At 12 noon today, the Holy Father Francis appeared at the window of the study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the faithful and pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
These are the words of the Pope in introducing the Marian prayer:
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In the parable we read in today’s Gospel, that of merciful king (cf. Mt18,21-35), we find this plea twice: “Have patience with me and I will give you back” (vv. 26.29). The first time is pronounced by the servant who owes his master ten thousand talents, an enormous sum, today it would be millions and millions of euros. The second time is repeated by another servant of the same master. He is also in debt, not to his master, but to the same servant who owes that enormous debt. And his debt is very small, perhaps like a week’s salary. The heart of the parable is the indulgence that the master shows towards the servant with the greatest debt. The evangelist emphasizes that “the master had compassion – never forget this word which belongs to Jesus:” He had compassion “, Jesus always had compassion – [had compassion] for that servant, he let him go and forgave him the debt” ( v. 27). An enormous debt, therefore an enormous amnesty! But that servant, immediately after, proves ruthless with his companion, who owes him a modest sum. He does not listen to him, he inveighs against him and has him thrown into prison, until he has paid the debt (cf. v. 30), that small debt. The master finds out and, indignant, calls the wicked servant and has him condemned (cf. vv. 32-34): “I have forgiven you so much and you are unable to forgive this little?”.
In the parable, we find two different attitudes: that of God – represented by the king – who forgives a lot, because God always forgives, and that of man. In the divine attitude justice is pervaded by mercy, while the human attitude is limited to justice. Jesus urges us to open up courageously to the power of forgiveness, because we know that not everything in life is resolved with justice. There is a need for that merciful love, which is also the basis of the Lord’s response to Peter’s question that precedes the parable. Peter’s question sounds like this: “Lord, if my brother commits sins against me, how many times will I have to forgive him?” (v. 21). And Jesus answered him: “I don’t tell you up to seven, but up to seventy times seven” (v. 22). In the symbolic language of the Bible.
How much suffering, how many lacerations, how many wars could be avoided, if forgiveness and mercy were the style of our life! Even in the family, even in the family: how many broken families who do not know how to forgive each other, how many brothers and sisters who have this resentment inside. It is necessary to apply merciful love in all human relationships: between spouses, between parents and children, within our communities, in the Church and also in society and politics.
Today, in the morning, while I was celebrating Mass, I stopped, I was struck by a phrase from the first reading, in the book of Sirach. The phrase goes like this: “Remember the end and stop hating”. Nice sentence! Think about the end! Do you think that you will be in a coffin … and you will carry the hate there? Think about the end, stop hating! Stop the grudge. Let’s think of this very touching phrase: “Remember the end and stop hating”.
It is not easy to forgive, because in quiet moments one says: “Yes, this has done me all the colors but I too have done many. Better to forgive to be forgiven ”. But then the resentment returns, like an annoying summer fly that comes and goes and comes back … Forgiveness is not just a matter of a moment, it is a continuous thing against this rancor, this hatred that returns. Let’s think about the end, let’s stop hating.
Today’s parable helps us to fully grasp the meaning of that phrase that we recite in the Our Father’s prayer : ” Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors ” ( Mt 6:12). These words contain a decisive truth. We cannot expect God’s forgiveness for ourselves if we do not in turn grant forgiveness to our neighbor. It is a condition: think in the end, of God’s forgiveness, and stop hating; chase away the grudge, that annoying fly that comes and goes. If we don’t strive to forgive and love, we will not be forgiven and loved either.
Let us entrust ourselves to the maternal intercession of the Mother of God: help us to realize how much we are indebted to God, and to always remember him, so as to have our hearts open to mercy and goodness.
[01053-EN.02] [Original text: Italian] – Taken from Vatican News – Bulletin
