Forgiving From the Heart

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Joshua was Moses’ successor. He was chosen to lead the children of Israel into the promised land. That’s what we see in today’s first reading from Joshua 3. Included is a miracle almost as big as the parting of the Red Sea.

In today’s Gospel reading from Matthew 18, Peter asks Jesus how many times he must forgive his brother. As many as seven time? Jesus tells a story about a man who withheld forgiveness. It landed him in prison to be tortured. He ends with this, “So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.”

Forgiveness is one of the most difficult things we can do. Like anything, it gets easier with practice. But what about this notion of forgiving from the heart? To me, it means completely letting go of wounds and grudges. Can we partially forgive? I think so. We may hang on to vestiges of ill will. But when we let go of them and completely give them up to God, we will have forgiven from the heart.

Father, help us to forgive completely; to let go of all ill will and unforgiveness. Today, we will forgive our brother from the heart. Amen.

Today’s Readings

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