He who stands, let him be careful not to fall—the power of forgiveness.

Can you imagine your life without forgiveness? What would it look like if we were immediately condemned for every sin we committed…?

We heard the admonition for the Pharisees: “When you prepare a feast, invite the poor… and you will be rewarded” (Lk 14 21:13-14). The feast has always been considered something extra. Wishes… Even today’s world is not without Pharisees, and there are also modern “poor, crippled, lame or blind” in it. No one in this world is perfect. No one can say they have nothing to improve on. Modern Pharisees also claim this. You will agree that many of us have already been judged or condemned, either because of the appearance of our face, our attitude to life, or just at first glance. Mahatma Gandhi,  on one occasion, when asked why he did not become a Christian, said: “If there were no Christians, I would have been a Christian long ago.” …instead, they preach a doctrine of condemnation and judgment. A friend tells a friend, don’t mess with that one talk because she’s like this or like that. Husbands complain about each other in front of their friends; he’s like this, she’s like that. When some of these people meet a homeless person on the street in the city, they say to themselves, he needs you. He is to blame for that. Even in the church, some look at each other and ask themselves, how dare this man step into the church? What audacity? He has done so much evil; he does not belong here. I expect a reward from God. For what? For words? For attitudes?  St. Paul writes in his letter: “Therefore whoever thinks he is standing, let him be careful not to fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). The Father is very pleased with these sinners.

You can list the names of the world’s most remarkable criminals, the names of the tyrants who wallowed in blood, the executioners of millions of Christian martyrs of the first centuries, and ask the Catholic Church: “Were they rejected?” And the answer: “That is in God’s hands.” You know the old Slovak proverb: “Better to inhibit than to ban.” This also applies when making judgments about our neighbors.

The life story of a particular Roman priest, whom the people called a “saint” and who performed miracles, can serve as an illustration. He once tried to convert a specific criminal who was sentenced to death. Everything was in vain. For three days, he begged him; he used all his abilities just so that he would not die without care but in vain. The criminal continued to curse and cynically refused to confess. The priest followed him to the gallows. He rejected him here, too. The priest finally lost patience and cried out: “People, come here and see how the sinner dies”! What were the consequences of this cry? After 40 years, the process of declaring this priest blessed was renewed. The miracles he performed were proven, and yet he was not declared a saint because of the words he uttered at that time, because these words were not worthy of a saint, as well as of our holy faith.

Let us be worthy of our faith. Let us rejoice every day that we can give back again and again what we have received from God.