Forgiving—even when we’d rather not

A Reflection for Monday of the Sixteenth Week of Ordinary Time

Find today’s readings here.

Jonah really didn’t want to go to Nineveh. 

Nineveh was the capital of Assyria, and the Assyrians extracted tribute and crushed revolt for decades before a three-year siege of Samaria. They then systematically dismantled Israel’s national, cultural and demographic identity. More than 700 years before the birth of Christ, the Assyrians deported more than 27,000 captives from Samaria and replaced them with other peoples they had conquered in an effort to quell uprisings. The Assyrians also terrorized those they ruled with torture and mutilation. 

Given that history, it is understandable why Jonah would rather die than bring God’s message of mercy and forgiveness to Nineveh. It would be like asking nations in a long war to forgive each other. Or perhaps, in our polarized political climate, a better example would be asking one party to forgive another. 

Despite Jonah’s reluctance, the Ninevites did repent. Jonah wasn’t happy about it. In the book’s final chapter, he sits outside, his heart still hardened and angry with God for forgiving his enemies. But sometimes it is those people who we believe are beyond God’s grace who are most open to it. 

In today’s Gospel, Jesus pushes it further. He mentions the “queen of the south,” the queen of Sheba, who despite being of a different faith, seeks out that wisdom herself. She doesn’t need a prophet like Jonah to bring it to her. 

God’s mercy will not be bound by our deeply-held animosities. It is offered to all. We may perceive a group of people to be our enemies, but they may be willing to hear God’s message from us anyway. We must not harden our hearts, but let go of our grievances. We are called to love goodness and walk humbly with God, to be willing to share God’s mercy even when we’d rather not.

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