There is Something About Mary Series – The Beauty of Radical Forgiveness

Ponder:  Sin hurts us and offends God.  Am I humble enough to ask for and accept forgiveness?

Pause for a few moments of silence, recite the prayers as indicated in chart below if you wish, to prepare for today’s mystery.  You might offer a prayer request for each decade or a Hail Mary for a specific person. 

Pray:  The Third Luminous Mystery: The Proclamation of the Kingdom

Christ proclaims the Kingdom of God and calls all to conversion.  Fruit of the mystery: Repentance

The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry.  After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15)

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.  Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus, who preached the Kingdom and forgiveness of sins.  Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Pray for us Mary, Star of the New Evangelization, That we may truly repent and avoid sin and its near occasion. 

Amen

Reflect:   When Jesus spoke about the kingdom, he perplexed people. They had a certain image of God and his ways, and Jesus turned them upside down and inside out. In our own ways, we too have images of God and ways of thinking about how God does things that he wants to turn upside down—which as it turns out will be right side up. Christ’s Kingdom is about service to others, not domination where I act as king and things must be my way. Jesus invites the brokenhearted and those who have fallen into sin to the Kingdom and forgives the sins of all who draw near to Him in humble trust.  The fruit of humility allows for authentic repentance. It offers us radical forgiveness.   How well do we acknowledge and allow Christ the King to reign over all areas of our lives?  Our leisure time, our business world, our families?  Do we seek God’s truth? 

Act: Today I will contemplate if there is an area of my life where I am lord and I’ll invite Christ to reign.