Dilemmas of Forgiveness
Pentecost 16; Matthew 18:21-35
If someone sins against us,
Jesus said we should forgive
not seven times but seventy-seven,
but how do we forgive those who harm
or kill one dearly loved, and can we forgive
ourselves those tragic errors
we fervently and futilely wish undone?
Did his followers manage to forgive
the soldiers who nailed him to the cross,
the imperial governor, religious establishment
and shouting crowds who condemned him,
or one of their own who betrayed him?
Yet Jesus prayed: “Father forgive them
for they do not know what they are doing.”
Judas could not forgive himself
though he threw back the silver
and tried to undo the apparent betrayal
intended perhaps to precipitate revolution.
Did Jesus, descending to the dead,
seek him out and forgive him?
What of Peter who denied knowing Jesus
in fear for his own life, and who wept
bitterly in remorse as the cock crowed?
Did he swim naked seeking forgiveness?
Did three avowals of love cancel
those three craven negations?
Did his commissioning as pastor
convince him of absolution,
or was his upside-down crucifixion
his final instalment of humbled courage
in repayment for that shamed weakness?
Forgiveness is no superficial bandaid.
Though we say the words and hear them
and know them to be healing,
ongoing inner vigilance is needed
lest dormant infection flare up and spread,
tainting our best intentions.
Barbara Messner 9/09/2026
Barb, poet priest 