Have you ever been in a situation where the math just isn’t mathing? Michael Bachmeier, SJ and Kevin Lee, SJ reflect on how Jesus shatters our calculations around forgiveness by reminding us that we are first always the receivers of an unrepayable mercy. Based on the readings for the 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time.
Michael: Kevin, you ever been in a situation when the ‘math ain’t mathing’?
Kevin: You mean, like a 15-min recipe that takes an hour?
Michael: Yea, exactly. So, listen to this: when Peter asks Jesus if forgiving someone seven times is enough, he thinks he’s being incredibly generous.
Kevin: Well, yea, that is generous.
Michael: It seems so, but Jesus completely shatters Peter’s math by answering: “Not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
Kevin: What?!
Michael: Uh-huh. To show why, Jesus tells the story of a servant forgiven an impossibly massive debt by a king, who then immediately goes out and chokes a fellow servant over a few pocket coins.
Kevin: Why is it so harsh?
Michael: I know it’s a jarring story, but it holds up a mirror to our own hearts. Forgiveness can be incredibly hard. When someone hurts us, our instinct is to count the offenses and hold a grudge. But Jesus reminds us that before we are ever called to be givers of mercy, we are first the receivers of it.
We don’t forgive others because they deserve it. We forgive because we have been forgiven a debt we could never repay.
Kevin: Now that’s generous.
