Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
1. Forgive: Enter God's World 2. A New Lease on Life
Liturgical Cycle: A | Lectionary Cycle: II
Introduction
Greeting
The God of forgiveness, mercy and life
be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction by the Celebrant
1. Forgive: Enter God’s World
We are all familiar with the saying: “To err is human, to forgive is divine.” Perhaps we forget the second part too easily: by forgiving one another, we do what God does all the time for us. If we cannot forgive, we have not learned to love deeply, and we are still far from the Gospel. We begin this Eucharist by asking pardon from the Lord and from one another.
2. A New Lease on Life
Most of us have experienced how difficult it is to forgive. It is almost impossible. In Old English, it means “give to the uttermost,” “extremely,” “as far as you can go.” Isn’t that what it really is, going all the way? Who can forget the hurt? Yet we should. Who doesn’t see and feel the scars and keep the memories? And yet we shouldn’t. Think of God: when he forgives, the evil belongs to the past. It is gone. God keeps no accounts. He wants us to think only of the future. Jesus did not condemn but gave new chances. Let us ask for the Lord’s attitude now in this Eucharist.
Penitential Act
Let us look at the Lord Jesus
how he forgave people.
(pause)
Lord Jesus, you forgave Peter
after he had denied you:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you did not condemn
the woman caught in adultery;
you simply told her to sin no more:
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you prayed your Father
to forgive even those who had crucified you:
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Forgive us too, Lord, and keep doing so
every time we sin against you.
Dispose us to forgive others always.
Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray that we may learn to forgive
the way the Lord forgives
(pause)
All-loving Father,
you are good and patient,
compassionate, loving, and merciful with sinners like us.
You forgive us all our debt of sin.
Let your pardon brings us much joy and hope
and induce us to forget and forgive readily
the debts, often so small, that others owe us
because of the wrongs they have done to us.
You have restored us to life:
help us to make others live by our pardon,
that they may feel a bit of your goodness in us.
We ask this through Jesus our Lord. R/ Amen.
First Reading
Forgive, and God Will Forgive You: Even by the end of the Old Testament, the believer knew that God does not forgive those who cannot forgive others. Forgiveness is a demand of the covenant.
Revenge
Grudge and wrath, these are also abominations in which sinful people excel.
He who seeks revenge will face the vengeance of the Lord, who keeps a strict record of sins.
Forgive your neighbor’s mistakes, and you may ask for your sins to be forgiven.
If a person holds resentment against another, how can he ask God for healing?
If he lacks compassion for others, how can he pray for forgiveness for his sins?
As long as he, a mere flesh, remains resentful, who will grant him pardon?
Remember your mortality and give up hatred; keep in mind your eventual decay in the grave and follow the commandments.
Remember the commandments and do not hold grudges against your neighbor. Recall the Covenant with the Most High and overlook offenses.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12
R. (8) The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
He pardons all your iniquities,
heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
He will not always chide,
nor does he keep his wrath forever.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far has he put our transgressions from us.
R. The Lord is kind and merciful, slow to anger, and rich in compassion.
Second Reading
Like Christ, no one should live for himself: By baptism, we belong to Christ. Like him, we should live and die not for ourselves but for others.
We Belong to the Lord
None of us lives for himself,
or dies for himself.
If we live, we live for the Lord,
and if we die, we die for the Lord.
Either in life or in death,
we belong to the Lord.
For this is why Christ died and came to life,
to be Lord both of the dead and the living.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment, says the Lord:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Forgive from the Heart: If we do not know how to forgive, God will not forgive us, says Jesus. The kingdom of God will not come among us if we cannot forgive.
Then Peter asked him:
“Lord, how many times must I forgive my brother or sister’s offenses? Seven times?”
Jesus answered:
“No, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
Parable About Forgiveness
This story sheds light on the kingdom of Heaven: A king decided to settle accounts with his servants.
One of the first was someone who owed him ten thousand pieces of gold.
Since the man couldn’t repay the debt, the king ordered that he be sold into slavery along with his wife, children, and all his possessions as payment.
The servant knelt before the king and said, ‘Give me time, and I will pay you back everything.’
The king took pity on him and not only freed him but also waived his debt.
When this servant left the king’s presence, he encountered one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred pieces of silver. He seized him by the throat and almost choked him, shouting, ‘Pay me what you owe!’
His fellow servant threw himself at his feet and begged him, ‘Give me time, and I will pay everything.’
But the other disagreed and put him in prison until he paid off all his debt.
Now the king’s servants saw what had happened. They were very upset, so they went and reported everything to their lord.
Then the lord summoned his servant and said, ‘Wicked servant, I forgave you all that you owed me when you begged me to do so.
Weren’t you supposed to have pity on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?
The lord was now angry. He handed the wicked servant over to be punished until he paid the entire debt.
Jesus added:
“So will my heavenly Father do with you unless you sincerely forgive your brothers and sisters.”
Prayers of the Faithful
Let us pray to our merciful God that we his people who have experienced his forgiveness may bring the joy of reconciliation to the world. Let us say: R/ Lord, help us forgive from the heart.
– For the Church, the people set free by the blood of Christ, that we may not be divided in factions but live together in tolerance and peace, let us pray to the Lord: R/ Lord, help us forgive from the heart.
– For all Christian Churches, long divided by grudges and pride, that we may be brought together in the unity of one Gospel and one love of Christ, let us pray: R/ Lord, help us forgive from the heart.
– For those who are committed to causes of justice and human liberation, that they may not only accuse and protest but also recognize and uproot sin in their own hearts, let us pray: R/ Lord, help us forgive from the heart.
– For married couples who live side by side without much love and without communicating, that they may come to forgive, to understand and to appreciate one another again, let us pray: R/ Lord help us forgive from the heart.
– And for us gathered here, people with our failures and foibles, that we may learn from the Lord to be merciful as he has been to us, that we may forgive one another from the heart, let us pray: R/ Lord, help us forgive from the heart.
Lord, you are so good that all our evil becomes like nothing. Let us, little and frail people, speak to one another your words and deeds of forgiving love, on account of Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Prayer over the Gifts
God our Father,
in these signs of bread and wine
we celebrate the death of your Son
that brought us forgiveness and life.
Let the table of the Eucharist be to all of us
an occasion and place where we learn
to accept one another, even with our frailties,
and to share the same bread and the same Lord
in friendship and peace.
We ask you this through him
who reconciled in himself all factions,
Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
At the very heart of the Eucharistic celebration, we say: “This blood will be shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven.” The Lord Jesus brought us forgiveness by his death. Let us thank God for his forgiveness and forgive one another in the Lord.
(The Eucharistic Prayer of Reconciliation I [ICEL] is recommended.)
Introduction to the Lord’s Prayer
In Our Lord’s words we pray:
forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
May we not pray those words
only with our lips, but also with our hearts. R/ Our Father...
Prayer for Peace
Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles:
I leave you peace, my peace I give you.
Look not on our sins, and help us
not to look on the sins of others,
for we all need the peace
of your forgiving love
and of each other’s pardon.
Grant us the peace and unity of your kingdom
where you live for ever and ever. R/ Amen.
The forgiving peace of the Lord
be with you always. R/ And also with you.
Invitation to Communion
This is Jesus, the Lamb of God
who was slain for our sins.
On the cross he prayed for those
who sought his death.
Happy are we to receive him
and to learn from him
to bring reconciliation and peace. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
Prayer after Communion
God our Father,
you have created us anew
through the Bread of Life of your Son
and through the forgiveness he keeps bringing us.
Help us also to restore to life
our brothers and sisters who wait for our pardon
and open our hearts
to receive their forgiveness with gratitude.
Let us be a community
where we raise up one another
to the joy of your life and your healing love.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord. R/ Amen.
Blessing
Today God has spoken clearly to us,
people for whom it is difficult
to overlook failures,
to give new chances,
to forgive from the heart.
“Become like me,
forget and forgive,
heal and care,
and you will be healed yourselves.”
May God be with you and bless you:
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Let us walk with one another
in the forgiving peace of the Lord. R/ Thanks be to God.
REFLECTIONS
Matthew 18:25-31
Forgiven to Become Forgiving
The Gospel shares the story of a servant faced with an unpayable debt. He pleads for patience, and while it might seem like the master would punish him, something remarkable happens: filled with compassion, the master chooses to cancel all his debt and set him free. This unexpected act beautifully highlights the incredible and generous mercy that God offers us.
However, the servant encounters a companion who owes him much less. Ignoring mercy, he grabs the man, demands repayment, and puts him in prison. Sadly, the forgiveness that he received from his master did not truly affect his heart. Grace alters his situation but does not change his attitude toward others.
The stark contrast between the debts emphasises that God’s forgiveness is not a private privilege, but a new way of life. We forgive not because the offences against us are trivial or justice is unneeded, but because we ourselves live through mercy. Forgiveness frees our hearts from imprisonment in anger.
It's important to remember that the feelings of the other servants matter too. Our Christian community thrives when we extend the mercy we receive at the altar into our everyday relationships. The Eucharist nurtures us to become people who share God’s compassion everywhere we go, not just within the church walls.
This Sunday, let us remember the debt God has cancelled for us. Is there someone we continue to hold by the throat through resentment, coldness, or condemnation? May the mercy we celebrate descend from our lips into our hearts. Having been released by God, may we loosen our grip on others and become living witnesses that grace is stronger than every debt.