The Price of Forgiveness

Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 19, Year A)

Matthew 18.21-35

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 19:30)

 

What price would you put on the forgiveness of your sins?

 

That is sort of the unspoken question in today’s Gospel reading. Peter starts off asking Jesus, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” To which Jesus responds, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.” Now, the implication, albeit a little unclear, is that Peter wants to know how many times he should forgive someone who repeatedly sins against him. While the number seven in Hebrew thought is often used to symbolize perfection or completeness, it is apparent that Peter is not thinking in those terms. He is thinking more in terms of what is the minimum number of times he is obligated to forgive someone. You have to admit, forgiving someone who repeatedly sins against you seven times is pretty generous, and shows a good deal of patience. But there is an implied follow-on in Peter’s question: and after seven times, all bets are off, right? I can then seek vengeance, right? I can end the relationship with that person, right?

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Conflict Mediation

Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 18, Year A)

Matthew 18.15-20

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook Page (beginning at 20:20)

 

Conflict seems to be an inherent part of what it means to be human. Just look at the world around us. Whether actually the case or not, we seem to be living in one of the most polarized and conflicted periods in our history as a nation. Certainly on the political front, with our two major parties at such odds, there is not even a willingness to reach across the aisle to find common ground. In fact, even within each party there are ideological divisions that sometimes impede the ability for members of the same party to achieve consensus on political positions and establishment of policy. In the broader arena, there are an increasing number of culture wars: conflict between groups over a variety of values, beliefs, and practices. Most notably over such issues as reproductive freedom, gender identity, racial identity, and climate change, to name but a few. Beyond our own borders, add to that increasing political and economic conflict between the US and China, the war in Ukraine, and, just in the last couple of weeks, civil unrest and political upheaval in several other nations.

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Communication

Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 17, Year A)

Matthew 16.21-28

St. Gregory’s, Long Beach

Live Streamed on Parish Facebook page (beginning at 22:25)

 

Communication is a wonderful thing. Providing us with the ability to convey and exchange information about virtually anything. From the observable to the imagined, as well as our own personal perceptions, thoughts, and feelings which are otherwise unobservable to others. But, as I’m sure we have all observed and experienced firsthand, communication, while valuable—even indispensable—can and often is messy and confusing. Sometimes to the point of detracting from or even preventing the meaningful conveyance of information. As we know, communication is so much more than the actual words used. The speaker or writer has their own personal assumptions, beliefs, and perspectives that inform their choice of words. Those words are then received by someone else, who has their own assumptions, beliefs, and perspectives about whatever is being conveyed. If consistent or similar to those of the speaker or writer, then effective communication occurs. But if there are differences in the underlying assumptions, or beliefs, watch out. There is the potential for miscommunication. For misunderstanding. Sometimes, despite our best efforts, we are not on the same page as those we are seeking to communicate with. Sometimes, we aren’t even in the same book.

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