Gospel of Luke, chapter 11:4

During one of Ireland’s troubled periods of history, Joseph Brady was on death row. He was sentenced to die for having killed Burke, the permanent Under-Secretary of Ireland. Joseph Brady refused to make his peace with God. Bitterness consumed him. A man named Carey had informed on him and turned him in to the authorities. The prison chaplain brought in many priests to persuade Brady to forgive the informer. Brady’s answer was always the same – “God Himself wouldn’t expect a patriot to forgive an informer.” One day a nun appeared to visit Brady. She apologized for her intrusion, but said she desperately needed help. She explained she hated a certain person. It was an obsession. It was crippling her. She wondered if she should take off her veil and leave religious life. Brady said without hesitation, “No sister, for God’s sake. Don’t do that. Try to forgive.” Sr. replied, “very well then, I forgive you Brady for killing Burke. He was my brother.” It was a conversion moment for Brady. He asked her forgiveness. The next morning Brady went to confession and received Communion before he died.

Jesus tells in the Our Father to pray to the Lord to forgive us of our trespasses, and to forgive those who have trespassed against us. From this prayer we learn that we are not the only ones in debt; we have debtors of our own as Joseph Brady discovered when a nun came to visit him in prison. When Christ died on the cross, all our sins were cancelled, but the way we show our gratitude for God’s forgiveness is to go forth and forgive someone else. This may come across as a hard teaching. The prayer for forgiveness is the only petition in the Lord’s prayer that comes with a condition attached: if we do not forgive others, we will not be forgiven.

Praying for our own forgiveness takes priority over forgiving others. Why? If we had to forgive others before God forgives us, forgiveness would be unattainable. Having been forgiven first by the grace and mercy of God, we are able to forgive others.

Our ability to forgive one another is the surest way of knowing we are forgiven. Those who are truly forgiven, truly forgive.

“Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” (Luke 11:4).

Fr. Hugh Duffy