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The National Catholic Broadcasting Council presents Let us reflect together. 40 Days of Lent Retreat from the Cross to Hope. Day 23, Forgiveness, a New Beginning, The Choice of Forgiveness, with Monsignor David Rylander.

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This series of reflections focuses on person-to-person forgiveness only, because it is such a large topic. While I do not address reconciliation, it is touched upon. Recent studies on interpersonal forgiveness make it timely to look more deeply at brokenness in human relationships. Difficulty forgiving others is a common issue. After forty years of priesthood, I've met individuals who suffer from long-term anger and resentment, often mixed with guilt. While we know the joy of receiving mercy and letting go of tension and guilt, we struggle with bitterness after being wronged. Think of your own examples. This series examines some issues about person-to-person or what is called interpersonal forgiveness. I will often refer to the dramatic true story of Hannah Arendt's Forgiveness of Martin Heidegger after the Second World War. I chose Arendt's story because it is a very human story, not caught up in perfection, and one that speaks to everyone. Arendt, a 19-year-old Jewish student, fell in love with her professor and had an affair. Heidegger pledged his devotion in letters. He was the wonder of her life. When Heidegger joined the Nazi Party, Arendt was forced to flee Germany overnight. We may wonder how she could let go of such abandonment and betrayal. The answer lies partly in Arendt's study of Saint Augustine, who shaped her understanding of love, renewal, and human freedom. She found in him a vision of love that renews the world by seeking the good of the other and by accepting the human condition as it is. Augustine taught that forgiveness arises from divine grace, which restores the human will to freedom. Forgive me my past and grant me to begin again, he prayed in the confessions. Arendt said that forgiving a wrongdoer offers them a fresh start. It helps them and ourselves move forward instead of being stuck in the past. This idea of renewal led Arendt to focus on human action. Human beings can freely choose how to respond in relationships. What we communicate more than what we do reveals who we choose to be. We are not robots responding automatically. We have the power to offer new possibilities of relating. We do not need to remain trapped in cycles of violence and retaliation as Arent witnessed during the war. We can choose love and forgiveness instead of resentment and hate. Though we fail and make mistakes, mercy allows us to begin again rather than continue in destructive cycles. For Arendt, what we communicate to others opens the possibility of living in peace. Arendt also appreciated Augustine's faith. He emphasized that God created humanity in his image and likeness, giving us reason and free will. Humans are set above the animals capable of choosing good actions, such as love, by showing forgiveness, compassion, kindness, and self-sacrifice, rather than evil or indifference. These divine gifts of reason and freedom were given so that we might choose the good over evil. Goodness is creative and life-giving. In goodness, difficult as it is, we break free of old and destructive patterns that hold us captive. Goodness does not come naturally, which is why in our next session we will examine the pain of being wronged. For reflection, read the first chapter of Genesis and contemplate how God made you different from the rest of creation.

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Join us tomorrow for Day 24, Forgiveness, a New Beginning, The Pain of Being Wronged, with Monsignor David Rylander. For more information, please email us at info at ncbc.ca, visit our website at daily tvmass.com, or call our office toll-free at one eight eight eight three eight three six two two two two two two two two two two seven seven.