be healthy the humours blood, phlegm black and green bile had to be in balance for the body to be healthy. (we don’t believe this of course anymore)

Like wise I think we could but forward the case that the four emotions happiness, sadness, fear and anger must be in balance for us to be  at one with ourselves and other. .  This of course is just a thought .

 Forgiveness is what is used to restore this balance.  It is a balm to the soul.

  In the gospel Peter comes to Jesus and askes the question  “Lord, if my brother or sister sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” A good starting point.  Jesus says to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven  times.  Well what does that look like?  Jesus tells them a story. 

  “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves.  When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him,  and, as he could not pay, the lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions and payment to be made.  So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’  And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt.  But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii, and seizing him by the throat he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’  Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’  But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place.  Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.  Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’  And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt.  So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”     

  Forgiveness is not a road to victimization.  It is the tool towards reconciliation.  Go in with a forgiving heart.  Offer it if they accept it wonderful, but if they reject it wish them well on the journey and hold no resentment.

Jesus goes on and speaks about offering the other cheek and coat and shirt. 

When we consider Forgiveness it is important to know that we need to also be willing to forgive ourselves is as important as forgiving those whom we may have had wrong us. 

We are called to be in community and as we discussed last week we will end up at times in conflict.  Likely more than once

We are called to life in that right relationship, with God with each other and ourselves.   

Forgiveness requires listening, understanding and a true desire to be in a right relationship.   There is the old saying, forgive and forget . If I say sorry then everything will be alright and everything will be just the same as it always was.  This does not serve us well.     Forgiveness may start with listening, understanding. It must start with a true desire to be in a right relationship but the pathway to this relationship is a pathway of reconciliation. The building of a new relationship.   This can be at times a hard task depending on the nature of the relationship and that happened to fracture it.