Main news for 20 August 2019

Of course, this is not about making notches after each "forgiveness" and counting them every day, anticipating long-awaited revenge after the 490th mark. If we forgive, then let us forgive, leaving no notches, not counting our neighbor's sins, not keeping evil memory in the heart. Hard, is it not? But there is another option: my brother has sinned, I have forgiven him, and I will not give him the chance to sin against me again - I will break off all relations with him. Reasonable, isn't it, and quite possible. Everything would be fine, but one phrase from the Lord's Prayer gets in the way. Yes, yes: "forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors." And Jesus then considers it necessary to emphasize the meaning of these words (Matt. 6:14-15). That is, the heavenly Father forgives us exactly as we forgive. Now imagine that after our first sin He forgave us and broke off all relations with us... So Jesus, in His answer to Peter, still has in mind something unreasonable and not very possible for us. In this way He again directs His disciples, and us with them, toward letting into our hearts the One who alone can forgive this way, because His love for people is perfect. But without our effort, our consent, our desire to forgive, nothing will come of it: God does not coerce, but gives strength.