“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing.”
These are Jesus’ words from the cross, which point out that neither the Roman authorities nor the Jewish council of the Sanhedrin recognize who He is. Yet, as He gives His life for us and for all on the cross, He continues to reach out with God’s compassion for the murderer who is dying on the cross next to Him. He also gives His mother Mary, not just to John, but to all of us that she might show us how to say “yes” to God and be Mother to us all. But were Jesus’ words just for that awful day in the first century, or do they still resonate in many ways in our world today?
Jonathan Swift, the essayist, satirist and Anglican cleric, sadly said, “We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another.” Although the major wars of religion in Europe were over, Swift lived in Dublin and saw the murderous way that the British treated the Irish. As was even more true a century later during the
Irish Potato Famine, Ireland was exporting food to Britain even as its own poor faced famine. In a brutally satirical essay, Swift proposed that it would be kinder if the British killed and ate the Irish children rather than letting them slowly starve to death.
How are we doing today? As Catholics, are we living out being one holy, catholic and apostolic Church as we profess, or are we riven at times with factionalism, anger, neglect of the poor and the stranger, back-biting and detraction? Do we make it a point to try to follow St. Paul’s advice in Philippians: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (4:8)?
Why focus on the positive? We do so in order that we do not overlook the grace that God is continually pouring out into our world. As St. Ignatius knew so well, it is the evil spirit that wants to drag us down into desolation so our faith, hope and love will be undermined. We lose our “holy” energy and fall easily into anger, detraction, envy or apathy. We also can turn our energy into seeking distraction, with substance abuse, consumerism, pornography, thrill seeking, etc. “In contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. …If we live in the Spirit, let us also follow the Spirit. Let us not be conceited, provoking one another, envious of one another” (Gal 5: 22-23, 25-26).
It saddens me when I see Catholics attacking one another, often using political terms against one another – liberal, conservative, traditionalist, socialist, unorthodox, orthodox, real Catholics, fake Catholics – the list could go on. If we really believed that the other was corrupting the faith and thus was the enemy, we would follow Jesus’ advice and would pray for our enemies and do good to those who would hurt us. In the Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius encouraged trying to understand what the other meant and finding some good in what the person is saying. Often we can agree on the underlying value that the other has. We can then gently go from that value to show other values that need to be taken into account. We seek to understand, rather than jump to judgment.
I’m on the older side of life but can recall seeing as a young man one of the saddest things I’ve ever witnessed. The Second Vatican Council had taken place when I was in college, and the Mass was being translated into the common languages of the people. It was being enriched with a much wider selection of Scripture and what seemed to be new Eucharist Prayers, one of which goes back partially to “The Apostolic Tradition” in the 3rd century and is a bit older than the Roman Canon. After college, I moved to Chicago and often went to two Sunday Masses. First, I went to an English Mass in my Anglo-Hispanic Parish and then to a Latin Mass, where I sang in the choir. The Gospel and the sermon were in English. There was an elderly woman who, when the Gospel was proclaimed, would stand and put her fingers in her ears so that she would not hear it in English. I felt sorry for her and often prayed for her that God would open her heart so that His love would overcome her sorrow at the changes.
So often, I can see Jesus still praying, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing.” Yes, my Lord Jesus, forgive me for the times that I harden my heart to others because I think that I know better. Teach me to focus on what is good that I might be an instrument of your peace – a consoler, not a disturber, humble, not proud, fully catholic, that is, open to the many and varied ways that your grace is at work in the hearts and lives of so many. Give me the grace to love as you love. Make this my prayer, and the prayer of all of us. Amen.
Jesuit Father John Michalowski is the parochial vicar of St. Peter Church in Charlotte.