As a mother of six kids (plus one in heaven), I often find myself being a referee in squabbles among my children. There are times when one child will apologize to his or her sibling, and the sibling will say, “I don’t want to forgive you, because you always do the same thing!” I usually wait and see what the other child’s reaction will be before I step in. On many occasions, I have found myself reminding our kids about the importance of being merciful to others, just as God has been merciful to us.

Today’s First Reading reminds us of this too. God calls us to forgive others just as He forgives us. This is difficult for many of us. Sometimes, we focus too much on other people’s faults and the wrong they have done to us so we tend to forget our own sinfulness. But Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God.” We all need God’s mercy and grace. Without Him, we are nothing. 

Tina Santiago Rodriguez (trulyrichandblessed@gmail.com)

reflect

“Forgiveness is above all a personal choice, a decision of the heart to go against the natural instinct to pay back evil with evil.” (Saint John Paul II)

Lord, help me to forgive those who have wronged me. Help me to seek forgiveness from those whom I have hurt. Remind me always of my need for Your mercy and grace. Amen.

St. John Chrysostom, bishop and Doctor of the Church, pray for us.

First Reading | Sirach 27:30–28:7

Today’s reading reflects the very words that likely guided Jesus as He taught His disciples to pray. Sirach urges us to abandon thoughts of vengeance and instead seek God’s grace to forgive our enemies, ensuring that we, too, receive His mercy when we need it. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus affirms this truth, establishing forgiveness as a cornerstone of the spiritual life.

³⁰ Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight. ^28:1 The vengeful will suffer the Lord’s vengeance, for he remembers their sins in detail. ² Forgive your neighbor’s injustice; then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven. ³ Could anyone nourish anger against another and expect healing from the Lord? ⁴ Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself, can he seek pardon for his own sins? ⁵ If one who is but flesh cherishes wrath, who will forgive his sins? ⁶ Remember your last days, set enmity aside; remember death and decay, and cease from sin! ⁷ Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor; of the Most High’s covenant, and overlook faults.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12

R: The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.

¹ Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all my being, bless his holy name. ² Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits. (R) ³ He pardons all your iniquities, he heals all your ills. ⁴ He redeems your life from destruction, he crowns you with kindness and compassion. (R) ⁹ He will not always chide, nor does he keep his wrath forever. ¹⁰ Not according to our sins does he deal with us, nor does he requite us according to our crimes. (R) ¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth, so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him. ¹² As far as the east is from the west, so far has he put our transgressions from us. (R)

Second Reading | Romans 14:7-9

Paul reminds us that our true Master is Jesus Christ. No matter how much we desire it or how capable we think we are, we still need Jesus to lead us along the paths of holiness and grace. Jesus has authority over life and death as He has experienced them both. In the Incarnation, Jesus has identified with humanity and redeemed us through His passion, death, and resurrection.

⁷ Brothers and sisters: None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. ⁸ For if we live, we live for the Lord, and ifwe die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. ⁹ For this is why Christ died and came to life, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

Gospel | Matthew 18:21-35 

Jesus teaches that forgiveness is a duty we owe to one another. Consider the chaos that would ensue if we refused to forgive others. Life would be an endless cycle of feuds and revenge. When our energy is consumed by resentment, we become incapable of building, healing, and growing together. Let us pray for the grace of forgiveness to flourish in our communities.

Gospel Acclamation

I give you a new commandment, says the Lord; love one another as I have loved you. 

²¹ Peter approached Jesus and asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” ²² Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. ²³ That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. ²⁵ 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. ²⁶ At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’ ²⁷ Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. ²⁸ 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.’ ²⁹ Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ ³⁰ But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt. ³¹ Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. ³² His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. ³³ Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’ ³⁴ Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. ³⁵ So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.”

Reflect

“We can’t go to heaven hating somebody. Forgive now. Be compassionate now . . .

Love Jesus and Mary now. Accept God’s will now.” (Mother Angelica)

Read the Bible in one year! Read PSALMS 96 - 100 today.

I once saw a man pay for a stranger’s groceries when she realized she forgot her wallet. When she offered to repay him, he simply said, “It’s OK. Just pass it on.” It was a beautiful reminder of how we are called to reflect God’s mercy through our actions.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells His disciples the Parable of the Merciless Servant whose master is the best example of how God is lenient with our transgressions. The servant-debtor does not ask the master to wipe out his debt, but simply to remain patient with him. He is then surprised when the master condones his debt in full. But instead of allowing that mercy to transform his own heart, the forgiven servant fails to pass it on. He refuses to extend the same concession to a fellow servant-debtor. For this, the master hands over the hard-hearted servant to torturers until he pays the whole debt. The tragic end of the unforgiving servant is a warning to us. Jesus wants us to forgive one another in the same manner God forgives us. Our ability to truly forgive begins with our deep experience of God’s overflowing mercy.

Forgiveness from the heart is not easy. This human condition puts into perspective Jesus’ response to Peter’s question on how often we must forgive our erring brother or sister: “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” Since learning is essential to our growth and maturity as followers of Jesus, we must allow God’s grace to shape us until we can truly learn to forgive from the heart.

In the standards of the world, we may look like losers, weaklings, and pushovers to those whose hearts are consumed by pride, hatred, and vengeance. However, for Jesus, we are blessed: “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” And we should not forget—if our recompense is not in this life, surely it will be in the next. 

Fr. Ricky Montañez, AA

reflection question

Are you willing to pass on the same mercy that God so generously gives you?

Lord, teach my heart to forgive as You forgive—freely, fully, and from the heart. Amen.

Today, I pray for: __________________________________