Monday of week 32 in Ordinary Time
Gospel – Luke 17:1-6
“Obstacles are sure to come, but alas for the one who provides them! It would be better for him to be thrown into the Sea with a millstone put round his neck than that he should lead astray a single one of these little ones. Watch yourselves!” Jesus is speaking about obstacles. About persons who provide the obstacles. How wretched is their situation. And then he immediately speaks of: “ If your brother does something wrong, reprove him and, if he is sorry, forgive him. And if he wrongs you seven times a day and seven times comes back to you and says, “I am sorry,” you must forgive him.’” So, what is the real obstacle? The real obstacle is not forgiving from the heart. Every time we don’t forgive, we are creating an obstacle for the other person and for ourselves. Obstacle for the other person to correct and to come back. Obstacle for us to accept that person as a person loved by God with all his mistakes. That is why when I am not forgiving, I go to the wretched state of being thrown into the Sea with a millstone put around my neck. Let’s us forgive from our heart anyone any number of times not to be an obstacle.