Against Me
Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
Matthew 18:21-35- 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. That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’ Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt. Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’ Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.”
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“Peter approached Jesus and asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him?”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
Most of us have heard the old saying, “forgiveness is divine.” There is a lot to that saying, but one important truth that it brings to mind is that sometimes forgiveness is simply too big for us. Have any of us ever felt that we didn’t want to forgive someone, or even that we simply couldn’t forgive someone? This might sound strange, but we might actually be right. Maybe deep, complete forgiveness isn’t human—that is, with human power alone, it’s impossible. If some forgiveness isn’t humanly possible, then how could Christ demand it of us? How can He say that we need to forgive in order to be forgiven?
Whether we feel capable or not, Christ commands us to forgive. The secret to forgiveness, however, isn’t to muster up enough power or holiness or forgetfulness to finally pardon another person. The secret is to allow God to forgive another person in us. God has already forgiven them, in fact. We are the ones who need to accept this fact, and let it become as true inside us as it is in God’s eyes. Then we will know the truth, that “forgiveness is divine,” and we will have obtained blessings for two people: for the one we forgive, and for ourselves.
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above. (Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.)
Reminder for Parents: Pier is just meant to be a jumping off point. The real goal is that you pray & eventually use the fruits of your personal prayer as the content of your family’s prayer. Duc in altum.
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