In his homily at Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis discussed forgiveness. He said that God always forgives, but that he also asks us to be forgiving.
POPE FRANCIS
'This is what Jesus teaches us about forgiveness: first, asking forgiveness is not a simple apology, it is to be aware of the sin, of the idolatry that I have committed, of the many idolatries; second, God always forgives, always â?? but He asks me to forgive others.â?
The Pope added that 'if I do not forgive, in a sense, I close the door to Godâ??s forgiveness.â?
POPE'S COMPLETE HOMILY
(Source: Vatican Radio)
'Asking forgiveness is another thing: itâ??s not the same as simply saying, â??excuse me.â?? Did I make a mistake? â??Sorry, I made a mistake. But, â??I have sinned!â?? â?? that is different: the one has nothing to do with the other. Sin is not a simple mistake. Sin is idolatry: it is to worship the idol, the idol of pride, vanity, money, â??my selfâ??, my own â??well-beingâ??. So many idols do we have: and for this, Azariah does not apologize: he asks forgiveness.â?
'Jesus teaches us to pray to the Father in this way: â??Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.â?? If I am not able to forgive, then I am not able to ask for forgiveness. â??But, Father, I confess, I go to confession ....â??. â??And what do you do before you confess?â?? â??Well, I think of the things I did wrong.â?? â??Alrightâ?? â??Then I ask the Lord for forgiveness and promise not to do those things again.â?? â??Okayâ?¦and then go to the priest? Before you do, however, youâ??re missing something: have you forgiven those who have hurt you?â??â?
'This is what Jesus teaches us about forgiveness: first, asking forgiveness is not a simple apology, it is to be aware of the sin, of the idolatry that I have committed, of the many idolatries; second, God always forgives, always â?? but He asks me to forgive [others]. If I do not forgive, in a sense, I close the door to Godâ??s forgiveness. â??Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.â??â?
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