The Parable Of The Unforgiving So-Called Servants

They preach about forgiveness; but they do not practice what they preach. What I am writing here is addressed to the priests, bishops, archbishops, cardinals and nuns of the Catholic Church, whether religious or diocesan.

To Forgive and To Love

You must have heard or read the parable of the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18:23-35. If you are a priest, a nun, a pastor or a priest of higher position such as a bishop, I am sure that you know about this parable. For that reason, I would no longer quote Matthew's gospel here. Instead, I am going to write about The Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians 2:5–11.

Before reading the passage, if you are a religious leader of the Catholic Church in the Philippines, I want you to pause for a little while and think why I am addressing this post to you all. Reflect on the lines that I have emphasized.

Forgiveness for the Offender 2 Cor 2:5–11

But if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but to some extent — not to exaggerate it — to all of you. This punishment by the majority is enough for such a person; so now instead you should forgive and console him so that he may not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. So I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. I wrote for this reason: to test you and to know whether you are obedient in everything. Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. What I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ. And we do this so that we may not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.

Pope John Paul II Forgives His Assassin

On 13 May 1981, Mehmet Ali shot and wounded Pope John Paul II. While in the hospital recuperating, the Pope expressed his forgiveness to his perpetrator four days after the attempted assassination. The Pope even requested the Italian president then, Carlo Ciampi, to pardon Mehmet which the good president granted. The Pope even later called his failed assassin brother and asked people to pray for him. Two years after, Pope John Paul II visited Mehmet in prison and talked privately. The Pontiff had established friendship with Mehmet and had even met with Mehmet's family years after.

The Saint Pope John Paul II is an excellent example of a Christian who forgives from his heart and soul. 

I wonder if every priest and nun or sisters follow the saint's example. Let's find out.

The Church and the Marcoses

You often hear [some] priests, bishops and nuns talked on every platform about the Marcoses as the unforgivable thieves. They always refer to the Marcoses's ill-gotten wealth during the martial law. Ferdinand Marcos has been dead for 33 years (1989-2022). Martial Law ended in 1981. So, it has been more than four decades since the martial law ended and five decades since it began.

If the saintly pope John Paul II was able to forgive the man who tried to kill him in four days, how come the Catholic church of the Philippines could not forgive Ferdinand Marcos? It has been 5 decades.

The priests, bishops and nuns of the catholic church preach about forgiveness and the Sacrament of Reconciliation; yet they could not forgive a man who has been dead for 40 years. Worse, they often refer to the Marcoses, which means that they have labeled as thieves even the innocent grandchildren and great grand children of Ferdinand Marcos. Is that fair and right that the children, grandchildren and great grandchildren inherit the crimes and sins of their parents or grandparents? 

Ferdinand's crime is not about you personally; in fact, some of you may have not been born yet during the martial law. But you talk as if the Marcoses had stolen from you personally. You are not a party to his crime; if you are, go ahead, bring the dead Ferdinand to court. 

If you could not be merciful, at least, do not persecute every member of the Marcos kin and use your pulpit to brainwash each catholic to parallel their minds to what you believe in hatred.

Nuns and sisters: If a young girl entered your convent to become a postulant, but she later confessed that she was a daughter of a prostitute, what would you do to her?

Priests, bishops and the like: How would you treat a fellow priest whom you later found out that his father was in prison for murder?

Be an example of what you preach. If you want every Christian and non-Christian to value the sacrament that you preach, be an example rather than being a hypocrite.

Message from the Blessed Mother

In one of her messages in Medjugorje, the Blessed Mother said, "... a time is coming when almost every Catholic will be ashamed of the words of Jesus. She said very few Catholics will remain faithful, very few. And those who do will be persecuted terribly by other Catholics...."

Do not let this happen. If you continue to be what you are today, the Blessed Mother's warning might take place. When it does, it will be all your fault for preaching mercilessness rather than forgiveness; division rather than solidarity; hatred and anger rather than love.

St Paul Knows Better Than You Do

Remember what St Paul said in his letter to the Corinthians: 

• Forgive and console the one who has wronged you;
• Reaffirm your love by doing more than to forgive;
• Be obedient because you have to set an example for what you preach;
• Do all these: forgive, love and obey; otherwise, the one behind your words, mind, and heart is Satan.

Think about the words of St Paul who knows better than what you preach. Each time you speak ill with anger and hatred against the Marcoses and their families, it is not you who speaks but Satan. 

Maybe today, when you stand in that pulpit again, speak with compassion so that you may know the difference between the words that come from evil and the Word of God.

My Prayer

If you are going to judge me that who am I to talk about this sacrament of forgiveness, I am just nobody. What I only know is that I have learned to truly forgive.

If this post has hurt you in any way, it is because the truth hurts. Sana tablan kayo.