Sep 13th, 2020 Motjari meeting Fr. Foeckler’s lecture note

[정하상성당]

24th Sunday in Ordinary time, Sep 13th, 2020 Motjari meeting

Today’s Gospel

Parable of Merciless Servant

MT 18:21-35  

Peter approached Jesus and asked him,

“Lord, if my brother sins against me,

how often must I forgive?

As many as seven times?” 

Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. 

That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king

who decided to settle accounts with his servants. 

When he began the accounting,

a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. 

Since he had no way of paying it back,

his master ordered him to be sold,

along with his wife, his children, and all his property,

in payment of the debt. 

At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’

Moved with compassion the master of that servant

let him go and forgave him the loan. 

When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants

who owed him a much smaller amount. 

He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,

‘Pay back what you owe.’

Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,

‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’

But he refused. 

Instead, he had the fellow servant put in prison

until he paid back the debt. 

Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,

they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master

and reported the whole affair. 

His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! 

I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. 

Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,

as I had pity on you?’

Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers

until he should pay back the whole debt. 

So will my heavenly Father do to you,

unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.”

Kingdom of God

This parable is unique in Matthew. It is about mercy. St. John Paul II said mercy is acts of love. Forgiving sins is the mercy only God’s can do. 

“Forgive us our sins”

Mercy cancels debt.

When asked how many times to forgive brothers, Jesus answered Peter to forgive not 7 times but 70 of 7 times or seventy seven times.

#7 is the perfect number. Peter must had thought 7 meant good many times.

Some interpreted as 77 times, some says 70*7 times =490!

Daniel, Chapter9. 7*70 years

70 is important number.  Jeremiah’s prophecy predicted 70 years for Israelis coming out of Egypt. 70 years is the least enough time to be merciful. 70*7 years, Messiah comes.

In RSV, the servant owed 10,000 Talents to the master. A Denarius(i) was given as 1 day worth of labor. 100 Denarius meant 100 days of labor. A Talent is worth 6000 Denarius, that means 6000 days worth of labor. You can calculate 10000 Talents meant such great amount.

The master forgave his servant’s debt. But the servant chased his debtor, throttled him to pay back. Other servants who knew his master forgave his great debt, told the master what the servant did to his debtor.

“You wicked servant, I forgave you …”

God’s infinite, which in other word means our debt is infinite.

Our debt is enormous. Those who offend us, their debt to us is very small compare to our debt to God. This is the main point of the gospel. Forgive your debtors, and so will my heavenly Father do to you. We have received mercy, we need to show mercy to others.

SIR 27:30—28:7  

Wrath and anger are hateful things,

yet the sinner hugs them tight.

The vengeful will suffer the LORD’s vengeance,

for he remembers their sins in detail.

Forgive your neighbor’s injustice;

then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven.

Could anyone nourish anger against another

and expect healing from the LORD?

Could anyone refuse mercy to another like himself,

can he seek pardon for his own sins?

If one who is but flesh cherishes wrath,

who will forgive his sins?

Remember your last days, set enmity aside;

remember death and decay, and cease from sin!

Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor;

remember the Most High’s covenant, and overlook faults.

Remember your last days. Set enmity aside, and cease from sin, when the Lord render account with us. Think of the commandment, hate not your neighbor,

overlook fault

ROM 14:7-9  

Brothers and sisters:

None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself.

For if we live, we live for the Lord,

and if we die, we die for the Lord;

so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.

For this is why Christ died and came to life,

that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

Jesus is this Lord. He is the king. How do we belong to Lord? We belong to him through baptism. He paid our debt. Redemption. He sent His son to redeem us. 

Kyrios-Lord

[Author]

Posts