WHEN YOU FORGIVE, YOU SET A PRISONER FREE | 13 SEPTEMBER 2026 HOMILY with Fr. Jerry Orbos, SVD

Who is the least stressed driver in the world? The funeral car driver. Why? He is not in a hurry, he is not bothered by traffic, and, best of all, he does not carry a back-seat driver.
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In today's Gospel (Matthew 18:21–35), Jesus teaches us about forgiveness and reconciliation. Forgiveness is one of the most difficult, yet most freeing, lessons we can learn in life. It is a journey of the heart that often calls us to let go, again and again. As Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude.” How true. Forgiveness is not always a single act that happens once and is finished forever. Sometimes, we have to forgive again and again, especially when the memory of the hurt returns, again and again.
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There is a saying that reminds us of what anger can do: “Anger does more damage to the vessel in which it is stored than to the vessel on which it is poured.” When we keep anger inside us, we may think we are punishing the person who hurt us. But often, we are the ones who suffer. Lewis B. Smedes wrote, “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” We have a choice: to forgive and become free, or to refuse to forgive and remain trapped in anger, stress, bitterness, and sadness.
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Mahatma Gandhi said, “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.” Indeed, forgiveness is not weakness. It takes strength to forgive when we have been deeply hurt. It takes humility to set aside our pride. And it takes faith to surrender to God what we cannot change. Perhaps this is the prayer we need to make: “Lord, You have forgiven me so many times. Help me to do likewise.”
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Think for a moment of the person who has hurt you the most. Perhaps there is someone you