As our recent reflections have shown, the importance of forgiveness for the Christian is great. When we forgive someone for a wrong they have done us, we free ourselves from the “baggage” we carry when we hold that hurt. 

The Gospel of Matthew, however, contains another story about forgiveness. Simon Peter, thinking he is being more than generous, asks Jesus how often we must forgive one another. He asks, “as many as seven times?” Jesus’s answer would shock anyone: “Not seven times, but seventy times seven times.”  (Some translations say seventy-seven times). 

Peter’s head must have spun when he heard that! Forgiving once is hard enough. Seven times would be quite an accomplishment. But seventy times seven times? Impossible.

Of course, Jesus does not mean a literal 490 times, as if we must keep score of our hurts. He means that forgiveness must be constant and unending. Throughout the Bible, we learn that, if we are repentant, God can forgive any sin, and He can forgive infinitely.  He calls us to do the same. 

We must seek God’s aid in doing this – without that it will be impossible. But if we keep our eyes fixed on the cross, and appreciate the forgiveness we receive ourselves, we can offer forgiveness to others – not once, but repeatedly. 

In the Canticle of the Creatures, Francis says that God is praised, “through those who give pardon for Your love, and bear infirmity and tribulation.” Forgiveness and forbearance are never easy, but they are necessary for the good of our souls.  

This week, let us reflect on the constant and unending nature of true forgiveness.