FR. GERALD MUSA HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 19TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME CYCLE II (1)

FR. GERALD MUSA HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 19TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME CYCLE II

THEME: UNLIMITED FORGIVENESS

By: FR. GERALD M. MUSA

HOMILY FOR THURSDAY AUGUST 11 2022

Wise people say “Those who do not forgive break the bridge on which they have to pass.” This is because everyone needs forgiveness. Peter asked Jesus whether it was okay to forgive seven times. Jesus tells Peter not seven but seventy times seven and illustrated his point with the story of the unforgiving servant to show how God forgives us our sins and how unwilling we are to forgive those who need mercy. Since God is so merciful to us, we ought to appreciate his mercy by forgiving our brothers and sisters. Forgiving our offenders can be difficult sometimes. How is it possible to forgive those who dragged our names into the mud, humiliated, and betrayed us? How long do we tolerate those who continually offend us? Yes, forgiveness can be very hard in certain situations, and for this reason, it takes such a long time before we bring ourselves to forgive our offenders, especially when they are people we trusted so much. The first step toward forgiveness is the ability to say ‘Yes, I forgive.’ It takes a lot of courage to forgive. The second step is to ask for the help of God by admitting, ‘God, I want to forgive, but I do not know how to forgive; help me to forgive totally and completely from the depth of my heart. Are there persons and people we cannot forgive?

MATTHEW 18:21-19:1

Thursday, 19th Week