Joseph B. Healy - Jesus on Forgiveness: Words of Mercy from the Son of God

Copyright 2015 by Joseph B. Healy

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bible. English. Selections. Authorized. 2015.

Jesus on forgiveness : words of mercy from the Son of God / by Joseph B. Healy.

pages cm

ISBN 978-1-63450-415-7 (hardcover : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-1-5107-0137-3 (ebook) 1. Forgiveness--Biblical teaching. 2. Forgiveness of sin--Biblical teaching. 3. Bible--Quotations. 4. Jesus Christ--Teachings. I. Healy, Joseph B., compiler. II. Title.

BS680.F64B53 2015

234.5--dc23

2015032047

Cover design by Brian Peterson

Printed in the United States of America

Dedication

To my parents, Elizabeth Ann and
Stanley JosephMom and Dad

Contents

Introduction:

We All Need Forgiveness

And so I accept God and am glad to, and whats more I accept His wisdom. His purposewhich is completely beyond our knowledge. I believe in the underlying order and the meaning of life. I believe in the eternal harmony in which they say we shall one day be blended. I believe in the Word to which the universe is striving, and Which Itself was with God, and Which Itself is God, and so on, and so on, to infinity.

From The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men

From the Holy Bible , King James Version, Mark 3

In the Holy Bible, we read in 1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The Bible has many stories, parables, and lessons that include suffering, pain, deceit, sin, death (including the ultimate sacrificial death, the crucifixion of Christ) leading to atonement, cleansing, and forgiveness of our sins. Jesus Christ died on the cross to absolve humankind from sin and save us from eternal damnation. That promise of salvation keeps us faithful to acting justly and being good. Most, if not all, religions share this dogma of being forgiven to achieve an ultimate state of grace. We believe in a power greater than ourselves, yet we sin; we confess our sins and our faith opens us up to forgiveness and we are saved.

In the Catholic faith, we profess our faith in an Act of Contrition. Raised in the Roman Catholic faith, I often professed my faith by praying, I firmly resolve, with the help of thy grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.

I said these words after making confession to a priest, and the frequency of repeating them in one sitting afterward was determined by the priest based on how severe my sins were from the time of my previous confession. He would tell me, for example, Say four Our Fathers, ten Hail Marys, and five Acts of Contrition. I said the prayers because I wanted to be absolved. I needed to purge my feelings of guilt and to feel cleansed. I wantedI needed to be forgiven.

I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen. So I recited as my Profession of Faith in every weekly mass service I attended. (Which was every Sunday in my family when I was growing up.) I served as an acolyte (altar boy) and before Communion rang the bells as the priest recited the words of Christ: Do this in memory of me. That was a solemn moment in Sunday mass, when we bowed our heads and prayed for Gods blessing. Transubstantiation is the way of accepting and receiving Gods blessing and love, and acknowledging the sacrifice of God and Jesus Christ. Through the mass, we were all seeking forgiveness. Go in peace to love and serve the Lord, the priest would tell the congregation at the end of the service. We would give thanks to our God.

Further, in the Nicene Creed, we Catholics say: We believe in one holy Catholic and apostolic church; we acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins... Remission is a word used throughout the Holy Bible. It means forgiveness, or forgiveness of sin. Mark 1: 4 in the King James Bible says, John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Confession of sins and iniquities leads to remission. We will be forgiven.

Guilt and a persistent sense of wrongdoing probably develop in the prefrontal cortex of the human brain. Functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) scans indicate this. The human consciousness can be tormented by guilt. For that reason, we need relief to survive, to live healthy and productive lives, to contribute to our collective human existence. As humans, we need forgiveness.

My most comprehensive dictionary, Websters Third New International, defines the word forgive as to cease to feel resentment against on account of wrong committed: give up claim to requital from or retribution upon (an offender). Further, a passage in the Bible explains our powerlessness over our actionsthe Gospel According to Luke, 23:34 says, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Jesus Christ forgives us, and gives us a sense of relief, peace, and grace. Whatever your religioneven if you dont have a religionforgiveness will lead to a state of grace. In our daily lives, we need forgiveness just as we need to forgive others. These are essential qualities to being alive. The passages quoted in this book are from the Bible about remission of sin and forgiveness. Jesus Christ, son of God or prophet or poet, delivers the emotional salve we all need.

Peace be with you.

Joseph B. Healy

Waterford, Vermont

Summer 2015

Words by Jesus Christ, the Disciples of Christ, and Scripture Passages from the Holy Bible

1 John 1: 110

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;

(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)

That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.

This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: