2. Word of Life September 2010

3. "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. " (Mt 18,22)

4. These words were said by Jesus in reply to Peter who, after listening to the marvellous things he said, put this question to Jesus: ‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus answered: ‘I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.’

5. In all probability, Peter had been so struck by the master’s preaching that, full of goodness and generosity as he was, he decided to take a bold step forward in this new way of behaving. He was going to do something exceptional, be willing to forgive as many as seven times….

6. By answering ‘seventy times seven times’, Jesus is saying that for him forgiveness has no limits. We must forgive always.

7. " I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. “ (Mt 18,22)

8. This sentence calls to mind the biblical song of Lamech, a descendant of Adam: ‘If Cain is avenged sevenfold,truly Lamech seventy-sevenfold’. Thus hatred began to spread among the people of the world, swelling like a river in flood.

9. Against this spreading of evil, Jesus proposes the unlimited and unconditional forgiveness that is capable of breaking the cycle of violence.

10. Only forgiveness can stem this tide of mayhem and offer the human race a future that is not self-destruction.

11. " I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. “ (Mt 18,22)

12. To forgive, to forgive always. Forgiving is not the same as forgetting, which often implies unwillingness to face reality.

13. Forgiveness is not weakness in the sense of ignoring a wrong done for fear of the stronger person who committed it. Forgiveness does not mean saying that something does not matter when it is serious, or that something is good when it is bad.

14. Forgiveness is not indifference. Forgiveness is a conscious act of will, and therefore a free act, which means welcoming our brothers and sisters as they are, despite the wrong done to us, just as God accepts us sinners, despite our faults. Forgiveness means not responding to one offence with another, but in doing what Paul tells us: ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’

15. Forgiveness means offering the person who has wronged you the chance to have a new relationship with you. It makes it possible for both of you to start life again and have a future in which evil does not have the last word.

16. " I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. “ (Mt 18,22)

17. How can we live this Word of Life? Peter had asked Jesus: ‘How often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive?’

18. In answering him Jesus had in mind above all the relationships among Christians, among members of the same community.

19. Therefore, it is first of all with our brothers and sisters in faith that we must act like this – in our own family, at work, at school, in the community to which we belong. We know that when we are offended we are often tempted to react with similar words or deeds.

20. Often, differences in temperament, or stress, or other causes, mean that those who live in the same household fail to love one another. We must never forget that only an attitude of forgiveness, constantly renewed, can maintain peace and unity.

21. We will always tend to think of our brothers’ and sisters’ failings, to remember their past and want them to be different from the way they are… So we must get into the habit of looking at them with new eyes and seeing them as new people, accepting them always, immediately and without reservation, even if they do not repent.

22. You might say: ‘But that’s hard!’ And you would be right. Yet this is the beauty of Christianity. After all, it is Christ we are following, Christ who, on the cross, asked the Father to forgive those who were killing him, and he rose from the dead.

23. Take courage then. Let’s begin to live a life like this. It will give us a peace we have never felt before and such joy as we have never known.

24. “Word of Life”, monthly publication of the Focolare Movement. Original text by: Chiara Lubich, September 1999. Graphic design by Anna Lollo in collaboration with Fr. Placido D’Omina (Sicily - Italy) This commentary on the Word of Life is translated in 96 languages, and it reaches millions of people throughout the world through the press, radio, TV and internet – for more information visit www.focolare.org This Powerpoint presentation is translated in various languagesAnna LolloPlacido D’Ominawww.focolare.org and is published on www.santuariosancalogero.orgwww.santuariosancalogero.org "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.“ (Mt 18,22)