Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Homily)

June 21, 2015 11:00 am  · Deacon Rick Nevins

Homilies, Ordinary Time

A violent squall came upon the waves that were breaking over the boat. In this past week, a sick young man fueled by hatred entered the Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina and killed nine people. It appears by his own admission, his rampage was fueled by hatred. It seems to me that this hatred stemmed from an irrational fear, where he perceived his victims were as some sort of threat.

In just two days after the attack, at his initial court arraignment, surviving family members of the deceased were given a chance to address the man that snuffed out the lives of their loved ones. Some of the same people that he professed to hate and saw as a threat, were now free to say to this man whatever their hearts inclined. A daughter addressed her mother's killer with these words, "I just want everyone to know, to you, I forgive you. You took something very precious away from me. I will never talk to her again, I will never be able to hold her again. But I forgive you, and have mercy on your soul. You hurt me, you hurt a lot of people. But God forgive you, and I forgive you."