Blotted out
Today’s Gospel is the parable about a wasteful steward, a bad manager. One who is about to get fired.
The manager’s big idea? Before he gets fired, he calls in the people who are in debt to his soon-to-be-former employer. And writes off their debts.
He makes sure they know that he’s the one who gave them a break. So they’ll be willing to help him out. When he shows up next week looking for a job.
Some worldly wisdom by the wasteful steward to be sure. But there’s some other worldly wisdom in this parable as well – and we see it in the people whose debts are written off.
None of them go back to the steward’s former employer and ask to have their debts reinstated. To a person they are all happy to take the gift they’ve been given.
And the steward’s former employer? He doesn’t try to have their debts reinstated. He never speaks of the debts again.
Why would he do that? Remember, this is a parable. Which means that there is a lot more going on here. For his part, Origen sees a beautiful image of God’s forgiveness in this.
Thinking of all the idiot things that you and I do to separate ourselves God, Origen says, “if you transgress, you write in yourselves the handwriting of sin…”
“When you have approached the cross of Christ and the grace of forgiveness, your handwriting is fastened to the cross and blotted out in the fountain of forgiveness.”
“Do not rewrite later what has been blotted out, or repair what has been destroyed.”
This is what happens in Reconciliation.
After God forgives us, He blots out the records of our wrongdoing and destroys the evidence.
After God forgives us, He doesn’t remind us of what we did. Or hold it against us.
After God forgives us, He never thinks about our sins again.
Something to remember, the next time you and I try to beat ourselves up over something that God has already forgiven.
Today’s Readings
