St Anne Parish recently issued the following announcement.

How often do we remind ourselves of past hurts from others? They run through our minds without us even trying sometimes. Well did we really “Forgive and Forget” how someone has hurt us? Jesus knows that we are human and this will happen to us, but what is key is did we dwell on it? Forgiving someone is an act of our free will that was given to us by God. Yes, we have free will to love Jesus and free will to love or hate our neighbor also. So Jesus wants forgiveness to come from our heart, just as His does for us. In the Gospel Jesus warns us, that if we withhold forgiveness, it will be withheld from us. And the consequences of that are severe indeed.

This is not to suggest that forgiveness is easy. Some hurts are very deep and they are in need of prayer, daily Mass, the Eucharist, the rosary, Reconciliation, Adoration. In getting on the path of forgiveness this will help to build the desire within our hearts. When this is the case, we shouldn’t despair or to give up. St. Paul says, “but He said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” We don’t want to lock the freedom we received from God in a constructed prison we make for ourselves with our own free will. Jesus wants us to be free from all bitterness and resentment in our lives.

Forgiveness ought to be given freely to others. There is a well-known saying that “resentment is like drinking poison and hoping your enemy will die.” When we withhold any forgiveness, or compassion, or mercy for another that we have been shown by God, we will inflict more harm upon ourselves. We nourish anger and hatred within us so that when we talk to others we spread it to others. No one wants to be around us. What we do is we are crowding out the love of God in our lives and the lives of others. We are the ones who truly suffer. It even gets to the point that we like the hatred we have for others, and enjoy hearing anything go wrong for them. The roots are so dug in. Our lives our then wound only around the person that we will not forgive. Our own lives seem not to be focused, just not going right for us

always in abundance for us, just waiting for us. St. Francis De Sales says, “Grace is never wanting. God always gives sufficient grace to whoever is willing to receive it.” We can gain graces through the forgiveness of others with our prayers and our actions that we perform. Forgiveness is a relieving feeling, where we actually feel God’s forgiveness in us. Our life seems happier, more content, more worth-while, we feel free with the love of God in our very hearts.

In our lives we search for peace. We want to forgive others. St. Padre Pio says it very well, “the rosary is my weapon.” What’s yours?

Original source can be found here.