forgiveness – Life on the Chrism Trail

Homily for the Twenty-fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time

September 13, 2026
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
Washington, D.C.

Sirach 27:30-28:7
Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12
Romans 14:7-9
Matthew 18:21-35

“Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight.” These words from the Book of Sirach, the first reading in our Mass, offer an instruction on anger, vengeance, and forgiveness. Wrath is a destructive force, and because of our emotions we are prone to let it overtake us and drive us farther away from reason. We remember insults and injuries we have received and feel justified in returning the same. Our irritations soon become grudges, and our irascibility frequently turns to wrath and makes us become bitter, entitled, resentful and increasingly irrational. What exactly does it mean to hug anger tight?