Daily Gospel Reflection
Join the Notre Dame family of faith. Receive God’s Word and a unique reflection in your inbox each day.
March 26, 2019
Peter approached Jesus and asked him,
“”Lord, if my brother sins against me,
how often must I forgive him?
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 him 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.””
I, unfortunately, was not immune to the ailment of a teenage attitude. I remember almost all the car rides with my dad in middle school were marked by useless fights or utter silence caused by a bad attitude. At fourteen, I didn’t grasp that he was dying from cancer, and instead of enjoying that time together in the car, I wasted most of the car rides in angsty attitude. I can only imagine the pain he felt when, as he got sicker, I only persisted in wasting the time we had. After he passed away, I wanted so badly to bend down, apologize, and plead “Be patient with me, and I will pay you back” for all the ways I had hurt him, but it was too late.
While I have outgrown my teenage attitude, I still hurt my relationship with God the Father through sin. Unlike with my dad though, it’s never too late to bend down, apologize, and ask for forgiveness. We are able to seek and receive the loving mercy of God through the sacrament of reconciliation each and every day.
It is only by turning to God with a contrite heart in the sacrament of reconciliation that I am able to receive his forgiveness and the grace to forgive others. When I fail to let the love found in the sacrament fill my heart, I act like the servant who fails to forgive. But, when I recognize my own sinfulness, turn to God, and receive love and mercy, I learn to forgive. Even if we regret being unable to atone for past behavior towards our loved ones who have died, like my dad, we can find comfort that we all rest together in the ever-abundant mercy of God. I pray that during this Lenten season, I may recognize my need for God’s mercy and let it transform me to forgive others.
Prayer
Lord God, in your great mercy you sent your Son to pour out himself for our sins. By his blood, he paid the price that we are unable to pay. May we always give thanks for so great a gift of love and may we in turn show your love and mercy to our neighbors. Give us the gift of your healing forgiveness to soften our hearts to be able to love as you do. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
On March 25, the Catholic Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Annunciation. March 25, however, is also listed as the feast day of St. Dismas, who was the good thief crucified with Jesus. Today we offer a small biography of St. Dismas as we meditate upon and ask for God's mercy.
The only substantial record we have of this man comes from the Gospel of Luke (other Gospels note that Jesus was crucified between two revolutionaries, but do not elaborate). As Luke tells us, Jesus was crucified with two thieves. As they hung on the cross, one taunted Jesus along with the crowd, telling him, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us.”
The other thief rebuked him, saying, “Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation? And indeed, we have been condemned justly, for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes, but this man has done nothing criminal.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”Jesus told him, “This day you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43).
The Christian community took seriously Jesus’ words here that this good thief was saved, and honors him as a saint. Dismas’ response to Jesus is a good articulation of steps in conversion away from sin: he came to an honest awareness of his sin and turned away from it, seeking Jesus as the source of eternal life.
Like other personalities close to the story of Jesus, we know little about Dismas. The Christian community constructed a story to fill in this gap, including his name—in some traditions, he is known as Titus or Zoathan. The most popular name, Dismas, was adopted from the Greek word for “sunset” or “death,” and began to be used in stories dating from the fourth century. One legend says that Dismas and his fellow thief held up Joseph and Mary when they were fleeing to Egypt with the child Jesus. Dismas is said to have been moved to compassion and bribed his companion to let the Holy Family pass safely.
The relics of St. Dismas rest in the reliquary chapel, including a piece of Dismas’ cross.
The Dismas House in South Bend is named after this good thief, and is a halfway house for men recently released from jail. The house is a community partner with the Institute for Social Concerns, and Notre Dame students volunteer there to support former prisoners who are adjusting to life after incarceration. Residents of Keenan Hall have cooked dinner at Dismas House one night a week during the academic year since it opened in 1986.
St. Dismas, the good thief who received Christ's mercy at the hour of death—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Dismas is in the public domain. Last accessed February 13, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
