(This article originally appeared in the TAU-USA Summer 2026  Issue #120)

By Francine Gikow, OFS

In Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, the first definition of “trespass” is “a violation of moral or social ethics, especially sin.” In the Our Father prayer, it means those sins or wrongs committed against us. These are the moments when people injure us, let us down, break our trust, and/or hurt our feelings.

For St. Francis, forgiveness is not a simple task. It is a deep, spiritual action that requires God’s intervention. Francis gives us a gentle, structured way to process and let go of hurts: We have to decide to choose love over hate. We ask for the strength to love our enemies and fervently intercede for them before God. “Forgiveness bears witness that, in this world, love is stronger than sin.” (CCC: 2844)

In the Catholic faith, forgiveness is a divine command and a choice, not a feeling. Jesus teaches to receive God’s mercy; we must forgive others. This means consciously letting go of anger and a desire for revenge, even when the person who hurt you is not sorry. Forgiveness does not require the person who has injured you to fix the damage which occurred nor “make up” for their injury. It depends upon your decision to forgive based in God.

Forgiveness is a process – it takes time. Forgiveness doesn’t automatically make us feel better or is a “one and done” but it is a choice…a choice to let go of the burden of carrying anger, revenge, and hatred so that ultimately we may be freed of the feelings controlling our lives. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “It is not in our power not to feel or to forget an offense; but the heart that offers itself to the Holy Spirit turns injury into compassion and purifies the memory in transforming the hurt into intercession” (No. 2843).

Forgiveness is NOT saying what the person did was OK. It is saying, “What you did was wrong but I choose to love you anyway. We break the cycle of pain by forgiving. It prevents returning evil for evil and instead strives to share Christ’s love.  It is an intention to pray for that person in the love that we have already experienced from the love that God has shown us.

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AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US:

And what we do not completely forgive,

make us, Lord, forgive completely

that we may truly love our enemies because of You

and we may fervently intercede for them before You,  

returning no one evil for evil

and we may strive to help everyone in You.

St.Francis of Assisi

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If there is re-injury, the process begins again. It opens another opportunity to choose to forgive again. Matthew: 18:21-22, states: “Then Peter approaching asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy times seven.” The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible describes the term “seventy times seven” as denoting “limitless forgiveness and mercy,” the behavior Jesus expected from the apostles…and from us.

Forgiveness leads to a participation in the mystery of God’s love for each one of us. By our choices, we show that love is stronger than sin. Perhaps this is why the old adage rings true: “To err is human; to forgive, divine.” Genuine forgiveness draws us right into the heart of divine life.

For further study:

Read: Catechism of the Catholic Church: 2842-2845

Reflect: Look at the difficult relationships in your life and ask yourself: Do I hold grudges? Have I been reluctant to forgive someone? (Psst…sometimes it is even yourself who needs forgiveness!)

Act: Pray for that individual and ask God to help you to love that person as God loves you.