The following writing are nuggets of thought that were gleaned from my annual retreat at El Retiro (2015) reflecting on the writings and talks given by Pope Francis.
We have all heard Pope Francis say many times the simple declaration, “I am a sinner.” It is an act of humility that each Christian speaks and within the Sacrament of Reconciliation we as Catholic Christians seek healing grace from our God.
What type of sinner are we? This is a question that Jesus answers throughout his ministry and which Francis repeats clearly, “I am a loved sinner.” Before you read any further, please take some time to rest and ponder those words. “I am a loved sinner.”
In the Gospels, each time Jesus encounters a person, he looks at them and loves them. Each woman or man, rich or poor, sick or healthy, whatever the state of life, Jesus looks at them and loves them. Today, at this very moment, Jesus looks at you and loves you.
I do not know how many times I have heard someone tell me the sin the committed is unforgivable. Or that they have done so many bad things that God could never love or forgive them. Or how many times within the Sacrament of Reconciliation I have spoken the words “God loves you” and the person begins to cry understanding again how much God desires them, a loved sinner, to be with Him.
This isn’t a soft marshmallow anything goes love. Rather, it is a love that is merciful and desires the union of love. Jesus, when he encountered others did not wish them to remain in their sin. He called them to conversion where they began to walk with him in holiness. It is a call repeated again and again in invitation to his closest disciples who kept on getting it wrong but in love continued the journey knowing God’s love through their companionship with Jesus.
As a loved sinner we have hope in love. It is a hope that is founded in our shared experience of knowing Jesus and experiencing the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
As followers of Jesus Christ we are all loved sinners and in our life of faith we are called to express this gift of love through our actions of forgiveness, reconciliation and mercy in the world. It is possible but only when we begin to live, “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us” in each moment of our lives. A loved sinner accepts the gift of mercy from our Heavenly Father and then generously passes it on to their neighbor the loved sinner.
God Bless
Fr. Mark