Why does God even forgive the worse of sinners?

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PelagiathePenit

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Society does not. The natural world does not. There are consequences for all of our actions. It is easy to think just because we do not commit the very serious sins, that we are good people. What about the evil people, the racists, the rapists, the thieves, do they still deserve kindness and respect? Most of us choose to isolate ourselves from them FOR GOOD REASONS, THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER NO MATTER WHAT. I just do not understand how or why God would forgive them.
 
And murderers, of course, are one of the worst sinners. Because God is not human. We are looking at these flawed humans as flawed humans ourselves. He is above all of this. He is supposed to forgive even the worst, and they are the ones who love Him the most when they are forgiven. This is what Jesus said when Mary Magdalene was washing His feet with her tears, perfuming them, and drying them with her hair. I’ve always loved that story. But these sinners can’t and won’t be forgiven if they aren’t repentant. The longing to be forgiven needs to come first.
 
Society does not. The natural world does not. There are consequences for all of our actions. It is easy to think just because we do not commit the very serious sins, that we are good people. What about the evil people, the racists, the rapists, the thieves, do they still deserve kindness and respect? Most of us choose to isolate ourselves from them FOR GOOD REASONS, THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER NO MATTER WHAT. I just do not understand how or why God would forgive them.
The Gospel of Luke:
A Sinful Woman Forgiven

36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house, and took his place at table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40 And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “What is it, Teacher?” 41 “A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he forgave them both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, to whom he forgave more.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house, you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
God Bless

Thank you for reading
Josh
 
Jesus to Catalina:
The Great Crusade of Mercy - loveandmercy.org/Eng-CM-Reg.pdf
(Roman Catholic Imprimatur)

**2) My beloved, make of your heart a brazier of love to shelter your God. I want to talk to you about My Mercy; I want to teach you Mercy; I want you to preach My Mercy. But in order to speak of it, you need to feel love because a person who does not love, cannot know Mercy.
  1. If you love, it is because I loved you first; just as I am Love. Whoever knows how to love remains in Me and I in him. My Father did not send Me as an offering for you to love Me, but because My Father is Love and I am one with My Father. Therefore, understand that nothing is sweeter than love, for it proceeds from the One who is the Creator of everything.
  2. And so, if you want to be merciful to your fellow human being, first you have to love and be compassionate to that person and if you want to receive Mercy, you must let yourself be loved. Mercy is the chain that unites with love, for one cannot love without being merciful. Understand that My love is without measure, it does not feel burdensome, nor does it value effort, it is simply given. You, on the other hand, are weak in love and imperfect in virtue; you are in need of My strength and of My comfort. I am the One who values the works that you do whether they be big or little.
  3. When I speak to you, I speak to My other children. I enkindle in you the desire to seek what is perfect. Always love Me more than yourself. Love all others in Me. All who are begotten of God can conquer the world with their faith and their love. All those who are not prepared to suffer and to resign themselves to the will of God are unworthy of being called loving creatures and, therefore, cannot know Mercy.
  4. I want you to delve deeply into all of this. Love is a fellowship where through My goodness, charity allows itself to be obtained. Love is gentleness, strength, and humble graces, for love keeps guard alertly over all the senses. Love is chaste and sensible through the union of its faithfulness. Love is prudent, valiant, patient, suffering, and enduring. I am Love.
  5. If you love each other, I will live in you and My love reaches perfection in you. On the path of love you will encounter difficulties and you will suffer, but you will always feel loved if you experience love. The true virtue of love is to offer itself wholeheartedly with all its being, to the will of God without seeking any kind of consolation. If suffering defeats you, do not think that you should stop suffering, but rather you should know that when interior consolation disappears, you are genuinely walking on the right path of peace no matter how dark it may be, waiting for the day when with great joy you will behold My face…
  6. And now, My sweet child, let us speak of pain and forgiveness, for in order to be able to understand Mercy, you must understand suffering and know how to forgive others. When you suffer an injustice, when you bear trials because you acknowledge My presence, consider that it is My grace working in you. When in suffering you submerge yourself in Me, you abandon yourself; then the suffering is very painful but it is the greatest proof of your faith in Me because you know that the result of My Mercy will be salvation.
  7. Inner suffering is the most viable because it is the suffering that humans cannot see with their eyes, but rather with their hearts. It allows your heart to unite with My Heart and allows you to be merciful, for it lets you love through compassion. When you are capable of uniting yourself in harmony and compassion with your fellowman, you are uniting with Me in Love and Mercy.
  8. I have said: “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Now, I say to you: rid yourself of all bitterness, all evil passion and anger, rudeness, slander and malice; try to be kind and compassionate; forgive as I have forgiven you and you will receive My Merciful Love. Love and Mercy cannot exist where there is discord. Forgive yourself so that I may forgive you. Do not store up negative reproaches against yourself – love yourself, be merciful with yourself, be compassionate. You cannot forgive without forgetting, for you would be unable to have a pure heart, and Mercy is linked to forgiveness.**
 
Continued:
**11) Mercy is love, My child. It is union with God and union with God is the certitude of victory and an everlasting abundance of virtues. Mercy is the unquestionable proof of love for Me.
  1. Human justice does not accompany Mercy. Justice is something imposed by mankind in retaliation for an injury done to one person by another. My Father did not send Me to condemn the world, but so that it might be saved through Me. Human beings should not undertake vengeance on their own but should leave that up to the will of God.
  2. If you have sinned, admit your faults, ask for forgiveness, and always return to Me. Submerge yourself in My Mercy, which will redeem you. Be merciful and compassionate towards anyone who offends you. Pray for them and for all who tread the path of evil. Forgive their sins, for the rest of their inheritance is in My hands. Do not continue to harbor anger and do not judge; have Mercy.
  3. My children, if you are guilty, return to Me, cleanse your hands and purify your hearts. Do not return evil with evil. Submit yourselves to Me; rise up against the evil that always tries to destroy love through the laws of mankind. You judge, you condemn, and, then, you say you are merciful and that you love Me. Is that Mercy? It cannot be. It is your sins that blind you and make you hide your faces from Me. I do not want that, My little ones…
  4. At the last moment you will have nothing to defend yourselves with except My Mercy. You should understand that Mercy is love and pure love strengthens the soul at the moment of death. Whoever lacks mercy is blind; he forgets to purify his own sins of the past. Obviously you will not prosper if you hide your sins, but you will obtain My Mercy if you repent and confess your faults. If I radiate abundant mercy upon you who are sinners, you should radiate Mercy upon your fellowman.
  5. It is I who have conquered the world, not you. If you love, you are begotten by My love; if you have Mercy, you will conquer the world, for you will live in Me and in the purity of love. The grace that I give you is Mercy because I give love to you, because I give Myself to you. So, use that grace and I will give you a new heart that will replace your cold hearts. Live under grace, not under the law.**
 
One answer is told in Isaiah 55:7-9:
Let the wicked forsake their way,
and sinners their thoughts;
Let them turn to the Lord to find mercy;
to our God, who is generous in forgiving.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways—oracle of the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways,
my thoughts higher than your thoughts.
and Jesus commands us to forgive and be merciful like God (Matthew 5:43-48):
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same? So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.
 
Society does not.
God doesn’t have to do what society does. We aren’t perfect, but God is. We shouldn’t impose ourselves on Him.
The natural world does not.
God doesn’t have to do what the natural world does. Also, beings in the natural world other than humans aren’t rational (or at least, aren’t fully rational) so it is hardly fair to apply this to God.
There are consequences for all of our actions. It is easy to think just because we do not commit the very serious sins, that we are good people.
So if there are consequences for all our actions, doesn’t that include the sinners?
What about the evil people, the racists, the rapists, the thieves, do they still deserve kindness and respect?
Of course they do still deserve respect. They were made in the image of God. As you have suggested, there are indeed consequences for all our actions. Whether it be in this life or the next. But do you realize that the punishment of a disordered mind is its own disorder?

Take some time to think about what that means.
Most of us choose to isolate ourselves from them FOR GOOD REASONS, THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER NO MATTER WHAT. I just do not understand how or why God would forgive them.
Are you sure it’s for good reason? What if it’s out of contempt for the sinner than just the sin? Clearly, separating ourselves from them is contrary to mercy. When you abandon the sinner, you are forgetting about God. How do you know they will screw you over no matter what? Where do you get this knowledge from? Why do you think they’ll screw you over “no matter what”? Do you not believe a person can change? Surely it’s possible with God?

Only God truly knows why He forgives them; you don’t have access to God’s mind or the sinner’s mind so it’s impossible get a complete understanding of why God forgives them. God has revealed certain aspects of Himself to us and that is what we can use to help us understand Him. We know that God is loving. We know that God is just and merciful; Gods justice and mercy are inseparable.

It sounds like what you want is for evil people to be punished according to how you want and for them to be punished then and there; that they shouldn’t be forgiven by God. Why do you know better?

It sounds like you want to see them punished. If this is the case, I think you need to reexamine your conscience.
 
God is love. Sin is when we turn away from God. Sure, the varying degrees of sin are there, but all sin is a turning away from God. Now, God is love. If God is love and the sinner repents and asks to be forgiven, how do you think God will respond? The God who was humbled himself and became man, was crucified for our sins?

Christ did not die on the cross for the “saints”. He died on the cross for the sinners; so that we may all be saints.
 
Society does not. The natural world does not. There are consequences for all of our actions. It is easy to think just because we do not commit the very serious sins, that we are good people. What about the evil people, the racists, the rapists, the thieves, do they still deserve kindness and respect? Most of us choose to isolate ourselves from them FOR GOOD REASONS, THEY WILL SCREW YOU OVER NO MATTER WHAT. I just do not understand how or why God would forgive them.
I suggest reading and re-reading and meditating on the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15). Without understanding the meaning of this parable, nothing else in our faith will make any sense.
 
To the OP: Why would you not want God to forgive these sinners if He determines that they have appropriately asked for forgiveness?

Can God be TOO merciful?
 
1 Tim. 1:15: “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ died for sinners, of whom I am the worst.”

Your question indicates that you don’t understand or accept that saying. Try to accept it, and God will reveal to you the depth of His mercy for YOU. Once you understand that it is possible for God to forgive you, you won’t be surprised that God forgives murderers and rapists.
 
Society does not. The natural world does not. There are consequences for all of our actions.
Since when does society’s standard apply to the Lord God of Hosts?

Thank God it does not or none of us would ever have any hope at all.
It is easy to think just because we do not commit the very serious sins, that we are good people.
Indeed, as St. John says*** "[16] If any one sees his brother committing what is not a mortal sin, he will ask, and God will give him life for those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin which is mortal; I do not say that one is to pray for that. [17] All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin which is not mortal. "***
What about the evil people, the racists, the rapists, the thieves, do they still deserve kindness and respect?
Do our enemies? Our Lord speaks to all of us in ***Matthew 5:[38] "You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' [39] But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also; [40] and if any one would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak as well; [41] and if any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. [42] Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you. [43] "You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ [44] But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, [45] so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. [46] For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? [47] And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? [48] You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. ***
Most of us choose to isolate ourselves from them FOR GOOD REASONS, THEY WILL (See Matthew 12:26) NO MATTER WHAT. I just do not understand how or why God would forgive them.
Yet what did Our Blessed Lord say,*** "[16] “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)

Matthew 6: 14-15* "[14] For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; [15] but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
**
 
There’s more…
***Matthew 18: [21] Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” [22] Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven. [23] “Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. [24] When he began the reckoning, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents; [25] and as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. [26] So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.' [27] And out of pity for him the lord of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. [28] But that same servant, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat he said, Pay what you owe.’ [29] So his fellow servant fell down and besought him, Have patience with me, and I will pay you.' [30] He refused and went and put him in prison till he should pay the debt. [31] When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. [32] Then his lord summoned him and said to him, You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you besought me; [33] and should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’ [34] And in anger his lord delivered him to the jailers, till he should pay all his debt. [35] So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”

***Does that help put it in context for you? I have never found anything in the Bible that says all this is supposed to be easy, but that doesn’t change the standard that Our Blessed Lord has set before us. I don’t know about you, but I desperately want His forgiveness and so I purpose within my heart that I will give my own forgiveness in order to finally gain His.
 
http://www.canossians.net/images/Christ crucified.jpg

What? You don’t understand how God can forgive?
Me neither…especially when I look upon what He has done for me when I deserve so much worse.

The love and mercy of God is unfathomable. I can only gaze upon this image in uncomprehending amazement that God Almighty would make such a horrendous sacrifice for one such as I.

I often think on these verses from the New Testament.

Matthew 21:31 "… Jesus said to them, "Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. "

And what was the gripe the pharisees had against Our Blessed Lord and which St. Augustine said should be carved into the front of every Catholic altar? "This man receives sinners and eats with them." (Luke 15:2)

The peace of the Lord be with you always my brother.🙂
 
Jesus said, Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. We are all sinners and none of us knows what temptations and sins lie before us. I daily thank God that I have not been tested to the degree which so many others are.

in my youth, I would often say, “I’d never do that.” My dear mother’s response would always be, “no, given the same set of circumstances, you’d probably have done worse.” Words by which most of us should live.

We can’t judge, because we can’t see into anyone’s soul, only God can and it is a great thing that his divine justice is tempered by his divine mercy.
 
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