Your Entire Debt

August 14, 2008

Memorial of Saint Maximilian Mary Kolbe, priest and martyr

I am a sign for you: as I have done, so shall it be done to them; as captives they shall go into exile. The prince who is among them shall shoulder his burden and set out in darkness, going through a hole that he has dug in the wall, and covering his face lest he be seen by anyone. Ezekiel 12:11-12

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?” Matthew 18:32-33

Piety

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/081408a.shtml

Limitless forgiveness. That is the primary message Jesus wants us to understand about God. And he wants us to emulate that same behavior – offering limitless forgiveness as God offers limitless forgiveness even to the thief hanging on the next cross, even to those who are crucifying him. That’s what being perfect as God is perfect means. Perfectly merciful.

We have all kinds of debts…financial and otherwise. We all have bills to pay. The sooner we pay them, the more are delivered by the mailman. Mortgage. Car payments. Gas. Heat and electricity and water. Cable television. Credit cards. Student loans. Home improvements.

Not only do we owe money to those who send us bills, we also owe money every time we head out to the grocery store, drug store, department store, shopping mall, home improvement store, electronics store, barber shop and deli.

Then there are the charities calling on us for contributions. Hurricane season brings out the Red Cross. Each step in Maslow’s staircase brings for thousands of charities seeking our support for their mission.

How do we choose? What if we did not have the kinds of incomes that we enjoy? How would we pay our debts if we did not have jobs, retirement accounts, savings and other resources? Some people are one crisis away from being in serious financial difficulty.

Some of these people imagine hitting the lottery, winning big in Atlantic City, or backing a winner at the horse track. They don’t want to hit the “little lottery” like the Virginia scratch-off. They dream of the really big lottery like the $47 million prize in the Power Ball. Talk about wiping the slate clean. That would just about do it.

Are you one spiritual crisis away from being in serious debt to God? If so, that is a whole different story. When we have debts to God and offer them up, it is like hitting the Power Ball of Forgiveness every day. We offer them to God and ask forgiveness. And voila! Forgiven. Maybe we can change the name of Penance to Power Ball. The lines would probably be a bit longer on a Saturday afternoon at church!

Action

Debts to Man: Did you know that 36.5 million Americans live below the poverty line? They can not pay their debts to man. The ends outstrip the means. For an idea of what decisions face those without enough money visit this website -- http://www.nccbuscc.org/cchd/povertyusa/tour2.htm. You will see how people are squeezed by costs for housing, utilities, transportation, food, health care, child care and more.

For an idea every day of the month on how you can increase your awareness about poverty, debt and what you can do, visit http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/index.htm, a web site launched by the Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

One idea is to plan a vacation around a learning experience or volunteer project. Then you get enriched while paying off a debt.

Debts to God: What have we done wrong in life? For what have we been forgiven? Can you pass on such perfect mercy to others as you have experienced it?