Dear Parents and Carers

In the gospel, last Sunday, Jesus teaches us that those who do not love their neighbour as they should are to be treated with dignity and respect and offered every opportunity to seek forgiveness.
The challenge and hallmark of the Christian life is the way in which we live out God’s love and forgiveness. The love and forgiveness of God does not mean that ‘anything goes’. It is a love that calls for constant conversion. We can witness to it only to the degree that we have experienced it, from God, from others, and in the way we love and forgive ourselves.
(Excerpts taken from Fr Richard Leonard Reflections - Matthew 18:15-20).
It can sometimes be very difficult when we feel that someone has hurt us to go and speak to them about how we are feeling. It is so much easier to revel in our hurt or seek payback. We feel that we might ruin a friendship. But a hurt that goes unaddressed will continue and will probably be repeated. This week’s gospel reminds us of the need to challenge others when they hurt us, but it also reminds us that when we have hurt others, we need to be challenged about it and called to account for our actions.