The readings for today provoke us to reflect on forgiveness. Have I forgiven those who have harmed me? Have I asked forgiveness of those I have harmed? Yet more importantly, lost at times in our focus on woundedness and hurt is a deeper truth: Forgiveness is the place where we find freedom. Freedom is what God created us for making us in His image.
David understood this in the first reading. As a plague struck his people, he recognized that he had sinned against God and that his own pride had caused harm to others. He took responsibility and sought forgiveness knowing his sin was the cause, but especially because he desired to be free again. He longed to return to union with God and to live once more in His love. The beauty of David is that he trusted completely in God’s mercy. He knew God would forgive him no matter how great his sin. He rectified the choices that affected others by repenting and living the remainder of his life for the glory of God, freely choosing to sin no more.
The responsorial psalm repeats this message again and again as we repeat the refrain. You are my shelter, from distress you will preserve me, with glad cries of freedom you will ring me round. Lord, forgive the wrong I have done.
Unforgiving Hearts
Lastly, the Gospel clearly shows what closed and unforgiving hearts can do, even in the presence of God. Closed hearts breed resentment and resistance, which harden the soul. Our Lord was not welcomed, as evidenced by the hurtful jeers and lack of faith. It goes on to inform us that He was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying His hands on them, and He was amazed at their lack of faith. Had they believed, their hearts would have been open to receive the grace and mercy He was offering.
Forgiveness creates the space where unity is restored. This is the space David found, while those in the Gospel turned away. When forgiveness is withheld, division takes its place. We are never beyond beginning again, in freedom and in love. There is no better life to illustrate this than David’s.
Wounds of the Heart
Recently, I have been reading Wounds of the Heart by Dr. Javier Schlatter, in which he quotes Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor. Schlatter writes that we have all suffered offenses or injuries, whether moral or physical, and on such occasions we often think of returning insult or injury. He then quotes Frankl, “between stimulus and response there is a space, and in that space is our growth and our happiness”.
That single sentence stood out to me more than any other. It is as if he is saying that true freedom lies in that space. I actually read it to say that. It was only when I went back that I realized he did not name it. Yet, to remain there in freedom, we need trust, trust in God and trust in ourselves, and the ability to separate the hurt from the person, whether that person is another or even ourselves.
Forgiveness is the root. Freedom is the result. We can love because we are no longer attaching the hurt to a person, even if that person is ourselves. The wound no longer clouds our hearts or makes us prisoners of sin. This allows us to love freely and to become who God created us to be. It is beautiful and simple, and yet so difficult. David makes it clear that this is the only path forward. He repented, and God forgave.
Aristotle speaks of virtue as the mean between two extremes. This reflects the same truth. We can move toward one extreme or the other, but it is in the middle, in that space, that we find peace. It is where we find love. It is where we find virtue, and ultimately, for many, where we find God.
Lent and New Beginnings
As Lent approaches, we are offered a beautiful opportunity. Through the liturgical calendar, Mother Church continually holds us close and invites us into new beginnings. Though Lent is a season of penance, it is also a time of unity, perseverance, and renewed vision. We journey together as one. Just as the same readings are proclaimed throughout the world, our hearts are united and open toward God.
Lent and the prayerful penance allows us a quiet and reflective season that enables us to contemplate how what began at Christmas finds its fulfillment in the Resurrection.
Whatever suffering you may be carrying today, unite it with the Mystical Body of Christ, for together we help Christ carry His cross, no one greater than the other, just together helping each other bear that suffering in our path. United with Him, we can say again and again, I believe, I adore, I trust, and I love You. I look forward to celebrating with you wherever you may live as we unite in the risen Christ and in the new freedom that comes through this coming Lent.
