Have you ever done something wrong and been afraid to own up to it? Afraid that the person offended would never forgive you? One person who will always forgive is God because he is all-merciful.

God is the Master of Forgiveness. No matter what our offense is, God is always ready to forgive us if we turn to him and we’re sorry. "Does that mean we can just sin since we’ll always be forgiven?" No, it means that we are called by God to be like him. How do we know what he is like? We know what God is like from what Jesus has told us. He is love, so we are called to love one another. For that reason the commandments tell us not to steal, kill, cheat, lie, or spread bad rumors about others. We love others because God has loved us and shown us how to love.

There are times we fail to be like God, and we know it. We know we need to say we’re sorry, but we’re afraid of being rejected. Our Church provides us a safe place to be forgiven. The Sacrament of Reconciliation (also called Penance or Confession) is a very special gift. There, through the priest, we meet Jesus who forgives our sins. No sin is too big for Jesus. Jesus offers his Father’s love that opens wide to every person who asks sincerely for forgiveness. No one has too many sins for God’s mercy. Remember always that our God is all-merciful.