God always forgives, always. But he asks that I forgive. If I don't forgive, in a certain sense I am closing the door to God's forgiveness.
Interpretation
Forgiveness is a reciprocal act between humans and God.
In this quote, Pope Francis emphasizes the importance of forgiveness, conveying that while God is always willing to forgive, individuals must also extend forgiveness to others. The quote suggests that holding onto resentment or failing to forgive closes one off from experiencing God's grace and mercy.
In practice
In a sermon about the importance of community and relationships, this quote can remind congregants of the need to forgive each other.
We are a church of sinners but we must not be afraid of holiness. Do not be afraid to aim for holiness and turn yourselves over to the love of God. Holiness does not mean performing extraordinary things but carrying out daily things in an extraordinary way that is with love, joy and faith.
I join the March for Life in Washington with my prayers. May God help us respect all life, especially the most vulnerable.
No one must say that they cannot be close to the poor because their own lifestyle demands more attention to other areas. This is an excuse commonly heard in academic, business or professional, and even ecclesial circles. While it is quite true that the essential vocation and mission of the lay faithful is to strive that earthly realities and all human activity may be transformed by the Gospel, none of us can think we are exempt from concern for the poor and for social justice
We face so many challenges in life: poverty, distress, humiliation, the struggle for justice, persecutions, the difficulty of daily conversion, the effort to remain faithful to our call to holiness, and many others. But if we open the door to Jesus and allow him to be part of our lives, if we share our joys and sorrows with him, then we will experience the peace and joy that only God, who is infinite love, can give.
More and more people work on Sundays as a consequence of the competitiveness imposed by a consumer society.
This Christmas may we be consistent in living the Gospel, welcoming Jesus into the centre of our lives.
Only literature could reveal the process of breaking the law - without which the law would have no end - independently of the necessity to create order.
Waiting time is not wasting time. Waiting patiently in expectation is the foundation of the spiritual life.
Being human means there's a wall-builder in each of us. Our minds naturally divide the world into me and not-me, us and them. For thousands of years, our sages have taught that we're all one, yet we still divide wherever we look.
It is an odd paradox that a society, which can now speak openly and unabashedly about topics that were once unspeakable, still remains largely silent when it comes to mental illness.
I am a violent man who has learned not to be violent and regrets his violence.
It is more important that we should remember God than that we should breathe: indeed, if one may say so, we should do nothing else besides.
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