Weekly Mass Discussion Thread #3

Sorry !chuds! Sorry !anime! You thought these were over, didn't you? Nope! This one is late because I overslept today and ended having to go to 8 PM Mass

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First Reading

Wrath and anger are hateful things,

yet the sinner hugs them tight.

The vengeful will suffer the Lord's vengeance,

for he remembers their sins in detail.

Forgive your neighbor's injustice;

then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven.

Could anyone nourish anger against another

and expect healing from the Lord?

Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself,

can he seek pardon for his own sins?

If one who is but flesh cherishes wrath,

who will forgive his sins?

Remember your last days, set enmity aside;

remember death and decay, and cease from sin!

Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor;

remember the Most High's covenant, and overlook faults.

-Sirach 27:30-28:7

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Second Reading

Brothers and sisters:

None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself.

For if we live, we live for the Lord,

and if we die, we die for the Lord;

so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.

For this is why Christ died and came to life,

that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

-Romans 14:7-9

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Gospel

Peter approached Jesus and asked him,

"Lord, if my brother sins against me,

how often must I forgive?

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 the fellow servant 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."

-Matthew 18:21-35

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It seems like recently, the readings have focused on standards of behavior for Christians. While last week was about the necessity of spreading the Gospel, this week is about the necessity of forgiveness. We ourselves are sinners. With two notable exceptions , no human has ever been deserving of Heaven. Only through the grace of God are we capable of returning to Him. In this, God has shown us impossibly great mercy, and has forgiven us for impossibly many transgressions. Who are we, then, to refuse forgiveness and to hold grudges against our fellow men? "Judge lest you be judged" comes from earlier in Matthew, sharing a similar revelation. Now, many nonbelievers will attempt to weaponize these passages against us !christians. "Jesus said not to judge, so who are you to criticize me?" The message here is not to declare others darned, or ourselves superior. We are given free reign to oppose sin. "Hate the sin, not the sinner" is a common adage that applies well here: you can oppose what someone does without judging them.

Uhh yeah that's what I've got !catholics discuss.