Forgiveness

Forgiving means that you find it in your heart to give someone who has hurt you another chance.

You are practicing forgiveness when you:

Remember that everyone makes mistakes.

Take responsibility for your mistakes. You don't blame others.

You don't seek revenge or hold a grudge; instead, you share your feelings.

Stop giving uncaring people the chance to hurt you. If someone hurts you over and over again without being sorry, forgiving him or her will not help. You need to stop them. You may need help to do this.

Correct your mistakes instead of punishing yourself with guilt. Decide what needs to change to make things right.

Accept God's forgiveness. Ask God to give you the courage to change. Realize that you have the power to keep changing for the better.

Teacher's Note: In the Grade Three Program "In the Spirit We Belong," we learn that God loves us no matter what and is always ready to forgive us. As Catholics, we have a special way of celebrating God's forgiveness. It is called the sacrament of Reconciliation. In this sacrament Jesus' healing and peace touch us.

The Story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19-19:10)-Retold by Grade 3  (The story of Zacchaeus from the New Testament is a story of forgiveness. Children see that Zacchaeus was someone who didn't often do what is right. But when he encountered Jesus, his life was changed.) "Once a man named Zacchaeus heard that Jesus was passing by. He wanted to see Jesus but he was too short and could not see him over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a big, tall tree. Now Zacchaeus had not always been a good man. He had become rich by cheating people.     When Jesus reached the tree, he looked up at Zacchaeus and said, "Come down. I am going to your house today." Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed Jesus to his home.       The people were surprised. Jesus forgave Zacchaeus for what he had done wrong. Zacchaeus wanted to be better for Jesus. He gave back all the money he had cheated from people, and more, and he gave half of what he owned to the poor.   This story has a happy ending for everyone. Jesus forgave Zacchaeus and Zacchaeus was able to start over again. He was a changed man."       Students in Grade Three share their thoughts and pictures on Forgiveness:

Stories about Forgiving always have happy endings. (by Kristen)

When we are sorry, God always welcomes us back. (by Amanda)

No matter how many times we make bad choices, God always loves us. ( by Alex)

By Paolo

With the help of God and others, we can change. (by Mireille)

Dear Jesus, Help us to stay close to you! (by Jordan)

By Seanna By Troy By Jenny     A hug means "You are forgiven." (by Ricardo)        When we shake hands, it shows we want to make up. (by Ashley)       Jesus said to forgive others seventy times seven times! (by Colton)     The sacrament of Reconciliation helps us grow in love. (by Leo)   When we hurt someone and are sorry, we should ask to be forgiven. ( by Megan)

Dinner (a Grade 6 Story)     In a very small town near Toronto there lived a very poor family of two. They occupied a small white house on the corner of Elm street and Beaumaris Avenue. In the house lived a beautiful woman named Anne and her wonderful son named Marco. When Marco was 10 years old his father died, and ever since that day Marco has been in charge of taking care of his mother and helping her out. One day Marco was helping his mom cook dinner he made a mistake by adding to much water to the pasta. His mom tried to explain how much water was needed to boil the noodles. Because of his ego Marco was very stubborn and didn’t want to listen to his mom. He started yelling at her. "Mom, I don’t need you to teach me how to cook, I been doing it for years." "I’m just trying to help!" screamed Anne "Well, I don’t need your help!" yelled Marco back. Upset, Anne ran to her room so Marco went to go watch television. A few hours later Marco went to his mother’s room because he felt really bad for yelling at his mother. He noticed that she was sleeping and he didn’t want to wake her up, so he went back to go continue watching The Home Team. When he had enough television he went outside for fresh air. After a couple of minutes he went back inside and went to his mother’s room one more time. When he went inside, his mom was lying on the bed looking at him. Marco went and laid down on the bed beside his mom. After a couple of minutes Marco kissed his mom and told her he was sorry for yelling at her. She said she was sorry too. They both forgave each other and went to go finish making supper. When they got to the kitchen Marco asked. "Could you show me how much water is needed to boil the water?" "Sure honey," said Anne, " I’ll show you." When his mother finished explaining they continued supper. When they finished making supper and finished eating they went to go watch television. After a while Marco said. "I’m glad I have a mother like you." "And I’m glad I have a son like you," said his mother. Then they put their heads together and continued watching television. Around 10:00 p.m. Marco decided to go to bed. Before Marco went to bed he gave his mother a goodnight kiss and his mother said. "Goodnight honey." Diana Grade 6  Thoughts on Forgiveness by Grade 6 Forgiveness Everyone makes mistakes, so you should forgive people who make them. You should always correct your own mistakes and accept God's forgiveness because God will always forgive you. Here is an example of forgiveness… One day Nickanna was playing at Yvette's house when she noticed a book she really wanted. She took it off the shelf when Yvette was in the bathroom. Nickanna yelled to Yvette. "I better go now." She ran home and started reading the book. The next day, they were playing together. Nickanna tried to put the book back, but it was too late. Yvette was very angry. Nickanna tried to apologize, but Yvette would not forgive her. Nickanna bought Yvette a wonderful present, but Yvette would not accept it. Then Nickanna was surprised when Yvette said, "I forgive you."   By Nicole Gr. 6